• Memorials to the Murdered Jews of Vinnytsya
Several memorials in Vinnytsya, which is located on the banks of the Southern Bug river, are dedicated to the Jews murdered by German Einsatzgruppen (mobile killing squads) in 1941/1942.
Image: Probably Vinnytsya, around 1942, Execution of an Ukrainian Jew, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej
Probably Vinnytsya, around 1942, Execution of an Ukrainian Jew, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej

Image: Vinnytsya, 2003, Chairman of the Jewish community, Ilya Grobman, at the memorial to the murdered Jews, Ilya Grobman
Vinnytsya, 2003, Chairman of the Jewish community, Ilya Grobman, at the memorial to the murdered Jews, Ilya Grobman
Around 33,000 Jews lived in Vinnytsya before the Second World War. The German Wehrmacht occupied the city on July 19, 1941. Around 17,000 Jews had previously been able to flee from Vinnytsya. Units of Einsatzgruppe C (mobile killing squad) marched into the city together with the Wehrmacht. Shortly afterwards, the occupiers established a ghetto for the Jewish population of Vinnytsya. In September 1941, the first mass shootings took place in Vinnytsya: Police battalion 304 shot 2,200 Jews on September 5, 1941, and police battalions 45 and 314 shot at least 18,000 Jews on September 19 and 20. At the end of 1941, the area was declared to be »judenfrei« (»free of Jews«). However, countless numbers of Jewish craftsmen from Vinnytsya had to conduct forced labour building the Führerhauptquartier »Wehrwolf« in close vicinity of the city. Many of them were shot by the SS. Those who survived the selections were deported to labour camps.
Image: Probably Vinnytsya, around 1942, Execution of an Ukrainian Jew, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej
Probably Vinnytsya, around 1942, Execution of an Ukrainian Jew, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej

Image: Vinnytsya, 2003, Chairman of the Jewish community, Ilya Grobman, at the memorial to the murdered Jews, Ilya Grobman
Vinnytsya, 2003, Chairman of the Jewish community, Ilya Grobman, at the memorial to the murdered Jews, Ilya Grobman
The exact number of victims from Vinnytsya cannot be established; the times of the murder operations and responsible units cannot be determined in all cases. According to estimates, at least 20,000 Jews were murdered in Vinnytsya, according to the Israeli memorial Yad Vashem it could have been as many as 26,000.
Image: Vinnytsya, w.d., Exhumation of the bodies by a member of the Soviet Special Commission, Tsentral'nyi Derzhavnyi Kinofotofonoarchiv Ukraini
Vinnytsya, w.d., Exhumation of the bodies by a member of the Soviet Special Commission, Tsentral'nyi Derzhavnyi Kinofotofonoarchiv Ukraini

Several memorials in Vinnytsya and the surrounding areas are dedicated to the city's murdered Jews.
Image: Shchitky near Vinnytsya, 2002, Dedication of the Memorial to the murdered Jews, Ilya Grobman
Shchitky near Vinnytsya, 2002, Dedication of the Memorial to the murdered Jews, Ilya Grobman

Name
Pamjatniki ubitym ewrejam Winnizji
Phone
+380 432 523 374
Fax
+380 432 523 374
Web
http://www.jewish.vinnitsa.com
E-Mail
jewish@vinnitsa.com
Open
The memorials are accessible at all times