An Office at a Historic Site
Our office is located on Nivellesplatz in Bochum-Wattenscheid. The square is named after Gertrude of Nivelles and features a memorial to the former synagogue and the victims of the Holocaust.
The Former Synagogue in Wattenscheid
The synagogue was built between 1827 and 1829 and inaugurated in spring 1829. Until 1870, its congregation was affiliated with the Jewish community in Hattingen.
On the morning of 10 November 1938, the synagogue was burned down by the Nazis. From November 1941, Jewish residents who remained in Wattenscheid were forcibly housed in the Jewish elementary school. On 28 April and 11 May 1942, they were deported to Eastern Europe and murdered by the Nazis.
Remembrance and Commemoration
In 1990, the City of Bochum installed a memorial plaque in Hebrew and German at the passageway to Brauhof. A memorial was inaugurated on Nivellesplatz in 2009.
The names of the 87 known Holocaust victims from Wattenscheid were projected onto three glass stelae. The memorial also depicts the synagogue.
“Remembrance must overcome forgetting.” – Stephan Hermlin
Gertrude of Nivelles
Gertrude of Nivelles (626–659) was abbess of the monastery at Nivelles in Belgium. The daughter of Pepin of Landen and Itta, she entered the monastery founded by her mother while still young.
She devoted herself to education, caring for the sick and welcoming travellers. According to tradition, she established a hospice for itinerant Irish monks and became known as a patron saint of travellers.
Her feast day is 17 March.
