Old Synagogue (Neuss)
The old synagogue of Neuss was located in Neuss by the Sparkasse Neuss on the other side of Promenadenstraße.
History
[edit]Already in the 12th century there was a small Jewish community and a synagogue in Neuss.[1] The Jews lived on the “Judensteg” near the later Hessentor and later in the “Glockhammer”; the synagogue was also located there.[2] The Jews were expelled from the city in the year 1463. During the French period and the religious freedom that came with it, a Jewish community formed again, which initially set up its prayer room in a private house on Neustraße.[2]
The new synagogue building designed by building councillor Friedrich Weise (1801–1874) was ceremonially inaugurated on 29 March 1867.[1][2] Architecturally, the building was oriented toward an Oriental style with a light reddish stone façade, four onion towers, and a golden Star of David. Inside, there was no matroneum; in the seating arrangement, men and women were separated by the central aisle.[1] In 1890 the Jewish community of Neuss reached its highest number of 300 members.[1]
The synagogue was burned down during Kristallnacht on the night of 9 to 10 November 1938 and was then completely destroyed in 1941.[1][3] Many of the Jews of Neuss at that time came from Hülchrath; they had believed they would be safer in Neuss.[4] In August 1942, according to official statistics, Neuss was “judenfrei.”[5] A memorial in the form of a 30-ton stone, worked by the sculptor Ulrich Rückriem, has commemorated the building since 1995.
On 19 September 2021, a New Synagogue for about 600 people of Jewish faith from the region was opened and inaugurated in Neuss.[6]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 Stadt Neuss, Stadtgeschichte. "Synagoge". Retrieved 2021-10-30.
- 1 2 3 Jüdische Gemeinden. "Jüdische Gemeinde Neuss". Retrieved 2021-10-30.
- ↑ "Synagoge Neuss" in the KuLaDig database of the Landschaftsverbands Rheinland, retrieved 11 February 2025.
- ↑ "Schloss Stadt Hülchrath - Jüdisches Leben im Zeitraffer". Retrieved 2021-10-30.
- ↑ Neusser Juden - Spuren ihrer Geschichte. Ausstellung des Stadtarchivs Neuss im Clemens-Sels-Museum, Neuss 1988, Bildtafel No. 125
- ↑ WDR (2021-09-19). "Juden in Neuss weihen neue Synagoge ein". Retrieved 2021-12-11.
Literature
[edit]- Stefan Rohrbacher: Juden in Neuss. Neuss 1986, ISBN 978-3-9801294-0-4.
- Elfi Pracht-Jörns: Jüdisches Kulturerbe in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Teil II: Regierungsbezirk Düsseldorf. ISBN 978-3-7616-1444-0, S. 485–488.