The year is 1470. The place is the remote Kingdom of Hungary,far from the great Torah centers of Spain and France. In the royal capital of Tirnau, the Jewish community celebrates the arrival of itsnew Rabbi, a great Torah luminary who has been persuaded tocome from Spain where the persecution of Jews intensifies day byday. His name is Rabbi Yitzchak de Cordova, the author of Sefer Haminhagim. Among the gentile observers of the gala welcome prepared forthe new Rabbi is young Prince Ordan, heir to the throne of Hungary. The great spiritual joy of the downtrodden Jews of Tirnau makes such a profound impression on the young crown prince thathe feels his whole world has turned upside down. From that day on, he begins a long and courageous odyssey that completely changes his life and threatens severe repercussions both for himself and the Jews of Tirnau, Heir to the Throne is a classic historical novel, written in Yiddish by Shmuel Rothstein and first published in Poland in the early part of the century. In this sensitive and lyrical translation by Chana Feferkorn, the story of the Baal Haminhagim and the Crown Prince of Hungary, an almost forgotten footnote to Jewish history, come to life in rich descriptive colors and an intensity of feeling that captivates the Imagination. It is a story of friendship and devotion,of faith, courage and extraordinary heroism in a world seething with greed, treachery and hatred. As the setting of the story moves back and forth between Hungary and Spain in the years immediately preceding the establishment of the Inquisition and the Expulsion, the reader also gains new insight into a period of tragic upheaval in Jewish history..
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