Meiningen, Germany

The Jews of Meiningen suffered various persecutions in the 13th and 14th centuries, notably during the Black Death disturbances of 1348-49. In 1384, the empty synagogue was converted into a Christian chapel. There is evidence of Jewish settlement in Meiningen and its environs at least until the first half of the 16th century, and possibly later. In 1831, Jews were officially allowed to trade in Meiningen. In 1844, the Jewish population was 44 and in the 1880s about 450. The community dedicated a synagogue in 1883 and opened its own cemetery in 1874. Jews became well integrated into the life of the city. The Jewish community, numbering 235 in June 1933, remained on the whole relatively unmolested during the first two or three years of Nazi rule. As the situation deteriorated, many emigrated. On Kristallnacht (9.-10. November 1938), the synagogue was desecrated and later destroyed. The remaining Jews were concentrated in 1941 in a "Jew house" in the center of the city until their deportation to the death camps.