The term "pogrom" in the meaning of large-scale, targeted, and repeated anti-Jewish rioting, saw its first use in the 19th century, in reference to the anti-Jewish pogroms in the Russian Empire. The issue of pogroms arose sometime after the Pale of Settlement was created by the Russian government to prevent the Jewish population from spreading over the country unless they would convert to Christian Orthodox.
Read more about Anti-Jewish Pogroms In The Russian Empire: Pre-1881 (Odessa), 1881-1884, 1903–1906, Organization of The Pogroms, Influence of The Pogroms, Russian Pogroms in Arts and Literature
Famous quotes containing the words russian and/or empire:
“Whatever qualities [Tsar Nicholas I] may have shown in his own kingly profession, it must be admitted that in his dealings with the Russian Muse he was at the worst a vicious bully, at the best a clown.”
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)
“Our ancestors were savages. The story of Romulus and Remus being suckled by a wolf is not a meaningless fable. The founders of every state which has risen to eminence have drawn their nourishment and vigor from a similar wild source. It was because the children of the Empire were not suckled by the wolf that they were conquered and displaced by the children of the northern forests who were.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)