
Yeshiva in Volozhin
For most of the nineteenth century, the Volozhin (Bel., Valozhyn) yeshiva was the most important institution of its type in Eastern Europe. It was founded around the year 1803 by Ḥayim ben Yitsḥak, the leading disciple of the Gaon of Vilna. Ḥayim ben Yitsḥak’s fame attracted many youths to Volozhin, and when the small town could no longer support so many students, he established a yeshiva that provided subsidies to students. His success at dispatching fund raisers enabled him to build a private study hall that allowed the yeshiva to be both financially independent and physically isolated.Study in the Volozhin yeshiva took place 24 hours a day without vacations—a reflection of the view that the existence of the world depended on the study of Torah. Two heads of the yeshiva shared responsibilities, each lecturing three days a week. Ḥayim Soloveichik was the last and best known of these; he developed a very popular style of Talmud study characterized by deep analysis and a concern for basic principles.