On this day 122 years ago, on April 16, 1903 (March 19, 1903 lunar calendar), a brutal massacre took place in Kishnov. On April 16, 1903, in Kishnov, Russia, a large number of Jews were killed in the Easter morning massacre. Military officials were present, but when mad peasants raped and murdered Jews, they made no attempt to stop it. It is believed that the massacre was ordered by government officials. Jews were persecuted during the 10-year reign of Tsar Nicholas II, but only since 1881 have there been mass killings of Jews. The tsar was reportedly angry because he believed that Jews had not only formed a revolutionary organization this year, but also provoked 500 strikes against factories. Kishniov had a 100,000 population, about half of which were Jews, so it was the right place to massacre Jews. Since the beginning of winter, the peasants of the local lower society have held a grudge against Jews because of the murder of a Christian boy. Many farmers believe that the boy was killed by Jews, because the Jews needed his blood to prepare for the Passover. The death of a Christian girl on Easter Eve added to the above superstition. On Easter morning, leaflets appeared everywhere in Kishniov, saying that the tsar had approved the local Christians to give Jews "blood punishment." By noon, the mobs had ransacked the ghetto.