I was just on the way to the train station heading back to Berlin, after spending some time in a big park nearby, where a lonely youngster was chilling on his own in the grass enjoying listening to loud Nazi music. I had had an intensive day of travel across this city, that was kept unharmed by the WWII bombs. Lüneburg was after the war the headquarters of the Belsen Trial, against former officials and functionaries of the Third Reich, held by the British Military Tribunal and more recently this spring, of Oskar Groening, former guard at the Auschwitz concentration camp. But the picturesque streets and joyful retired people enjoying their coffee made you ignore these troubling historical episodes.
As usual during my trips in Germany, I was looking for traces of Jewish life but there was nothing left, except this memory engraved on this bloc of stone, tucked between heavy bushes. Often the case in Germany, these memories are everything what is left from the Jewish life.
The first traces of Jewish settlement in Lüneburg, a trade city with an important salt production a commodity as valuable as the gold and other precious materials, date back in the 13th century. After the 1350 Black Death, Jews were killed and their properties took by the locals. A couple of decades later, at the end of the 14th century, Jewish life was back in the city, the local documents mentioning the existence of a mikveh and of a synagogue. But as usual, life was not easy: during the 16th century, Jews were the victims of at least 6 expulsions. They remained there though, and from 1680 they received the "protection" status. As the people were getting wealthy, a bigger synagogue, in the North German Gothic style was built at the end of the 19th century, between 1892-1894. This large synagogue was constantly desecrated between 1927-1930. This situation pushed many Jews to exile, an exile that in fact gave them the chance to survive. On 1st of October 1936, there were only 36 Jews left. The final services of the synagogue took place in 1938, the 30th of October. Shortly after the building was destroyed. 11 Jews from Lüneburg were deported and lost their lives.
Ten years ago, local newspapers published advertising of Jewish tours taking place in the city. Learning about the past is always useful and there is a lot to learn about the risks of being resilient and stay in the wrong place against all odds.
As usual during my trips in Germany, I was looking for traces of Jewish life but there was nothing left, except this memory engraved on this bloc of stone, tucked between heavy bushes. Often the case in Germany, these memories are everything what is left from the Jewish life.
The first traces of Jewish settlement in Lüneburg, a trade city with an important salt production a commodity as valuable as the gold and other precious materials, date back in the 13th century. After the 1350 Black Death, Jews were killed and their properties took by the locals. A couple of decades later, at the end of the 14th century, Jewish life was back in the city, the local documents mentioning the existence of a mikveh and of a synagogue. But as usual, life was not easy: during the 16th century, Jews were the victims of at least 6 expulsions. They remained there though, and from 1680 they received the "protection" status. As the people were getting wealthy, a bigger synagogue, in the North German Gothic style was built at the end of the 19th century, between 1892-1894. This large synagogue was constantly desecrated between 1927-1930. This situation pushed many Jews to exile, an exile that in fact gave them the chance to survive. On 1st of October 1936, there were only 36 Jews left. The final services of the synagogue took place in 1938, the 30th of October. Shortly after the building was destroyed. 11 Jews from Lüneburg were deported and lost their lives.
Ten years ago, local newspapers published advertising of Jewish tours taking place in the city. Learning about the past is always useful and there is a lot to learn about the risks of being resilient and stay in the wrong place against all odds.
