The Blood Libel

 

In 1171 כ' סיון the first blood libel in continental Europe was orchestrated in Blois France As a result of a church-sponsored trial,31 members of the Jewish community were burned at the stake. The רבינו תם & the ריב"ם organized a fast day & to say סליחות on כ' סיון. They considered this fast more important than 'צום גדלי. Since then there were 150 recorded blood libels. In 1648, 744 קהילות were destroyed during the גזירת ת"ח ות"ט, In total up to 50,000 Yidden were killed. When they killed 6000 Yidden in Nimirov, (70 miles from Uman) the ש"ך reestablished the fast day & סליחות to be held on כ' סיון In 1946, one year after the end of the holocaust where six  million Yidden were murdered, the Hungarian Gedolim reintroduced the תענית & סליחות* of כ' סיון *Fasting, only for those under the age of 55 years