Old Synagogue (Bielefeld)

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Bielefeld old synagogue 1905
Predecessor: The first synagogue in Bielefeld from 1847 on Klosterplatz
Synagogue fire in Westphalian Latest News (Bielefeld) on November 11, 1938

The Old Synagogue in Bielefeld , an independent city in the Detmold administrative district in northeast North Rhine-Westphalia , was built in 1904/05 and destroyed by the National Socialists in the November pogrom of 1938 .

history

After the synagogue , built in 1847 on the property of Wendtschen Hof on today's Klosterplatz, became too small for the flourishing community with 250 households and over 1100 members, services on major public holidays had to be held in rented rooms for a long time. Because the size of the property on Klosterplatz was insufficient for the planned new building, the Bielefeld Jewish Community, under the direction of its chairman Moritz Katzenstein and rabbi Felix Coblenz, decided on a new building at Turnerstrasse 5.

In May 1902, the architect Eduard Fürstenau, who worked as a government master builder in the Prussian building administration in Berlin, won an architecture competition with his design. He was the only non-Jew among the four competitions. His architectural style followed the neo-Byzantine architecture in which he had built the Dortmund synagogue shortly before in 1900 . The foundation stone was laid on May 18, 1904.

The new synagogue, inaugurated on September 20, 1905, offered space for 450 men and 350 women. The central dome building on a square floor plan had high curved gables and huge arched windows with leaded glazing . The dome over the crossing was crowned by a lantern . Inside, the dome rested on four sandstone pillars . Under the dome was the Torah shrine , which in turn was crowned by a scaled-down replica of the main dome. In front of the Torah shrine stood the Almemor in the form of an anvil . The women's galleries were on the side walls . Behind the Torah shrine was the gallery for the choir and the large organ .

“ The huge dome rises proudly, with a far-shining Mogen-dowid [Star of David] on top. Inside, the dome rests with four curved arches on four mighty heavy sandstone pillars. The large windows let bright light in from all sides. The artistically outstanding stained glass - donations from generous parishioners - softly dampen the light and give the house a special ornament. Inside, the Aron-hakodesch [Torah shrine], which is vaulted by a smaller dome, just like the outer one, makes a wonderful impression. The dais, on which the prayer desk and the tasteful pulpit rise, are clad with magnificent red marble. Behind and above the Ark of the Covenant is the place for the choir and the organ [...] The building adorns the city and with its 41 meter high dome protrudes over the whole area. "

Israelite Family Gazette, September 28, 1905

During the November pogroms of 1938 , the synagogue was robbed by the National Socialists on the night of November 9th and 10th, 1938 and set on fire. Around 60 valuable Torah scrolls and the Torah curtain woven by the Bielefeld artist Gertrud Kleinhempel were destroyed in flames. The fire ruin was removed from November 1939. The fire in the Bielefeld synagogue was captured by an amateur filmmaker. The film document that has survived to this day is one of the few recordings of a burning synagogue during the pogroms on November 9, 1938. As such, it can be seen in the Jewish Museum Berlin , the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington and in various TV documentaries. A memorial plaque on Turnerstrasse has been a reminder of the destroyed synagogue since 1978 .

Memorial plaque in memory of the old synagogue on Turnerstrasse

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Dagmar Giesecke: September 20, 1905: The new synagogue in Turnerstrasse is inaugurated . In: Historical "RückKlick". Bielefeld City Archives , 2015, accessed on May 9, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Monika Minniger: From a stronghold of Reform Judaism. Collection of sources on Bielefeld Judaism in the 19th and 20th centuries , Verlag für Regionalgeschichte, Bielefeld 2006; Pp. 62-72; ISBN 3-89534-611-X
  3. ↑ Anonymous: Bielefeld, May 19 (laying of the foundation stone) . In: Allgemeine Zeitung des Judenthums, 1904, issue 23, 3.6.1904. 1904, Retrieved May 9, 2019 .
  4. ↑ Quoted from Monika Minniger: From a stronghold of Reform Judaism ; P. 69
  5. ↑ Jochen Rath: November 9, 1938, The Pogrom Night in Bielefeld. In: Historical "RückKlick". Bielefeld City Archives , 2015, accessed on February 21, 2019 .
  6. ↑ Photos of the fire ruin on www.yadvashem.org
  7. ^ Synagogue fire on film / Unique Bielefeld document in the museum / Donation from the Böcker couple . In: Bielefelder Tageblatt , September 20, 2005. Retrieved October 10, 2008. 

literature

  • Klaus-Dieter Alicke: Lexicon of the Jewish communities in the German-speaking area. 3 volumes. Gütersloher Verlagshaus , Gütersloh 2008, ISBN 978-3-579-08035-2 . ( Online version )
  • Monika Minninger: Lost space. History of the Bielefeld Synagogue 1905 - 1938 - 2005. The panels of an exhibition in the Bielefeld City Archives ... Verlag Hans Gieselmann Bielefeld 2006 (with numerous colored images)
  • Günter Birkmann, Hartmut Stratmann: Consider who you are standing in front of. 300 synagogues and their history in Westphalia and Lippe. Klartext, Essen 1998, ISBN 3-88474-661-8 , pp. 132-133.
  • Elfi Pracht : Jewish cultural heritage in North Rhine-Westphalia. Part III: Detmold administrative district (=  contributions to the architectural and art monuments of Westphalia . Volume 1.1 ). JP Bachem Verlag, Cologne 1998, ISBN 3-7616-1397-0 , p. 28-33 . (not evaluated)

See also

Coordinates: 52 ° 1 ′ 21.46 ″  N , 8 ° 32 ′ 13.7 ″  E