Since 2022, the Moreausaal in the palace at Eisenstadt has hosted the first-ever exhibition exploring the Esterházy family's role as protectors of the 'Seven Communities'. Isolated groups of Jewish settlers had existed in the region of present-day Burgenland as early as the 14th and 15th centuries, but Jewish life only flourished here after the Esterházy family had established itself as rulers from the 17th century onwards. After Paul I Prince Esterházy resumed a pro-Jewish policy, he allowed Jews to resettle in his dominions from 1676 onwards, despite having previously expelled them from the communities of Eistenstadt, Mattersdorf, and Lackenbach in 1671 - presumably under the influence of Emperor Leopold I's decree of 1670/71 banishing Jews from Vienna and Lower Austria. The princely Jewish communities, since then known as the 'Seven Communities', endured from 1739 until the end of Esterházy protective rule in 1848, and subsequently developed a bustling economic and intellectual-cultural life.
Now, for the first time, an exhibition in the Moreausaal of Eisenstadt palace is devoted to Jewish life under the Esterházys, revealing previously little known and researched aspects of Jewish history in the former Esterházy domains of then-western Hungary. On display are historical documents and publications, plans, maps, and objects, many of which have remained largely unknown until now, which offer a multi-faceted look into the living situations and conditions of Jews under Esterházy protection.
20 % discount on admission to the exhibition "Schewa Kehilot" with the Burgenland Card.