Synagogue Hans-Sachs-Platz (Nuremberg)

The synagogue in Nuremberg, built by architect Adolf Wolff (1832-1885), was consecrated on September 8, 1874 . In March 1870, the cornerstone of the new building had been laid. The synagogue had 546 numbered male and 389 numbered female seats.  

Shortly after the Nazi takeover, measures and actions were directed against the Jewish house of worship in the city. On the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) 1934 several hundred SA people demonstrated in front of the synagogue. They harassed the worshippers and tried to force their way into the building until finally the police broke up the demonstration.

Already on August 10, 1938, even before the Reichspogromnacht, the large synagogue and the adjacent community hall were destroyed on the orders of Gauleiter Julius Streicher.

The site of the synagogue remained after 1945 initially a green strip. In the course of the reconstruction of the city center, a residential building was later erected on the site. Since 1971 there has been a memorial on the site of the former synagogue. In August 1988, 40 years after the destruction of the main synagogue, the city had a memorial stone with copper plate placed opposite Hans Sachs Square. 

In2001 an additional memorial plaque was placed to Leo Katzenberger, the last chairman of the Jewish Community of Nuremberg, who was sentenced to death in 1942. Since 1998 the Pegnitzuferweg is called Leo-Katzenberger-Weg.  

A virtual reconstruction of the Nuremberg synagogue has been made by the Technical University in Darmstadt (see Related Links)