Megilas Vintz (The Scroll of Vintz)
Elhanan Helen
1616
7
Every day they took from us whatever their hearts desired. They said to us, “We are needed to protect you from the mob.” We had no choice but to believe them. We had to take being cheated. They constantly threatened our lives telling us to give them whatever they wanted, “Or we’ll let the fellows loose on you.”
Creator Bio
Elhanan Helen
Elhanan ben Abraham Helen was an eyewitness to the Fettmilch uprising in Frankfurt am Main (1612–1616).
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Megilas Vintz (The Scroll of Vintz), named after the leader of the uprising, Vincentz (Vintz) Fettmilch, is a long poem, written in Hebrew and Yiddish. It gives detailed and vivid descriptions of the persecutions against the Jews during those years. It was probably first published in Frankfurt in 1616.
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