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Origin and history

The synagogue of Niederbronn-les-Bains, located at 5 rue du Couvent, was built in 1869 to replace a first building of 1833, considered too small and in poor condition. This oriental-style building, marked by arched windows, was inaugurated on 22 September 1869. His lintel bears an inscription in Hebrew: "Open the gates of righteousness to me, I will enter to praise God. »

During the Second World War, the synagogue was sacked by the Nazis, like many Jewish places of worship in Alsace. After the war, it temporarily served as a meeting room for Saint Martin's Catholic parish. A de-acralization ceremony was held on 13 May 1986, in the presence of representatives of the three monotheistic cults, before its sale to the city in 1989.

The building, whose only facades and roofs have been protected since 13 April 1992 (inscription to the Supplementary Inventory of Historic Monuments), illustrates the turbulent history of the Jewish communities in Alsace. Its architecture and its past reflect both the integration of Jews into the local landscape in the 19th century and the persecutions suffered during the 20th century.

The synagogue of 1833, closed in 1862 for old age, had itself been damaged during the Second World War. The site thus preserves the memory of two successive buildings, symbols of the Jewish presence in Niederbronn since the early 19th century. The records of the taking of names of the Jews of 1808, mentioned in the sources, also recall the ancient anchoring of this community in the region.

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