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Grand Synagogue of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France

Description

Building of the Synagogue 

A city with a significant Jewish population, particularly following the Alhambra decree of 1492 which expelled Sephardic Jews from Spain, the Great Synagogue of Bordeaux was not the first of its kind in the city. Built to replace the earlier Synagogue of Bordeaux (built 1812), which was destroyed in a fire in 1873, the planning and building of the Great Synagogue was a large endeavor for the community. After deciding on a new location for the rebuilding process, then came the task of funding the project. With costs rising to over 660,000 francs, the project relied on profits from selling the land of the former synagogue, aid from the French government, and large donations from private community members.  

Design

Two architects, first Andre Burguet (1821-1879) and then Charles Durand (1824-1891), drew up the plans for the building. Burguet’s plan included Romanesque influences, most evident in the two towers at the sides of the synagogues’ main entrance, which were criticized by some as being too similar to the architecture of Catholic churches. Finishing the plans, Durand contributed Orientalist elements to the design, possibly a reference to the Spanish origins of many in the community, such as having windows on the western facade topped with other, smaller, windows.

The Great Synagogue was the first in the nation to utilize the Magen David motif in its design. It can be found all throughout the Synagogue itself, as well as outside the easy-to-miss side entrance to the complex (located on Rue Sainte-Catherine). The complex contains the synagogue along with the Rabbi’s apartments, offices, a school, and a restaurant. The synagogue’s interior is divided into two floors, with the women’s section on the upper level. Beyond the lobby and into the prayer hall, you are greeted with siddurs layed across a table. Just behind the table, at the center of the hall, lies the teba in accordance with French Sephardic custom. Beyond the teba, from the perspective of the front entrance, is a gold colored Menorah towering over the hall. At the eastern end, the Holy Ark is placed within a richly decorated niche. 

World War 2

The Synagogue’s original furniture and holy items, including the original gold Menorah, were destroyed during the Second World War by the Nazis and French Fascists. During the Shoah, the Great Synagogue of Bordeaux served as a prison for Jews before being deported to Nazi concentration camps. Over 1.5 million Jews, about 95% Sephardi, were imprisoned at the Synagogue over the course of the war. Their names are cemented on a memorial wall outside the Synagogue and their memory forms part of an exhibit on the Shoah at the Synagogue. 

Now

Restoration work began on the Synagogue after the war and was completed by 1956, with the building being recognized as a historical monument in 1998 by the French government. It continues to serve the local Jewish community in Bordeaux to this day. 

Bordeaux, France

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