Khust

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Khust (Ukrainian and Rusyn: Xуст, Romanian: Hust, Hungarian: Huszt, Czech and Slovak: Chust) is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast (province) in western Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of the Khustsky Raion (district), the city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast, and is located at around 48°10′53″N, 23°17′52″E.

Khust was the capital of the short-lived republic of Carpatho-Ukraine.

Contents 1 Origin of name 2 History 3 Tourist sights 4 Famous people 5 Yeshiva 6 Rabbis 7 See also 8 External links

[edit] Origin of name

The name possibly related to the name of the stream Husztica. It is also conceivable that the name of the city comes from a Romanian traditional food ingredient - husti.

[edit] History

The settlement was first mentioned as Huszth, in 1329. Its castle was built in 1090 by St. Ladislaus as a defence against the Cumanians, was destroyed during the Mongol invasion of Hungary and was rebuilt around 1318. The town got privileges in 1329.

In 1458 King Matthias imprisoned his uncle, the rebellious Mihály Szilágyi in the castle. In 1514, during György Dózsa's peasant revolt local peasants captured the castle. In 1526 the area became a part of Transylvania.

The army of Ferdinand I captured the town in 1546. In 1594 the Tartars destroyed the town, but could not take the castle. The castle was besieged in 1644 by the army of George I Rákóczi, in 1657 by the Polish, in 1661-62 by the Ottoman and Tartar hordes. Count Ferenc Rhédey, the ruling prince of Transylvania and high steward of Máramaros county died in the castle on May 13, 1667.

The castle surrendered to the Kurucs on August 17, 1703, and the independence of Transylvania was proclaimed here. It was the last castle the Habsburgs occupied when suppressing the freedom fight of the Kurucs, in 1711. The seriously damaged castle was struck by lightning and burnt down on July 3, 1766; a storm brought down its tower in 1798, it has been in ruins ever since then.

In 1910 Huszt had 10,292 citizens, 5,230 Rusyns/Ukrainians, 3,505 Hungarians and 1,535 Germans. Until the Treaty of Trianon it belonged to Hungary and was the seat of the Huszt district of Máramaros county, since then it belongs to Ukraine. In 2001 it had 31.900 inhabitants (28,500 Ukrainians, 1,700 Hungarians, 1,200 Russians and 100 Roma (otherwise known as Gypsies)). Until the 19th century the city's population also included ethnic Romanians (800 Romanians as of the 1880 census).

[edit] Tourist sights

• Castle ruins
• Protestant fortress church 13th-14th century, Protestant since 1524, fortified in 1616, 1644, 1661 and 1670, restored in 1773 and1888. Its belfry is from the 15th century, until 1861 it had four pinnacles.
• Roman Catholic church (Baroque, 18th century)
• Greek Orthodox church (18th century). Kata Szidónia Petrőczi, the first female Hungarian

[edit] Famous people

• Count József Teleki scientist was born here on December 21, 1738.
• József Koller, historian of religion was born here in 1745.
• Jenő Benda writer, journalist was born here in 1882.
• Ernő Szép writer was born here in 1894.

[edit] Yeshiva

In 1861 Rabbi Moshe (Moses) Shieck aka 'the Maharam Shik' established the largest Yeshiva of Eastern Europe, in Khust. This Yeshiva (Torah academy) had over 800 students. Rabbi Nachman of Braslau had tried to establish a competing Hassidic Yeshiva in 1865 in the same city, but was expelled by Rabbi Shick. This caused him to move to Braslau and to become known as the "Breslaver Rebbe". Rabbi Nachman never held it against Rabbi Shieck, and his students to this day commemorate Rabbi Shick and his Yeshiva. (Source: Bresslav Hassidic info site - Hebrew). However, it must be noted that Rabbi Nachman of Breslov in Ukraine passed away in 1810, which was 50 years earlier! Thus there is great confusion over this subject and section should be corrected after clarification with Breslov chassidim.

[edit] Rabbis

• Grand Rabbi Dushinsky, (later the chief Rabbi of Jerusalem) was the Town Chief Rabbi, and was the Dean of one of the foremost Orthodox Jewish Seminaries, the Maharam Shiek Yeshiva.
• Grand Rabbi Moshe Grunwald, (author of the Arugath Ha'bosem) was the Town Chief Rabbi for a period of time, the Yeshiva experienced termendous growth under his leadership.
  • Rabbi Yehoshua Grunwald, grandson of the Arugath Ha'Bosem, served as the Town Chief Rabbi until their deportation to Auschwitz during World War II. After the war he established a congregation for Chust Holocaust survivors in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn which his son-in-law Grand Rabbi Pinchos Dovid Horowitz, eldest son of the Bostoner Rebbe, now leads.
    

    

    Grand Rabbi Pinchos Dovid Horowitz of Chust-Borough Park
• Grand Rabbi Yisroel Yaakov Leifer, Youngest son and Successor by declaration of Rabbi Mordechai of Nadvorna.
  • Grand Rabbi Shmuel Shmelke Leifer, Son of the first Rebbe, Author of the Beis Shmuel.
  • Grand Rabbi Reuven/Dovid Leifer, Son of the first Rebbe.
    • Grand Rabbi Aharon Moishe Leifer.
    • Grand Rabbi Levi of Chust-Tosh
    • Grand Rabbi Shmuel Shmelka Leifer of Chust
    • Grand Rabbi Baruch Pinchos Leifer of Chust-Israel
    • Grand Rabbi Turnauer of Chust-Williamsburg
    • Grand Rabbi Meshullam Ginsberg of Chust
    • Grand Rabbi Pinchos Dovid Horowitz of Chust-Borough Park

[edit] See also

• Carpathian Ruthenia

[edit] External links

• Khust in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine
• Municipal website (Ukrainian)
• All about Khust City Includes a large image of the city and castle.
• Khust City elections in 2003
• Map of Khust City

	Subdivisions of Zakarpattia Oblast, Ukraine
	Raions: Berehivskyi | Irshavskyi | Khustskyi | Mizhhirskyi | Mukachivskyi | Perechynskyi | Rakhivskyi | Svaliavskyi | Tiachivskyi | Uzhhorodskyi | Velykobereznianskyi | Volovetskyi | Vynohradivskyi
	Cities: Berehove | Chop | Irshava | Khust | Mukacheve | Perechyn | Rakhiv | Svaliava | Tiachiv | Uzhhorod | Vynohradiv
	Urban-type settlements: Mizhhiria | Velykyi Bereznyi | Volovets | more...
	Villages: more...