Description

Charlottenberg Synagogue​: Berlin, Germany. Built 1899.  Destroyed Kristallnacht 1938.

The first documentary evidence of Jews in Berlin is a 1295 ordinance forbidding wool merchants to sell yarn to Jews. In 1349 the Jews were accused of starting the Black Plague, many were killed and had their homes burned down, and the rest were expelled from the city. After being allowed to return to the city, the Jews were again expelled in 1446, and then again in 1510 and 1571. In 1887 Jews returned to Berlin, and despite significant challenges, steadily grew as a community, until by 1933, there were 160,000 Jewish residents.

Between 1941 and 1943 all the city’s Jews were deported to concentration camps, and on June 16, 1943, the Nazis declared the city “Junerein” (clean of Jews.)

(11 1/2 inches high x 8 inches wide x 2 1/2 deep)