On June 25, 1999, following long debates, the German Bundestag came to an all-party decision on the establishment of a »Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe«. Located in direct vicinity of the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag building, the Field of Stelae, designed by New York architect Peter Eisenman, was constructed between April 2003 and May 2005 and complemented by an underground »Information Centre«.
The National Socialist genocide was perpetrated at thousands of sites all over Europe. With the aim of complete annihilation, Jews were deported, shot or murdered with poison gas.
The murders took place in gas chambers in the death camps, in countless mass shooting pits in forests in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Romania, Belarus and Ukraine, as well as in hundreds of sealed-off ghetto districts. Millions met a violent death in deportation trains and mobile gas vans, during pogroms and »reprisal operations«, in concentration and forced labour camps.
The murders took place in gas chambers in the death camps, in countless mass shooting pits in forests in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Romania, Belarus and Ukraine, as well as in hundreds of sealed-off ghetto districts. Millions met a violent death in deportation trains and mobile gas vans, during pogroms and »reprisal operations«, in concentration and forced labour camps.
Of most of those deported to their deaths, there are no traces left. Between 5.4 and 6 million Jews were murdered in Europe under the National Socialist regime. The figures are based on documents of the perpetrators and statistical data gathered by the then 20 and today 28 European states from which the victims stemmed. Those figures also have gaps. The perpetrators intentionally eliminated anything pointing to the people murdered and their lives. Many documents were destroyed or lost during the war.
The creation of the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe was set in motion by an initiative led by publicist Lea Rosh in 1988. In the following years, they managed to convince a majority of the public of the necessity of establishing an »unmissable Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe«.
After German reunification and the Bundestag's decision to move the federal government to Berlin, discussions surrounding the establishment of a central Holocaust memorial in the new capital picked up pace. At the same time, lengthy tender procedures were organised in the search of an appropriate artistic concept for the memorial.
On June 25, 1999, the German Bundestag passed a resolution by a large majority on realising the concept of American architect Peter Eisenman. Upon insistence of the parliament, the memorial consisting of 2,711 stelae was complemented by an »Information Centre«, with the aim of presenting information about the victims honoured by the memorial and authentic sites of remembrance. In order to implement the resolution, the federal »Foundation Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe« was set up.
The Memorial's construction took three years. On May 10, 2005, an opening ceremony was held, which was attended by 1,200 guests from Germany and abroad.
After German reunification and the Bundestag's decision to move the federal government to Berlin, discussions surrounding the establishment of a central Holocaust memorial in the new capital picked up pace. At the same time, lengthy tender procedures were organised in the search of an appropriate artistic concept for the memorial.
On June 25, 1999, the German Bundestag passed a resolution by a large majority on realising the concept of American architect Peter Eisenman. Upon insistence of the parliament, the memorial consisting of 2,711 stelae was complemented by an »Information Centre«, with the aim of presenting information about the victims honoured by the memorial and authentic sites of remembrance. In order to implement the resolution, the federal »Foundation Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe« was set up.
The Memorial's construction took three years. On May 10, 2005, an opening ceremony was held, which was attended by 1,200 guests from Germany and abroad.
- Name
- Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas
- Address
-
Cora-Berliner-Straße 1
10117 Berlin - Phone
- +49 (0) 30 263 943 36
- Fax
- +49 (0) 30 263 943 21
- Web
- http://www.stiftung-denkmal.de
- besucherservice@stiftung-denkmal.de
- Open
- The Field of Stelae is accessible at all times. Information Centre April to September Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., October to March Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.,
last admission 45 minutes before closing. - Possibilities
- Educational offer for secondary school students, adults and professionals, workshops and all-day seminars, guided tours in several languages, materials for schools on the Memorial