Joseph
Süß Oppenheimer (1698?-4 February 1738) was an Ashkenazi Jewish
banker and court Jew (German: Hofjude), the financial adviser in
Stuttgart for Karl Alexander, Duke of Württemberg (1733-1737).
During his career, Oppenheimer made numerous enemies, a number of
whom plotted to exact their revenge on him following the Duke's
death.
Oppenheimer
was accused of various crimes – fraud, embezzelment, treason,
graft, and lecherous relations with gentile women – all of which
were traditional anti-Semitic charges. At his heavily publicized
trial, Jud Süß (Jew Süß) as he was colloquially known by the
citizenry, was sentenced to death on unspecified crimes. While in
custody awaiting execution, he was twice given the opportunity to
convert to Christianity, which he refused. Strangulated at a gibbet
outside Stuttgart, his corpse was displayed in a cage there for six
years until the then Duke of Württemberg allowed it to be buried
below the gallows. A number of medals, including this Shraubtaler,
were produced as keepsakes for those who attended the events.
The
case was so notorious that the records were sealed for 180 years. The
story intrigued a number of writers and film-makers. Beginning with
the 1827 novella by Wilhelm Hauff, they saw in the subject a way to
examine deeper metaphysical themes. A 1940 German film, entitled Jud
Süß, was a vehicle to exploit anti-Semitic tropes for the purposes
of Nazi propaganda and made it the most anti-Semitic film produced.
After the war, the Allied Military Occupation banned the film and
most of the extant copies were destroyed.