Pogromnachtdenkmal in Form eines Davidsterns, Heinz Tobolla, Aachen Travel Guide

The Pogromnacht Memorial, a Star of David on Synagogenplatz in Aachen, serves as a solemn tribute to the victims of the Holocaust. The memorial marks the location where the city's first synagogue stood from 1862 until it was destroyed by the National Socialists during the Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass) pogrom in November 1938.Prior to the first synagogue's construction, the Jewish community in Aachen gathered in private homes and, later, in a small synagogue on Hirschgraben. As the community grew, the first official Aachen Synagogue was built. In 1984, the square, formerly named Promenadenplatz, was renamed Synagogenplatz to honor the destroyed synagogue. That same year, the city commissioned the memorial by Aachen sculptor Heinz Tobolla.The memorial stands near the Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue), built in 1995, as a place of worship and community center for Aachen's Jewish community. Five stones from the original synagogue were incorporated into the new building, linking the past and present. The Neue Synagoge features a concave facade with Hebrew inscriptions and leads to a circular prayer room.Visitors to the Pogromnacht Memorial will find a space for quiet contemplation and reflection on the events of the past and the importance of tolerance and remembrance.