Saul Wahl (c. 1542—1622[1]) was a wealthy and politically influential Polish Jew.[2] According to legend, he was king of Poland for a single day,[3] August 18, 1587.[4] Wahl had numerous children, including the renowned Polish rabbi, Meir Wahl.[4][5]
Saul's father was Samuel Judah Katzenellenbogen.[4]
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The fact that Saul was king of Poland is not well-supported by historical data, but it gained a firm place in the folk beliefs of the Jewish people.[1][3]
The version set forth in the Jewish Encyclopedia is as follows:
At a point in his life, Lithuanian Noble Mikołaj Krzysztof "the Orphan" Radziwiłł (1549–1616) wanted to repent for the numerous sins he committed when he was younger. He commenced a pilgrimage to Rome in order to consult the pope as to the best means for the propitiation of his misdeeds. The pope advised him to dismiss all his servants and to live for a few years as a wandering beggar. When the prescribed period ended, Radziwill was penniless in the city of Padua, Italy. He pleaded for help, but his claims of being a noble fell on deaf ears. Radziwiłł decided to appeal to Samuel Judah Katzenellenbogen, the rabbi of Padua. Katzenellenbogen treated him nicely and provided him with means to return to Lithuania. To repay the favor, Katzenellenbogen requested that Radziwiłł find his son Saul, who years before had left to study in a yeshiva in Poland. When he visited Poland, he checked yeshivas until he found Saul in Brest-Litovsk (now Brest, Belarus). Upon meeting and getting to know Saul, Radziwiłł was very impressed with his intellect and offered to provide Saul for boarding in his own castle where Saul can pursue his studies. Radziwill's court personal were similary impressed with Saul, and his reputation spread throughout Poland. Stephen Báthory, who was King of Poland died in 1586, and the Poles were split between being ruled by the Zamoyski family and the Zborowskis. Under Polish law at that time, if electors could not agree upon a king, an outsider should be appointed "rex pro tempore" (temporary king). Radziwill proposed that Saul Wahl be appointed the temporary king and Wahl was elected to this high office to shout of "Long live King Saul!" The length of his reign range from one night to a few days. During the short reign, Wahl passed numerous laws, including laws that eased the conditions for Polish Jews. The name "Wahl" was given him from the German word Wahl (meaning "election").
According to historian Gustav Karpeles, "an historical kernel lies hidden in the legend" and concludes that the "legend rests upon an historical substratum."[1] He explains: Mikołaj Krzysztof "the Orphan" Radziwiłł made a famous pilgrimage to Jerusalem.[1] Radziwiłł himself describes how in Italy, on the way back from the pilgrimage, he was attacked by robbers and was left in Ancona without any money.[1] Radziwiłł describes how his pleas for help were ignored by all except a Jewish merchant the only one to believe his claims of being a Polish Noble.[1] The merchant provided him with funds to return to Poland.[1] Karpeles concludes that this narrative by Radziwiłł is to an extent consistent with the legend narrative, that it was Samuel Judah Katzenellenbogen, Saul Wahl's father, who helped Radziwiłł.[1]