Synagogue (Esens)
The former synagogue in Esens existed from 1828 to 1938. Local National Socialists destroyed the building during the November pogroms in 1938. The associated Jewish community then dissolved. The last Jews left the city by April 16, 1940.
Building description
The synagogue in Esens was a rectangular, simple hall building, which hardly differed in its floor plan from the neighboring houses, but was about twice as high. The east side faced Burgstrasse. The large main entrance was on the opposite narrow side in the direction of the former school building with the apartment for the synagogue servant (today: August-Gottschalk-Haus ). It was only opened for celebrations. Its outer walls were made of red bricks. There were two arched windows in the east wall, three in the north and four in the south longitudinal wall. A hipped roof completed the structure. The parish usually entered the interior through a low entrance in the north wall. This led into a vestibule. There was a small table with a blue blanket for the showbread . To the right of it was the staircase through which the women reached the gallery . The anteroom on the left side was separated from the interior of the synagogue by a wooden paneling about 1.20 meters high. In its center there was an opening flanked by two pillars. Through this one could see the Torah shrine , which was covered with a blue curtain adorned with gold fringes and Hebrew scripts.
The barrel vault inside the synagogue was painted with a starry sky, the interior walls were painted light blue. On the long sides there were rows of brown benches, on each of which at least three people could sit. There were three platforms in the center between the rows of pews. On the first stood the lecturer's desk. The second was intended for Torah lectures by parishioners and the third was reserved for guests of honor such as rabbis or high officials. Among the most valuable items of equipment were a plate decorated with doves of peace in front of the Torah shrine and two large brass chandeliers, as can be found in many churches in the region.
history
A Jew is first mentioned in Esens in 1637. After that, the Jewish population grew only slowly. Presumably, the Jews of the city initially belonged to the community in Wittmund , whose cemetery was shared by the Esensians. A Jewish school, i.e. a synagogue as a meeting room and prayer house, is mentioned for the first time around 1680. This was probably located in one of the city's Jewish houses or in rented rooms. The community finally broke away from its parent community in Wittmund in 1702 with the establishment of its own cemetery . The meeting room in the back building of a community center turned out to be increasingly unsuitable. It was so small that not even all of the parishioners could fit inside. Therefore, in the 18th century, planning began in the community for the construction of a new synagogue building. The municipality negotiated this with the city's magistrate from 1756. He was ready to provide a plot of land. As a result of the Seven Years' War, however, the Jewish community in Esens became so impoverished that building a synagogue was out of the question for the time being.
When major repairs were required to the rented assembly room, the community decided to build a new synagogue on Burgstrasse. In 1827 the community finally bought two old houses on the west side of Burgstrasse and had them demolished. On the property she had a synagogue and a school building with the apartment for the synagogue servant built. On February 15, 1828, the community inaugurated their new synagogue. The Torah scrolls were brought into the synagogue in a procession . In addition, the music choir of the rifle company played. The community ended the inauguration party with a ball on the evening of February 16 in the Rodenbaek House. This synagogue seems to have hardly been changed during the entire period of its existence - apart from minor repairs.
On September 25, 1860, a devastating fire destroyed a third of the city of Esen. It also made ten Jewish families homeless. They were temporarily housed in the synagogue for some time.
On March 2, 1878, the Jewish community celebrated the 50th anniversary of their synagogue. Land rabbi Buchholz delivered the sermon. Then the community invited to the festival ball in the Harnischer Gasthof. In 1899 the school next to the synagogue was abandoned because it was in disrepair. In its place, today's August-Gottschalk-Haus was built , in which the parish hall, an apartment for the Jewish religious official, a classroom and the ritual bath were housed. Congregational meetings should also take place in this building.
In 1903 the community celebrated the 75th year of the synagogue's existence with a particularly solemn service and a family celebration in Wessels Hotel with banquets, performances and a ball.
On the night of the pogrom on November 10, 1938, around 30 to 40 SA men from Esens gathered in front of the building , presumably also SS men and the fire brigade. Shortly afterwards, some SA men broke into the synagogue. They destroyed the interior and threw furnishings on the street, but were initially reluctant to set fire to the building because they feared the flames would spread to neighboring houses. Eventually they set the building on fire. The fire brigade present limited its activity as instructed to protect neighboring houses. The synagogue burned out completely. After that, the church quickly disbanded. On April 16, 1940, in a letter from the office of the Wittmund district administrator, the district president in Aurich was informed: "The cities of Esens and Wittmund are free of Jews ". She previously sold the property with the rubble of the burned-out synagogue. The building was later converted into a garage. It has been preserved in this function to this day. Since November 1988 a memorial stone on the building has been commemorating the destroyed synagogue.
The Ecumenical Working Group Jews and Christians tried 1989-2009 question of acquiring the remains of the synagogue received. These have been under monument protection since April 20, 1993 . The Institute for the Preservation of Monuments justifies this protection as follows: “The former synagogue and the former Jewish community center represent an important testimony to the Jewish culture in Esens. The remains of the former synagogue are an important testimony to German history and the persecution of the Jews. For historical reasons, the remains of the former synagogue and not only the parish hall can be seen as a monument ”.
See also
- List of synagogues destroyed in the German Reich from 1933 to 1945
- List of former East Frisian synagogues
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Gerd Rokahr : The Jews in Esens. The history of the Jewish community in Esens from its beginnings in the 17th century to its end in the National Socialist era. Aurich 1987. (2nd edition. 1994, ISBN 3-925365-76-1 ), pp. 115-116.
- ↑ a b c Gerd Rokahr: Esens. In: Herbert Obenaus (Ed. In collaboration with David Bankier and Daniel Fraenkel): Historical manual of the Jewish communities in Lower Saxony and Bremen . Volume 1 and 2, Göttingen 2005, ISBN 3-89244-753-5 , pp. 569-580.
- ^ A b Alemannia Judaica: Esens (Wittmund district, East Friesland) Jewish history / synagogue . Online at www.alemannia-judaica.de. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
- ↑ a b c Ecumenical Working Group Jews and Christians in Esens e. V .: The synagogue in Esens . Retrieved January 9, 2019.
Coordinates: 53 ° 38 ′ 45.8 " N , 7 ° 36 ′ 50.7" E