These sources document the The destruction of the Jewish community In the town of Jaunjelgava in Latvia during 1941. The collection includes Detailed name lists of the victims and their families, together with Personal testimonies In Yiddish, Russian and German describing the massacres committed by the Nazis and local collaborators. Some of the documents deal withThe efforts of the survivors After the war, locate the mass graves, transfer the remains to a dignified Jewish burial, and erect a memorial. In addition, there are Diaries and correspondence reflecting the harsh atmosphere in the ghettos and the bitter fate of prominent figures in the community. Overall, the sources constitute Historical and Genealogical Gilad Commemorating the hundreds of Jews murdered in this area during the Holocaust.

The sources before us document in great detail, both on a personal and statistical level, the destruction of the Jewish community in the city Young people (Jaunjelgava, also known by its German name Friedrichstadt – Friedrichstadt) in Latvia during the Nazi occupation in 1941.

Major events

The main event reflected in the sources is the massacre of the city's Jews that took place on August 7, 1941 (H18-1f, H18-4f, H18-5f). According to the testimonies, as the German forces approached in June 1941, the city's Jews attempted to escape towards the old border of the Soviet Union, crossing the RiverDaugava (Daugava) towards Scrivener (Skriveri). However, local Latvian collaborators arrested them and returned them to the city even before the arrival of the German army (H18-4f, H18-5f).

Upon the Germans' entry, the Jews were gathered in the local synagogue, where they were kept in conditions of starvation and subjected to abuse (H18-4f, H18-5f). On August 7, the youngest and strongest of them were selected and sent to dig a hole in the forest captain (Seren), located about 8 km from the city. All the Jews of the city were then taken there, shot and buried in a pit (H18-4f, H18-5f, H18-7f). Local testimonies indicated that the ground above the pit continued to move even the day after the massacre (H18-4f, H18-5f).

Another event documented in the sources is the transfer of the remains of the murdered in 1949 for burial in the city's Jewish cemetery, at the initiative of survivors and former residents (H18-1f, H18-4f, H18-5f).

Key figures

• Chaya Gordon (Tabakman): A survivor of the city who lived in Tel Aviv and documented the experiences of the community and the massacre in testimonies in Yiddish and Russian (H18-1f, H18-4f, H18-5f).
• Dr. Herzberg: A respected Jewish doctor in Friedrichstadt, who chose to commit suicide with his wife in their bed before the murderers reached them (H18-7f).
• Pastor Busch: A Christian cleric who opposed the murders and delivered a scathing sermon against the murder of Jews, which led to threats on his life from the Nazi authorities (H18-7f).
• Freiherr von Medem: The Nazi regional governor (Gebietskommissar), who is presented in the sources as a figure of great power in Mitte and its surroundings (H18-7f).
• Y. Wasserman: A Hebrew teacher mentioned in the context of Hebrew studies and the use of the language among students (H18-6f).

Central places

• Youngslagbe (Friedrichstadt): The epicenter of the events, a city on the banks of the Daugava River in Latvia where there was a large Jewish community (H18-2f, H18-3f, H18-7f).
• Seren Forest: The site of the mass murder of the city's Jews (H18-4f, H18-5f).
• Mitau / Jelgava: A major city in Latvia that serves as a German administrative center, where additional events and SS activities are described (H18-7f).
• Salaspils: A site near Riga mentioned in the context of mass executions of Jews brought from Germany and Austria (H18-7f).

The sources also include detailed Semitic lists of hundreds of victims, classified by families and number of souls, which constitute silent testimony to the extent of the destruction of the community (H18-2f, H18-3f).

List of sources

• H18-1f : A document and photographs documenting the list of the first 30 Jews murdered in Yeonjelgava and the transfer of their remains for burial.
• H18-2f : A detailed handwritten list in Hebrew of Jewish families from Junghalgebe (Friedrichstadt) who were murdered in 1941.
• H18-3f : A list of Jewish victims from the city of Jaunzelgba, compiled in a table with the names of heads of families and a breakdown of family members.
• H18-4f : A detailed handwritten testimony in Yiddish about the tragic end of the Jewish community in Yeonzhalgba and the massacre in the Seren Forest.
• H18-5f : Handwritten testimony in Russian by Chaya Gordon describing the fate of 600 Jews of Yaunzhalgava and the erection of the monument in their memory.
• H18-6f : A letter dealing with Hebrew language studies, teachers and students, including a reference to L. Wasserman.
• H18-7f : Diary excerpts or memoirs in German describing the reality in Latvia under the Nazi occupation, including the massacre in Friedrichstadt and the fate of prominent figures in the city.

 

– H18-1f

– H18-2f

– H18-3f

– H18-4f

– H18-5f

– H18-6f

– H18-7f

** end of Friedrichstadt Jews Killed files **

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