Hennef-Geistingen
General information: First Jewish presence: in or around the year 1300; peak Jewish population: 77 in 1910; Jewish population in 1933: 43
Summary: The Jewish community of Hennef merged with the
communities in nearby Geistingen, Warth and Rott, as none
of them possessed the finances required for the maintenance
of a private synagogue. This cooperation continued from
1864 until 1887, after which the joint community was
comprised of only Hennef and Geistingen.
Together, those two communities built a synagogue in
Hennef. The inauguration in 1862 was a festive one, with
many rabbinic luminaries and local dignitaries in attendance.
The mayor of Hennef, also present at the ceremony, offered
his blessings. On the morning of November 9, 1938—before the
violence of Pogrom Night began elsewhere in Germany—
impatient SA members gathered at their headquarters and
prepared to destroy the synagogue. They were stopped by
the Sturmfuehrer, who demanded that they comply with the order that the destruction begin at the same time throughout
the country: namely, later that night. Accordingly, the
synagogue was ransacked and set on fire on Pogrom Night.
Forewarned of the impending violence, members of the
Jewish congregation were able to remove the Torah scrolls
and silver ornaments before the pogrom.
The building—it was later restored—now serves as a
memorial.
Photo 2: The chazzan Isidor Rosenbaum carries the Torah at a prayer service in the synagogue of Geistingen. Courtesy of: City Archive of Hennef.
Author / Sources: Moshe Finkel
Sources: LJG, SIA, SG-NRW
Sources: LJG, SIA, SG-NRW
Located in: north-rhine-westphalia