Pale of Settlement

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The Pale of Settlement was a western region of the Russian Empire with varying borders that existed from 1791 to 1917 in which permanent residency by Jewish subjects was allowed, and outside of which Jewish residency, permanent or temporary, was mostly forbidden. Most Jews were still excluded from residency in a number of cities within the Pale as well. A few Jews were allowed to live outside the area, including those with university education, members of the most affluent of the merchant guilds and particular artisans, some military personnel, and their dependents including families and sometimes servants. Pale is an archaic term meaning an enclosed area. Outside the Pale, Jews were also allowed to settle in certain colonies such as in Siberia. The Pale of Settlement was established under the reign of Empress Catherine the Great (r. 1762–1796) after the First Partition of Poland (1772), when a significant Jewish population came under Russian rule, in order to hasten Russian settlement...

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