Memorial to the murdered Jews of Botoșani

Memoria evreilor uciși din Botoșani

In Botoșani two Jewish cemeteries and a synagogue remain as reminders of the once rich Jewish culture of the city.

History

Botoșani, located in northeastern Romania in the historic region of Moldova, was first mentioned by name in 1439. Jews lived there from the beginning of the 17th century. At the end of the 19th century about half of the inhabitants were Jews, the Jewish community was one of the largest in the region. At the same time, there were strong anti-Jewish sentiments among the population, culminating in the peasant uprising of 1907, when groups of peasants vandalized Jewish shops and houses and terrorized the Jewish community.
In 1930 the Jewish community had 11,840 members, corresponding to approximately 37 percent of the population. The number increased slightly due to the influx of Jewish refugees after the German attack on Poland in 1939. After General Ion Antonescu took power in September 1940, and initially also included the fascist Iron Guard in his government, a series of anti-Jewish decrees came into effect. Jews were forced to build roads and bridges or had to work for the army. This affected up to 8,000 Jews in Botoșani. In addition, Jews were forced to hand in clothing, which many of the poorer Jews were unable to do. It was up to the Jewish community of Botoșani to meet the claims by paying money.
After the Axis Powers’ attack on the Soviet Union, in which Romania also participated, a wave of anti-Semitic violence swept across the country. Many Jews fled from the country to Botoșani. Therefore, the Jewish community founded several new welfare institutions and schools. During the war, Romanian authorities deported many Jews to the Romanian occupied territory of Transnistria, including Jews from Botoșani.
Three years later, as the Red Army was getting closer in 1944, chaos reigned in the city. Jews were forced to build defences. When the Romanian army left the city, the Jewish community took over most of the communal tasks. It founded a militia and administered municipal facilities such as the hospital.

Botoșani, 2015, Jewish cemetery, Christian Herrmann

Victims

Under the reign of Antonescu (from September 1940), many Jews were abducted, tortured or compelled to conduct forced labour. Their number is estimated at about 8,000. After the attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941, some 148 Jews were deported to Transnistria, the territory of Ukraine occupied by Romania, where they were in all probabillity later murdered by Romanian or German units.

The Kingdom of Romania was politically unstable in the interwar period and threatened by territorial claims from its neighbours. The country sought an alliance with National Socialist Germany but the Nazi leaders in Berlin chose to support Hungary, Bulgaria and their temporary ally, the Soviet Union over the border issue. Romania had to agree to surrender large parts of its territory to these states during 1940. This led to increased radicalisation within the country. King Karl (1893–1953) granted unrestricted authority to General Ion Antonescu (1882–1946) but then had to abdicate to allow his son Michael (1921–2017) to come to the throne. The right-wing extremist »Garda de Fier« (Iron Guard), which was allied with Antonescu, immediately began to persecute the Jews. In 1941 Romania took part in the German attack on the Soviet Union. Romania organised the deportation of up to 155,000 Jews and 25,000 Roma from Bukovina and Bessarabia to the occupied Ukrainian territory of »Transnistria«. Tens of thousands died as a result of mass murder, imprisonment, forced labour, starvation and illness. Meanwhile, the Jews in northern Transylvania (part of Hungary since 1940) were subject to the anti-semitic legislation in this region. However, the majority were spared any violent persecution until the Wehrmacht invaded in 1944. The SS now began to deport Jews to Auschwitz in cooperation with the Hungarian authorities. The total number of murdered Romanian Jews is thus spread over various territories: 50,000 Jews from Bessarabia and Bukovina along with 20,000 Jews from central Romania were murdered and around 120,000 Transylvanian Jews died under the Hungarian-German occupation. In August 1944, the Red Army offensive caused Romania to change sides. Michael I stripped Antonescu of his powers and the country came under Soviet control. The dictator was executed in 1946 and the king abdicated the following year. In the initial post-war period memory focused on liberation by the Red Army. A monument to the fallen Soviet soldiers was built in Bucharest. Romania’s alliance with Germany was ignored. Under Nicolae Ceausescu (1918–1989), who ruled the country with his secret service from 1965, the »liberation from the yoke of fascism« was presented as the achievement of Romanian heroes. With the end of the Ceausescu regime in 1989 many Romanians preferred to adopt a contrary approach: the attack on the Soviet Union in 1941 was now more frequently viewed as a campaign against Bolshevism. There was growing admiration for Antonescu. In contrast, for some Romanians the king, now living in exile, became increasingly important as a symbol of democracy as he had toppled the dictator and was later expelled by the communists. There was no place for the Holocaust in post-war memory. Most survivors had already left the country by the 1950s. Memory was left to the Jewish communities, which established a small research centre in 1977 and a small museum in Bucharest the following year as well as a number of memorials. In 2004 a committee was set up to research the Holocaust and Romanian crimes. The committee was led by Elie Wiesel (1928–2016), a Romanian-born Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner. A National Institute has continued the research since 2005. In 2009, a central Holocaust memorial was inaugurated in Bucharest that also honours the Roma who had been deported to Transnistria. However, apart from this sign, there is still little remembrance to the more than 12,500 Romanian Roma murdered during the war.

Remembrance

The Red Army conquered the city on April 7, 1944. After the war, when many Jews returned from Transnistria and many Jews moved from the countryside to the city, the Jewish community counted more than 19,000 members. The majority emigrated to Israel a short time later. In 1969, 500 Jewish families were still living in the city. Today there is still a small Jewish community in Botoșani. Of the original four synagogues, only the synagogue »Hoihe Sil« (today also called »Mare«, i.e. »Great Synagogue«) has survived. It was built in 1834 and is therefore one of the oldest in the region. The interior in neo-Renaissance style consists of paintings and ceiling frescoes depicting scenes from Jerusalem and religious symbols. A finely crafted chandelier hangs from the high ceiling. The synagogue, surrounded by tall new buildings from the socialist era, was restored between 2008 and 2012. Two Jewish cemeteries are still preserved. They are characterized by metal tombs, but many have suffered from weather and vandalism. The dating of the gravestones on the newer cemetery goes back to the 19th century, the date of origin of the older cemetery cannot be determined precisely.

Botoșani, 2015, The synagogue »Hoihe Sil«, Christian Herrmann

Botoșani, undated, Old town view, public domain

Open

The synagogue and the cemeteries are accessible during their respective opening hours.

Contact

http://cja.huji.ac.il/browser.php?mode=treefriend&id=5693&f=origin

Sinagoga Mare, Strada Marchian 1
710210 Botoșani

Botoșani, 2012, The walls of the synagogue are colourfully painted, Boris Khaimovich, Center for Jewish Art

Botoșani, 2012, Art in the synagogue, Boris Khaimovich, Center for Jewish Art

Botoșani, 2017, An impressive chandelier hangs from the ceiling of the synagogue, George Dumitriu

Botoșani, 1930s, A Jewish wedding party, Yad Vashem

Botoșani, 2015, Gravestones on the Jewish cemetery, Christian Herrmann

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