Orthodox synagogue

If you’re trying to solve the story of Sopron’s Orthodox synagogue, you start with a clue that’s almost too practical to sound dramatic: money and timing. This synagogue—Ortodok zsinagóga / Orthodoxe Synagoge—was built in 1890–1891, and the project cost 23,800 forint. The community didn’t just stumble into that figure; they took a loan to make it happen. And once you know that, the building starts to feel less like a monument and more like a hard-won decision.

A community that organized itself fast

The case begins with the people behind the brickwork. The orthodox community was founded in 1873 by 48 people who had broken away from their previous community. That number matters, because it explains the speed of everything that follows. In the very founding year, they chose their first rabbi: Grünwald Manó. Their first president was Pollák Salamon. Then you hit the first “evidence wall”: the long line of presidents who kept the institution moving. Over time, the presidency was held by Fuehs Vilmos, Gellis Miksa, Frischmann Jakab, Wittmann Károly, Klaber Károly, Fuchs Jónás, Klaber Adolf, Klaber Ödön, Ullmann Henrik, Rosenberger Béla, Schiff Ödön, Friedmann Izidor, and finally Weiler Béla.