The Great Inquiry, 1823–1824

This chapter outlines the most important episode in the political history of Hasidism in central Poland, the government investigation conducted in the years 1823 and 1824. It clarifies how the investigation showed that Hasidism could potentially become an important element in the government's more general political program for the Jewish population. Once state officials began to connect Hasidism to the broader issue of the Jewish Question, their interest in the movement greatly increased. The chapter also discusses the investigation of 1823–4 that was more significantly influenced by the Enlightenment approach to the reform of Jewish society than earlier investigations had been. A major factor was the active participation of Staszic, who constantly returned to the continuing debate on the Jewish Question.