From Worms to Rothenburg, and back to Worms.
Located near the entrance to Worms’ old Jewish cemetery are gravestones of two important figures in medieval Jewish-German history. The cemetery is also called “Holy Sand”1, and is one of many places of interest in the medieval ShUM league of Jewish cities. The gravestones for Rabbi Meir ben Baruch (centre) and Alexander ben Salomo (right) are shown in the picture below.
When threats of destruction to property and life follow and linger over a group of people through no fault of their own over centuries, there’s something to be said about an eternal need to keep a watchful eye. Words like Verfolgung, Vernichtung, and Vertreibung1 have been etched into memory. I have all this in mind as I explore Jewish history in Germany as part of my need to answer the following question:
How did a nation of people which fostered composers Bach, Beethoven, Handel, Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, Strauss; and writers Goethe, the Brothers Grimm, Heine, Hesse, Heinrich and Thomas Mann, and Schiller sink to the worst depths of human atrocity and depravity in the first half of the 20th-century?
It’s easy to forget Jewish people have lived in what is now Italy and southern Europe since the middle of the 2nd-century BCE and inhabited southern Germany from the late 10th-century AD/CE2. During the High Middle Ages, three important bishopric (and cathedral) cities of Speyer, Worms, and Mainz along the Rhine river formed an important league or federation of Jewish communities (Kehillot) from the end of the 10-century to about the mid-to-late 14th-century. The word שו”ם or ShUM (SchUM in German)4 is an acronym consisting of the first letters of the Hebrew names for the three cities:
• Shin (ש), Sh for Shpira (שפירא) → present-day Speyer;
• Waw or Vav (ו), U for Warmaisa (וורמש) → present-day Worms;
• Mem (ם), M for Magenza (מגנצא) → present-day Mainz.
The ShUM cities became centres for learning, training, religion, culture, and trade within medieval Germany (Ashkenaz3) and throughout Europe. Today, the three ShUM cities establish key destinations for historical travel, provide rich examples for continuing research on medieval Jewish life, and add up to a comprehensive project in recognizing an important chapter of the history of Jews in Germany.
The ShUM/SchUM was inscribed as World Heritage Site by UNESCO at the 44th meeting of the World Heritage Committee in July 2021. ShUM is Germany’s 1st all-Jewish world heritage site, a big acknowledgement to the centuries-long presence of the Jewish community along the Rhine river.
Above/featured: Mural of the Helios structure, Köln Ehrenfeld, 9 Jan 2013 (450D).
Why is there a lighthouse located in the middle of the city? That makes no sense!Did the Rhine river once flow here? Is that why there’s a lighthouse?
Is the structure some kind of forgotten remnant of the past?
Maybe that’s not a lighthouse, but rather a beacon that lets people know about a fire somewhere in the neighbourhood.
These are some of the questions and statements posed by Cologne residents when asked if they know anything about the lighthouse in their midst.
Located in the Ehrenfeld1 borough of Cologne is a red brick 44-metre (144-foot) high lighthouse. But why is there a lighthouse at all in the “middle” of Cologne? The Rhine river flows through the city, but the river is hardly visible from the lighthouse at a distance of about 3 kilometres (2 miles). The structure is not an actual operating lighthouse; it’s a symbol of early 20th-century enterprise from what was once one of the most important companies in Europe and marking the location of a big factory that once manufactured electrical equipment including maritime lights.
Founded in 1882, Helios2 established their presence in the town of Ehrenfeld before the latter was incorporated into the greater city of Cologne in 1888. The company once boasted a staff complement of over 2000 people, with products sold in Germany and Europe ranging from electrical generators and transformers, light bulbs, light fixtures in public spaces, and electrical streetcars. Helios also built light towers for the North and Baltic Sea coastlines, including ones at Roter Sand (Weser river estuary), Borkum and Wangerooge (East Frisian Islands), and Sylt. The onsite lighthouse in Ehrenfeld was constructed as a testing facility and never used as a navigational aid or marker. The company overextended its financial reach until Berlin’s AEG3 purchased Helios in 1905. Manufacturing operations in Ehrenfeld ceased in 1930, bringing a final end to Helios’ business presence in Cologne.
The present-day buildings which remain are used as office- and art-space. As historical landmark, the “Helios Leuchtturm” remains as part of the urban heritage in Ehrenfeld and Cologne. If the people in both borough and city have any final say in the matter, the lighthouse will never have to go out.4
Normally, my passable handling of conversant German gets me far enough in a snack-joint (Imbiss) for a Döner or the gut-busting Dönerteller. On the infrequent occasion I’m inside a restaurant, it’ll be local German fare, much of which I’ve become accustomed while travelling within Germany since 2002.
The town or city hall in every city, town, or village is often accompanied by its own “Ratskeller” (Cellar) serving wine, beer, and food in an underground tavern. At the Speyer Ratskeller, a cold and wet Friday night is in full swing, the place packed with city residents filling all available tables and seats. My host apologizes for the wait, and I reply that it’s no problem. She suggests wine while I wait: definitely not a problem.
Above/featured: “Hennes”, mascot for 1. FC Köln (GO4KÖLN, Breitestr. 36). Photo, 16 Jun 2023 (HL X70).
“Gute Laune, Laute Stimme”: the “EffZeh” (F-C) experience has me hooked.
I’m among men and women, young and old, swimming in a sea of red and white, and surrounded by full-volume chanting. Not only is it a big deal to procure a “Stehplatz” (standing spot) for under €20, but to be present in the stadium’s standing-only terraces is a big thrill. The terraces are present in German football stadia but banned in England (for historical reasons). I’m convinced I’m going to memorize their famous fan anthem as quickly as possible.
Founded on 13 February 1948, the football (soccer) team 1. FC Köln plays out of the Müngersdorfer Stadion, known also as the sponsored Rhein-Energie-Stadion (Rhine Energy Stadium) in Cologne. The stadium’s maximum capacity is about fifty-thousand, and the football side regularly sells out their home matches. The team’s mascot is a billy goat (Geissbock) for its steadfast stubborn perseverance; the team’s nickname is The Billy Goats. I’m also convinced there’s another “Kölle” verbal pun. “Geist-bock” is a compound noun consisting of “Geist” for (team-, fan-) spirit, and “Bock” for the people’s stubborn steadfast support. Various generations of “Hennes”, the mascot goat, have appeared on the sideline for home matches, and the mascot is prominent in the team badge’s and familiar red-and-white home kit (jersey).
The English version of the Bundesliga website highlights the team, reminding us they were the first ever champions of the newly established Bundesliga for the 1963-1964 season.
Basic club info from Bundesliga (2018-2019), with updated FB link.
“1. FC Köln” mural at Ehrenfeld station – 14 Jan 2013 (HL 450D).
“Zesamme Simmer Stark”: Hilton Cologne. Photo, 26 May 2016 (HL 6D1).
1. FC Köln fanshop “Stadion”, at Köln Hbf (Cologne central station). Photo, 13 May 2022 (HL X70).
Fotoeins Fotografie 