Stendal
STENDAL, city in Brandenburg, Germany. A Jewish community existed around the middle of the 13th century. The Jews of Stendal held a key position among those of Brandenburg and adjacent territories, and the tax problems and customs of
However, Elector Joachim II (1535–71) favored settlement of Jews in Stendal. Therefore, by 1564 nine Jewish families had settled in the city, but they were expelled after his death. Only after 1847 did Jews resettle there. By 1849, there were 38 Jews living in Stendal; 49 in 1871; 104 in 1892; 85 in 1903; and 93 in 1905. They formed a small community that had a cantor-teacher. Their number declined to 60 by 1913 (0.22% of the total population) and to 34 in 1925 (0.11%). In 1933 there were 61 Jews; 23 in 1939; and three in 1942. No Jews lived in Stendal after 1945. In 1995 a commemorative plaque was consecrated to the former synagogue, which is now privately owned. The Jewish cemetery is preserved.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Germania Judaica, 2 (1968), 791–4; 3 (1987), 1410–13; I.A. Agus, Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg (1947), 502–5; Handbuch der Juedischen Gemeindeverwaltung (1913), 60; (1932–33), 115; Kisch, Germany, index; idem, Jewry Law in Medieval Germany (1949), 140–2; Baron, Social 2, 9 (1965), 211; 11 (1967), 14; W. Heise, Die Juden in der Mark Brandenburg bis zum Jahre 1571 (1932). ADD BIBLIOGRAPHY: M. Brocke, E. Ruthenberg, and K. Schulenburg, Stein und Name (Veroeffentlichungen aus dem Institut Kirche und Judentum, vol. 22) (1994), 618–19; B. Bugaiski, I. Leubauer, and G. Waesche, Geschichte der Juedischen Gemeinden in Sachsen-Anhalt (1997), 250–4.
Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2007 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.