Munich - Reichenbachstrasse [München / Muenchen]
Summary: During the early 20th century, Jews from Eastern Europe
(Ostjuden) constituted approximately one-fourth of
Munich’s Jewish community. In 1921, their two major
congregations, Agudas Achim and Linath Hazedek,
established a synagogue on Reichenbachstrasse.
In 1929, in response to the growing population
of Eastern European Jews (approximately 2,300), the
community decided to build a new house of worship;
designed by Gustav Meyerstein and inaugurated on
September 5, 1931, the new synagogue seated 330
men and 220 women. The architect, opting for an
inconspicuous synagogue facade, did not include the
customary tablets of the law. The small rear window,
which faced a brook, allowed congregants to recite the
Tashlich prayer on Rosh Hashanah. (The Tashlich prayer
must be recited near a natural water source.)
The synagogue was set on fire on Pogrom Night
(November 1938), but the fire department extinguished
the blaze to prevent damage to the neighboring structures.
The building was subsequently “aryanized” by a German
company for use as a storage site.
On May 20, 1947, a new synagogue, very similar in
design to the destroyed house of worship and located only
a few blocks away from its original site, was inaugurated in
Munich.
Author / Sources: Fred Gottlieb
Located in: bavaria