A Midnight Drama on the Streets of Leningrad

The first hours after the Frierdiker Rebbe’s arrest in the hands of the GPU thugs, 92 years ago.

– PART I –

The rattle of the GPU vehicle momentarily disturbed the still of night in Leningrad. A moment later the hum of the motor could still be heard from the distance and the car carrying the Rebbe Rayatz passed from sight. The car had just left the Rebbe’s house on its way to the unknown.

On the corner of the street stood the Chassid, Rabbi Eliyahu Chaim Altheus, one of the Chassidim closest to the Rebbe and his family, confused and in shock. He had just gone to sleep when he suddenly heard firm knocking at the door. He got up in a fright for, at a time like this, any knock in the middle of the night bode no good.

He called out quietly, “Who’s there?”

“Mendel Schneerson,” was the answer, also quiet.

That was the man who was going to be the Rebbe’s son-in-law, later the seventh Nasi in the chain of Chabad leaders. He was in Leningrad, helping the Rebbe with his various activities to spread Judaism.

Before opening the door, R’ Altheus realized that something serious had happened at the Rebbe’s house. He quickly opened up and there stood Ramash who briefly told him what happened.

How did the Rebbe’s son-in-law-to-be know about it when he wasn’t present during the arrest?  It was the quick-thinking cleverness of his fiancee, the future Rebbetzin, Miss Chaya Mussia, that prevailed to assist her father and the entire flock of Chassidim.

Shortly before the GPU broke into the Rebbe’s house, Ramash and Chaya Mussia arrived at the house. The Rebbetzin, with her keen senses realized that something terrible was taking place. She asked her chassan to wait in the yard while she went upstairs.

As she entered the house and saw the “angels of destruction,” she knew she had to act quickly. She entered one of the rooms and while there alone for a moment, despite the terrible danger, she opened the window facing the courtyard and called out, “Schneerson, guests came to visit us!”

Ramash knew precisely who she was referring to and that it was time to take action, for every moment counted. Despite the late hour, he ran to inform those close to the Rebbe about the arrest. He first ran to the home of R’ Altheus.

R’ Altheus and his two sons dressed quickly and left the house. The group dispersed. Ramash and one of the sons hurried in the dark toward the house of the Rebbe’s secretary, R’ Chaim Lieberman, to wake him up and warn him. He would be arrested right after the Rebbe. In R’ Lieberman’s house were many documents and letters that the Rebbe wrote to Chassidim throughout Russia, in which he strengthened them in spreading Judaism.  These letters also contained the names of the yeshivos and chadarim, money matters and support, names of Torah teachers; a list blacker-than-black that could not fall into the hands of the thugs.

R’ Lieberman, upon hearing the news, realized that at any moment the evil ones could knock at the door and arrest him. He quickly lit a fire and burned all the incriminating documents. Indeed, not long afterward, the GPU knocked at his door. They had missed it by a few minutes; the incriminating documents had turned to ash.

Ramash moved on to the next step, carrying out the task he had been given. He went to where the manuscripts were stored, and throughout the night and morning he transferred bundles of manuscripts to hiding places that had been prearranged in case of danger.

 – PART II –

During the search of the house, Chaya Mussia reported to her father that she had managed to convey the message to her fiance. The Rebbe knew he could rely on his future son-in-law’s perspicacity and realized that his secretary had been told about the unexpected guests as well as the arrest and that, therefore, he probably burned all the incriminating evidence.

Even during these tense, difficult moments, the Rebbe’s compassionate and fatherly heart flowed with endless love and caring.  The Rebbe did not fear for himself at this fateful time, but for the welfare of his loyal secretary. He wished in his heart that his secretary would know to escape, for why should he also suffer?

The only one who knew all the ins and outs of the spiritual net that the Rebbe had cast over many cities throughout Russia was R’ Lieberman. He was also the only one who knew with whom to speak in each place, to where to send letters and where each of the people the Rebbe had sent to disseminate Torah was located. He also knew what needed to be done.

The perpetuation of Judaism in Russia was the most important thing to the Rebbe during these difficult and terrifying hours.

Another concern the Rebbe had was about his writings, the holy manuscripts, lest they fall into the hands of the wicked ones. True, when he was brought to prison he had managed to receive information about the work of his future son-in-law, but he did not know whether the job of smuggling out the holy writings had been completed successfully.

In his diary, the Rebbe wrote that while sitting in prison he was very afraid about the fate of the writings and the fate of the one who had been given the dangerous job to save them: “And what will we do with the one meant to be my son-in-law, Mr. Menachem, who went to the dwelling of my secretary, Mr. Lieberman. Was he, G-d forbid, caught in the trap?”

The Rebbe continues to write, “The general picture shook me and a flood of tears burst forth from my eyes. Very hot tears coursed down my face, my heart was agitated and my entire body trembled: who knows whether, G-d forbid the manuscripts were taken… did they touch the light of my eyes, the holy manuscripts… and if such a thing were to be… great is the devastation, will they too, the holy manuscripts, also be brought to prison?”

Thankfully, the secret and dangerous mission was successful and, as a result, the agents were unable to lay their impure hands on this treasure. The holy writings were saved thanks to the Rebbe, for the benefit of future generations.

 – PART III –

R’ Lieberman’s own description is fascinating, as he related the events of that night decades later:

“The Rebbe shlita, who was then the future son-in-law, came to my house together with the son of R’ Eliyahu Chaim Altheus. The gate to our courtyard was already locked at this late hour and in order to get in, they needed to ask the concierge to open up for them and this became known to the GPU, as I found out later.

“They did not enter my house then, but let me know, through the window, about the search being conducted at the Rebbe’s house. Then they immediately fled so they wouldn’t be caught in the net.  When I heard this, I immediately took all the mail and everything that could arouse suspicion, and burned it all.

“Before the fire went out, there were knocks at the door and the secret police burst in. As soon as they entered, they turned towards the fire and said to themselves, ‘Everything is already burned.’ Nevertheless, they conducted a search of the house and took every document with them and arrested me.

“During my interrogation, I was asked, ‘Who were the two people who came to your house in the middle of the night before you were arrested?’ Apparently, they knew about it from the concierge. Since they saw that I had burned the suspicious papers, they realized they had been messengers from the Rebbe’s house to inform me of the severity of the situation. They wanted to know who the two men were.

“I told them that they were two drunks who forgot their address and came to my house saying it was their house and I should let them in. I don’t know if they believed me but they did not ask me anything further about it.”

 – PART IV –

R’ Altheus dressed hurriedly and left the house to head to R’ PG to wake him up and report on the serious situation. He also got up in a fright, dressed hurriedly, and together they went to the home of R’ SB. Due to the fright and excitement, he became weak and remained at home while R’ Altheus and RPG rushed toward Machavaya 22, the Rebbe’s home.

The two made their way quickly down Litinov Street. As they approached Pantilamanska Street, they noticed that on the other side of the street was a group of GPU agents. One of the agents noticed the dignified visages of the two Chassidim and pointed toward them. The others turned their gaze toward them and began walking in their direction. The danger was palpable, close enough to touch.  The two Chassidim, gifted with great cleverness, realized what they were facing and immediately turned into the first alleyway and disappeared via yards and side streets.

It was only after walking for many minutes, as they approached the juncture of Nodyez Dinska Street and the corner of Pantilamanska, that they felt that the danger had passed. They stood there for a few minutes to consider whether to approach the Rebbe’s house. They realized that it was very dangerous to approach the place. R’ Altheus was overcome with emotion. “Whatever will be, will be; I must go and see what is happening at the Rebbe’s house.”

R’ Altheus approached the Rebbe’s house with silent steps and from a distance contemplated the goings on at the entrance of the building. “Before my eyes, there was a frightening and terrifying sight, disaster and distress were before me.  A scene of fear is what I saw. My soul was greatly shaken up.” This is what he wrote in his memoirs.

The Rebbe sat in a car with an open roof. On either side were two armed policemen. At just that moment, the car began to move and the evil ones noticed the Chassid with the dignified appearance standing on the corner. They glared at him with hate-filled eyes. R’ Altheus caught the Rebbe’s eyes. “With wise eyes filled with kindness and mercy, literally face to face with me, he shined his face towards me with much compassion and nodded his head in serenity and much love.”

In Kostroma, I heard him say, “When I saw you as I sat in the car, a tranquility hovered within me, knowing that you, a heimishe (familiar) person would go into the house (to assist the family).  And I recalled in what situation we saw each other an hour earlier, and in what kind of a situation we are seeing each other now.”

R’ Altheus, who stood rooted to his spot, recovered instantaneously and thought quickly about his next move. He realized that the Rebbe would quickly disappear into the unknown dark regions of the secret agents, and therefore someone needed to follow them in order to know where the Rebbe was being taken. Without hesitation, he got into a nearby car in order to chase after the car holding the Rebbe.

Suddenly, he felt a hand grab hold of him to hold him back from carrying out his plan. He recoiled in shock, and then suddenly saw Mrs. Chana, the eldest daughter of the Rebbe standing next to him.

“What are you doing? Where? Why? What help will it provide?” she asked, as tears poured from her eyes like water. “It is more important now that you come to the house with us, to think and consider what we need to do know.  We can’t afford to waste even a moment.”

R’ Altheus and the Rebbe’s oldest daughter joined the Rebbetzin, the other daughters and son-in-law of the Rebbe, who still stood in the street, overcome and stunned into silence. This very moment, they had parted from their dearly beloved, and who knew…

“We were struck dumb, dazed like the completely forlorn. All of us together, literally in the throes of death which enveloped us, embittered souls in darkness and the shadow of death,” is how R’ Altheus described what they all felt at those moments on the streets of Leningrad, at three in the morning.

The Rebbe’s oldest daughter broke the silence, insisting that they could not just stand around in silence in the face of the terrible abduction of their father, “Let’s go up to the house in order to confer and consider how to save him from the trap they have laid at his feet.  She added the fact that all knew good and well, that the Rebbe was in great danger and every second counted.

With faltering steps, R’ Altheus entered the Rebbe’s home. The first place that he entered was the large room where the davening was held.  A tremor ran through his body as he beheld the bowed figure of Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah, the mother of the Rebbe, standing next to the Aron Kodesh with her head and half of her body inside the ark itself.  She was crying out from the bitterness of her soul, “Ribbono shel Olam! It is for Your Torah and service that my precious only son was taken.  Help me, G-d of our salvation, and save him from the hands of the villains. Our G-d should be with him like He was with his holy forefathers, and surely He will not leave me nor will He forsake me.”

R’ Altheus attempted to soothe her with words of consolation and convince her to sit and rest a bit, due to her weakness and poor health, but the Rebbetzin did not seem to hear him at all.

He then continued on to the other rooms in order to meet with the other family members. He was particularly concerned about the Rebbetzin, the wife of the Rebbe Rayatz, since he knew her to be a physically weak woman.  As he walked through the rooms, he suddenly found his feet rooted to their place, as he was overcome with shock.

The door to the holy room of the Rebbe, the yechidus room, known as gan eden ha’elyon, was wide open.  The door that was always closed, as a divide between the holy and the holy of holies, was open.  The room that no man would dare enter without explicit permission, was now open to all and sundry.  As he writes in his diary account of the events, it seemed to him as a “desecration of the holy! The destruction of the chamber of G-d!” The holy room, outside of which Chassidim stood at times for long hours in order to have the privilege to enter with awe and trembling, now stood bereft and open to all.

When he entered the room of the Rebbe, he saw another shocking sight: The Rebbe’s son-in-law Rashag was standing with Nosson Gurary opposite the Rebbe’s table, both of them crying bitter tears.  The drawers of the desk were all wide open, with various important papers and letters strewn about, including Chassidic manuscripts.  It was all cast about without any order, on the desk and under it, on the floor, in the drawers and on the chairs. It was a sight of destruction and devastation.

When the two spotted R’ Altheus, Rashag being overcome with pain and fear let out a fearsome wordless cry.  It seemed like forever that R’ Altheus stood there in that holy spot, unable to open his mouth.  The three stared at each other in silence, with eyes swollen from crying. Emotionally overwrought and with their minds numb, they began to sort through the papers that were left behind after the search. Perhaps there remained among the papers some with content, that might be dangerous to leave about if the agents returned to search again, which needed to be hidden away as soon as possible.  They checked each paper, and whatever seemed dangerous or forbidden was burned immediately.

As they searched through the papers, they came across a small note in Yiddish, handwritten in pencil, clearly legible and organized:

“Hear me, Chassidim and all sons of the Jewish people who are hoping for Moshiach.  Give over in my name to all of the Chassidim in the world, that I have instructed that in all Chassidic shuls they should say every day after Shacharis, including on Shabbos, a portion of Tehillim as it is divided by the days of the month with a quorum, and afterward to say kaddish.  All merchants and business people should go to shul to daven and be present when they learn Ein Yaakov, and Hashem should help them with ample parnassa.  Say to the Chassidim that I instruct, and to ordinary Jews say that out of Ahavas Yisrael and for the good of the Jewish people I ask, that they fulfill the aforementioned.  And Hashem should help them with a year of good fortune, spiritually and materially, and we should merit the complete Geula through Moshiach, amen!”

When was this note written? Did the Rebbe foresee what would happen to him and prepare this in advance, specifically for this turn of events? No man knows, but what they did know was that they needed to rend the heavens with the recitation of Tehillim.

 – PART V –

A long while passed before the family members gathered their wits about them and began to recount how the agents had to come to the house, and the order of events of the search and arrest.  Upon review of the events, a ray of hope appeared when they realized that the evil ones had behaved with respect and proper manners towards the Rebbe, throughout the ordeal.  They did not speak harshly to the Rebbe, nor did they treat him with disrespect.  Even the search was not very thorough and severe.

When they had wanted to take the manuscripts of the Rebbe Rashab, the Rebbe told them that he is not prepared for them to take possession of these holy writings, and the wicked ones acquiesced and returned them to him immediately. Similarly, they did not prevent the Rebbe from walking about the rooms although this was against standard arrest protocol.  They went so far as to even allow him to speak his mind. 

When he warned them to think long and hard whether it was worthwhile for them to arrest him, as it would create a storm of outcry in the world, the agents answered that the GPU was a powerful organization that was prepared to take responsibility for its actions.  The Rebbe insisted that despite that fact they should still reconsider and even suggested that they call the head of the GPU on his telephone. They acceded to his demand and called.  However, the answer was in the negative.  All of the above were not the usual tactics of the most terror-inducing government agency in all of communist Russia.

The beasts in human guise even agreed that he could take his tallis and tefillin, and a few holy books, which would also be considered an accomplishment. When he insisted that they call a car for him as he was not prepared to walk to the prison on foot, they again yielded and called for a car to come take them.  This was despite the fact that hundreds of arrests were carried out that night, and there were no available cars.

* * *

After a brief drive, the black wagon turned right on Shpalerna.  On this street, stood a large building, number 24, nicknamed “Shpalerka.” There was no mistaking this terrifying structure with its sealed doors and gates.  In the predawn dark of night, the building seemed to project even more terror and despair. A satanic house, whose name inspired dread in the hearts of millions of residents.

That was the night of 15 Sivan, ninety-two years ago, when the terrible arrest of the Rebbe Rayatz took place. ■