BRUCHSAL: 49°08′N 8°36′E. Bruchsal (orig. Bruohselle, Bruaselle) is a city located at the edge of the Upper Rhine River Plains and the Kraichgau along the Saalbach, which is a small tributary of the Rhine that joins it between Philippsburg and Oberhausen. The city, approximately 20 km NE of Karlsruhe, is made up of Bruchsal proper along with the boroughs of Büchenau, Heidelsheim, Helmsheim, Obergrombach and Untergrombach. Former homesteads are located inside today's city limits. These often only consist of one or several buildings, such as Langental, Rohrbacher Hof, Scheckenbronnerhof, Staighof, Talmühle and Auf dem Michaelsberg in the borough of Untergrombach. As the largest city in the district of Karlsruhe, the area is known as Europe's largest asparagus producer. The Bruchsal area also includes the cities and towns of Bad Schönborn, Forst, Hambrücken, Karlsdorf-Neuthard, Kraichtal, Kronau, Oberhausen-Rheinhausen, Östringen, Philippsburg, Ubstadt-Weiher and Waghäusel. Until 1972 Bruchsal was the seat of the district of Bruchsal, which merged into the district of Karlsruhe as a result of the district reform, effective January 1, 1973. Bruchsal's population surpassed 20,000 around 1955. Bruchsal cooperates with the neighboring communities of Forst, Hambrücken and Karlsdorf-Neuthard in administrative matters. Jewish population: 128 in 1814; 752 in 1885 (6.2% of the total); 501 in 1933 with six benevolent societies. On Nov. 11, 1938, the synagogue* was burned. By 1939 166 Jews remained: 79 were deported to the *Gurs concentration camp in 1940. The community no longer exists. * Synagogue memorial and history.
Jewish Encyclopedia: "Jews resided here as early as the beginning of the twelfth century [note: possibly 1288]. In 1337 the Jews of Bruchsal joined with those of a number of other places in paying an annual tribute of 700 marks (in lieu of the taxes levied) to the bishop of Speyer. They also lent various sums to the bishop, which money was credited against the tribute due. At the time of the Black Death (1348-49) many Jews of Bruchsal were martyred. During the Middle Ages and the Reformation the Jews of Bruchsal suffered in common with their coreligionists throughout Germany. Until the French Revolution the Jewish community numbered only one or two hundred persons; and there were never so many as at the present time (1902), when about 100 families are to be found in the place. The most famous of the rabbis was David Friedberg of Mosbach, who officiated in Bruchsal from 1857 to 1871." In 1881 a synagogue was built. In 1934 the Autobahn was built between Heidelberg and Bruchsal, and in 1936 the Bretten district merged with the Bruchsal district. In 1938 the Nazis destroyed the synagogue (in its place is a fire station today), and the Jewish part of the population was deported. In 1939 the District Bruchsal became the district of Bruchsal, which included 38 towns and cities until it was merged into Karlsruhe (district) during the district reform of 1970. On the afternoon of March 1, 1945, Bruchsal was bombed by the Allies. On April 2, 1945, allied forces took Bruchsal without resistance. [Feb 2013]
Cemetery photos and history. Established in 1879 as part of the municipal cemeter located in the Ross Won market. 58.36 ar .The mortuary (Taharahaus) also is preserved with a plaque for Nöther Leopold, the funder of this building. The cemetery has about 370 gravesites with elegant gravestones, several since 1945. The cemetery was essentially undamaged by the Nazis. [Feb 2013]
References:
- Commons: Bruchsal Jewish Cemetery - collection of images, videos and audio files
- Bruchsal Jewish Cemetery in Alemannia Judaica
- Bruchsal Jewish Cemetery at the Central Archives for the Study of the History of the Jews in Germany
76646 Baden-Württemberg (Gerz)
DISTRICT: Karlsruhe
LOCATION OF CEMETERY: Am Rossmarkt , within the City cemetery.
IN USE: From 1879 until 1967
NUMBER OF GRAVESTONES: 375
DOCUMENTATION:
- 1985 photographs of all gravestones and also cemetery layout by Zentralarchiv.
- 1995 full cemetery documentation, using these photographs, by the State Office for Historic Monuments (Editor: Monika Preuss).
- Numerous photographs of gravestones and general cemetery views in Alemannia Judaica.
- Overview of cemetery in Hundsnurscher/Taddey 1968, figure #29.
- up to 1632 the Jews in Bruchal buried their dead in Worms and thereafter, until 1879, in the Jewish cemetery of Obergrombach (Hahn 1988, page 282). The cemetery was used again repeatedly in the post 1945 period.
SOURCES: Alemannia Judaica and University of Heidelberg.
[Researched and translated from German January 2008]
BRUCHSAL incorp.OBERGROMBACH: 76646 Baden-Württemberg (Gerz, Peters).
DISTRICT: Karlsruhe, city of Bruchsal.
LOCATION OF CEMETERY: Eichelberg - Bruchsaler Strasse - Location in Obergrombach (Overview).
IN USE: From 1632, 1803 until 1964.
NUMBER OF GRAVESTONES: 510 remaining of an original estimated 2300 gravestones.
DOCUMENTATION:
- 1985/86 photographs of all gravestones with mapping of graves by Zentralarchiv.
- 1993 photographs of gravestones stolen from cemetery by Bruchsal.
- 2004 ground as well as full cemetery documentation making use of 160 selected gravestone inscriptions from the Zentralarchiv photographs by Landesdenkmalamt ed. Emily Link. The ground documentation covers 1210 gravestones. The difference of 700 gravestones is explained by the recovery from the Hohlweg of the tombstones and tombstone fragments looted from the cemetery. The mapping of the graves by the Zentralarchiv is recorded in nine volumes No. 1 to 9. Volume 9 contains the complete cemetery documentation.
- Numerous photographs of individual gravestones and general cemetery views in Alemannia Judaica..
PUBLICATIONS:
- History by Grzymisch 1931.
- History in prose by Linnebach 1931
- History page 279; photographic overviews figs. # 3 and # 207 by Hundsnurscher/Taddey1968.
- Photographic overview by Theobald1984, page 97.
- History by Theobald1985 (6).
- History by Messmer 1986, page103.
- History by Stude 2007, pages 374-376.
NOTES:
- This cemetery originally held more than 2300 gravestones of which some 1800 were cleared out during the Nazi era, when the cemetery was largely emptied. Between 900 and 1000 of these gravestones were used, amongst other ways, for drainage during the construction of the Hohlweg in Obergrombach and the Unteröwisheimer Weg. Further information under Projekt Bruchsal.
- Approximately 700 gravestones and fragments were recovered and returned to the cemetery in 1992. Between 109 and 168 of these were set in comemmorative concrete walls.
- A memorial column commemorates the existence of the former synagogue in Bruchsal.
- Since 1982 there is a memorial designed by the author Dr. Paul Schrag inscribed with the words Nacht und Tag weine ich nie endend. Jeremia 14,17 (Never ending I cry night and day. Jeremia 14,17).
- The cemetery includes, amongst others, the grave of Josef Hirsch Carlebach, the ancestor of the Carlebach dynasty of 16 Rabbis.
- This cemetery was also used by several surrounding Jewish communities including those of Hochstift, Kurpfalz and Markgrafschaft Baden. Until they had their own burial grounds, these included the townships of Bruchsal, Ober- and Untergrombach, Jöhlingen, Mingolsheim, Östringen, Bretten, Diedelsheim, Heidelsheim, Weingarten, Durlach, Graben, Grötzingen and Pforzheim.
SOURCE: University of Heidelberg and Alemannia Judaica.
(Researched and translated from German March 2009)
To see information and photographs of individual gravestones in cemeteries in Baden-Wuerttemberg, click on this link and follow the directions on that page.