קהילת יהודי ייליך

Dueren

Düren 

A town and capital of the Dueren district in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

First Jewish presence: 1241; peak Jewish population: 358 in 1933; Jewish population in 1933: 358

The Jewish community of Dueren was decimated during the Black Death pogroms of 1348/49, but a Jewish presence was re-established there in 1370. In the mid-1880s, after two centuries during which large numbers of Jews settled in the area, more than 600 Jews lived in the Dueren region, approximately 10% of whom lived in the city of Dueren. Although the Jews of Dueren were not recognized as an official Jewish community, they maintained a prayer room and a school. In 1847, the authorities permitted the community to build a synagogue which would also serve the surrounding towns; and in 1869, construction commenced on the large house of worship (inaugurated in 1872).

On Pogrom Night (Nov. 9, 1938), SA troops tried to set the synagogue building on fire; they failed, and instead busied themselves by breaking windows, tearing the Torah scrolls and holy books and breaking furniture. Unappeased, the men returned the following morning, doused the building with kerosene and set it on fire, after which they did the same to the community center, the school building and the sexton's house. According to records, the blaze was so intense that several neighboring homes caught fire, the inhabitants just managing to escape unharmed. The Dueren municipality billed the Jewish community for the cost of demolishing the synagogue ruins. At the former synagogue site, now a parking lot, a memorial stone with an engraving of the synagogue commemorates the destruction.

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This entry was originally published on Beit Ashkenaz - Destroyed German Synagogues and Communities website and contributed to the Database of the Museum of the Jewish People courtesy of Beit Ashkenaz.

Eschweiler

A village in the Aachen district in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

First Jewish presence: 1750; peak Jewish population: 166 in 1885; Jewish population in 1933: 107

Prior to the establishment of a Jewish community, local Jews conducted services in Max Stiel’s home on Langwahn, where a Jewish elementary school was later located. According to records, prayer rooms were later set up on Wollenweberstrasse and on the corner of Neustrasse/Josefstrasse. The community established a cemetery and the elementary school in 1820 and 1858, respectively. Services were conducted in Weisweiler until September 18, 1891, when Rabbi Dr. Frank inaugurated a synagogue on Neustrasse (present-day 17 Moltkestrasse). After the inauguration of the synagogue, the prayer room at 43 Langwahn was taken over by the school, the latter of which was declared a public institution in 1905. Affiliated with Juelich after the establishment of the synagogue, the Eschweiler community attempted to gain independent status between 1912 and 1926.

Ninety-two Jews lived in Eschweiler in 1936. On the night of November 9, 1938, SA men burned down the synagogue building and desecrated the rabbinical vestments. Jewish homes and stores were wrecked, and Jewish men were sent to the Oranienberg concentration camp. Forty Jews left Eschweiler after Pogrom Night (Nov. 9, 1938). Between 1933 and 1941, approximately 70 Jews left Eschweiler, of whom half moved to other German towns, 13 immigrated to Palestine and 20 immigrated to other countries. In 1942, the remaining 20 Jews were deported in three groups: 15 on March 22, two on June 15, and three on July 3. At least 126 Eschweiler Jews perished in the Shoah. At the synagogue site, now the location of a doctor’s office, a memorial plaque commemorates the synagogue and the community.

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This entry was originally published on Beit Ashkenaz - Destroyed German Synagogues and Communities website and contributed to the Database of the Museum of the Jewish People courtesy of Beit Ashkenaz.

Linnich

A town in the Düren district of in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. 

First Jewish presence: 1348; peak Jewish population: 149 in 1887; Jewish population in 1933: 124

Jews in Linnich conducted prayer services in a building at 12, Rurdorfer Strasse until the early 20th century. In Linnich, a Jewish private school and a Jewish elementary school were established in 1804 and 1878, respectively. In 1913, the community built an Art Nouveau synagogue—the building also housed a schoolroom, a mikveh, offices and a women’s balcony—on Nordpromenade; the inauguration ceremony was attended by city council officials and high-ranking representatives of other faiths. On Pogrom Night (Nov. 9, 1938), SA men and local residents from Linnich and Juelich set the synagogue on fire, destroying the building and its contents (including a precious Chair of Elijah). The Jewish cemetery was desecrated that night, and homes and shops were demolished. Jewish residents were forcibly moved into the “Villa Ruth,” where they were kept until their deportation. At least 49 Linnich Jews perished in the Shoah. A mohel’s book from the synagogue—it survived Pogrom Night—is now on display at the Jewish Museum of Frankfurt. A memorial plaque was unveiled in Linnich in 1988.

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This entry was originally published on Beit Ashkenaz - Destroyed German Synagogues and Communities website and contributed to the Database of the Museum of the Jewish People courtesy of Beit Ashkenaz.