Places of commemoration of the Shoa in Szeged, Hungary

For centuries, the Jewish community in the Hungarian city of  has treasured its culturally significant heritage.1  During the Holocaust, the city tragically lost a significant portion of its Jewish population. Serving as a deportation center for  County and parts of the  region, Szeged faced immense devastation. In sharp contrast, its synagogue and most of its archives remained relatively intact as these were not targets of destruction.
 
The New Synagogue of Szeged, a prominent European synagogue, was built in 1899-1903 by renowned architect Lipót Baumhorn (1860-1932). After WWII, the synagogue hall was transformed into a Holocaust commemoration site, and five smaller Holocaust memorials were erected in the Jewish cemetery, located in the outskirts of Szeged. In 2018, a statue symbolizing Jewish-Christian relations during the Holocaust was inaugurated in front of the cathedral. Stumbling stones and wall plaques also commemorate the Holocaust, as does the newly launched commemorative website.

Despite its losses, Szeged had fewer casualties compared to other cities, with around 1,700 of approximately 4,000 deportees returning. The immediate aftermath of the Holocaust in Hungary was a period marked by profound loss, grief, and the daunting task of rebuilding shattered lives. Survivors faced numerous challenges including tasks around commemoration, such as defining the date and space to remember and honor the victims, all of which had deep significance. From 1947, the community annually commemorated the victims, emphasizing collective remembrance and solidarity among survivors. The establishment of a common anniversary helped people who were uncertain about their family members' deaths to address uncertainties. This shift towards collective mourning occurred within the institutional framework of the Jewish community, with survivors developing special forms of mourning that helped to foster a sense of unity.2  This text aims to present the Holocaust commemoration sites erected by the Jewish and non-Jewish populations of Szeged.

The Chevra Kadisha, the Burial Society, was re-established in October 1946, commencing with fundraising for the Martyrs' Memorial Hall in January 1947. In February 1947, two black granite coffins were unveiled in the Martyrs' Memorial Hall at the Szeged New Synagogue, previously renamed in their honor. The memorial wall was inaugurated on September 21, 1947, attracting attention from delegates across the country. Rabbi Dr. Jenő Frenkel delivered a moving memorial speech, followed by speeches from Lajos Fenyő, representing the memorial committee, Márton Stern, representing the Jewish community of Szeged, Lajos Stockier, representing the National Office of Hungarian Israelites, and Mayor Leó Dénes on behalf of the city. The Délmagyarország newspaper covered the event. Marble plaques at the Memorial Hall bear names of 1,664 deported individuals, emphasizing their status as deportees rather than merely as deceased. "It is right that the deportees are mentioned in the lists of names, and not simply marked as dead", argued an article in the Bulletin of the National Rabbinical Association, since in 1946 there was still hope that at least some of them would return.3  Additional names were later added, totaling around 1,900, though this may not account for all of Szeged's victims. Some perished without surviving relatives or official reports of their absence. The marble tablets also include names of those not deported from Szeged but from other locations. The synagogue further commemorates men killed in forced labor and victims of deportations from Backa and Kistelek.4 

The Memorial Hall of Szeged Synagogue can be viewed in 3D.

Szeged Holocaust Memorial (financed by IHRA) is a newly established digital monument, serving as a commemoration platform. It includes the names of over 10,000 individuals who were deported from the Szeged and Bačka regions during WWII, including those honored in the Memorial Hall. This searchable database enables global remembrance, bridging distances and ensuring the victims' names are never forgotten. Updates continue to enhance the accuracy and accessibility of information, extending the reach of commemoration beyond physical boundaries.

The rich tradition of Jewish cemeteries includes the installation of monuments dedicated to fallen heroes, a practice that emerged after World War I, primarily for honoring Jewish soldiers. In line with this tradition, the Jewish cemetery in Szeged also features monuments erected in remembrance of the Holocaust victims. The victims of the Holocaust are commemorated in five places.

• In the early 2000s, near the Szeged Jewish Cemetery's ceremonial hall, workers discovered human remains while digging graves. These remains belonged to individuals who died in the Szeged brickworks ghetto during its liquidation in July 1944. Buried near the surface without identification, their names remain unknown. However, their memory is honored through a garden adorned with fresh flowers and a black marble plaque donated by a survivor. The inscription on the plaque reads: "Here lie our brethren who died in the brick factory ghetto in 1944. Their names are known only to Elohim." Commissioned by Dr. István Salamon, it was completed in 2004.

• To the right of the column in Randegg, a special memorial stands on the eastern side of the cemetery. In July 1946, a symbolic funeral ceremony honored the memory of 3,000 Auschwitz-Birkenau victims. Two coffins were buried—one with soaps and another with scraps of Torah scrolls found in a garbage pile. The acronym RIF indicated on the soaps were commonly believed to be the abbreviation of Reichs-Juden-Fett ([made] of fat of Jews from the Reich), however, it actually stood for Reichsstelle für Industrielle Fettversorgung.7 

In addition to memorials, Hungarian tradition includes Holocaust victims' names on family tombstones. Szeged also has many such graves. A video (with English subtitles) of the Szeged Jewish Cemetery and memorials is available.

Hungary’s first Holocaust memorial erected by a Catholic diocese, not the government or a municipality, is in Szeged. It was unveiled in 2014, on the 60th anniversary of the deportations. László Kiss-Rigó, bishop of Szeged-Csanád, described the complexity of the emotions that the memorial intended to reflect: "The work of sculptor Jenő Kovács expresses the question we face: Why did more people not do more to save their fellows. The ark of Szeged displays the two brothers, Christianity and Judaism. The older brother is being pushed to his doom by power, tyranny, and cruelty, while the younger brother – the second covenant – begs helplessly, pleading, however he cannot do more than that."8  The depiction of Catholicism and Judaism as brethren in the Holocaust memorial may allude to Pope John Paul's visit to the Great Synagogue of Rome in April 1986. During his visit, he described Judaism as the elder of the two siblings, highlighting their interconnectedness and shared history.

The memorial has been criticized for its simple, basic style, following the artistic standards of the era whose horrors it seeks to highlight. The artist's attempt to convey a clear message inadvertently reinforces clichéd and stereotypical representations, potentially undermining the intended impact of the artwork. The same article also raised concerns about the idea of the younger brother's inability to help as it can be interpreted as exculpation.9

The first stumbling stone in Szeged was laid in the spring of 2007 in memory of József Hollender, who died during deportation. There are currently 19 stumbling stones in the city center, around Gutenberg Street, the former ghetto of Szeged. The stumbling stones are the work of German sculptor Gunter Demnig: copper plaques (10 x 10cm) fixed on cobblestones in honor of the victims of National Socialism and set into the pavement in front of the former homes of the victims. Demnig emphasizes that stumbling stones are not meant to be memorials. Instead, they are supposed to bring back memories. The testimony of Vera Pick (b. 1933, Vienna, granddaughter of Márk Pick, the founder of the Pick salami factory in Szeged) gives valuable insights into the events in the ghetto, particularly focusing on the Pick family.

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the deportations, the Hungarian Evangelical Fellowship, known for its historically strong ties with Hungarian Jewish communities, and the John Wesley Theological College, which operates under the ownership and authority of the fellowship, collaborated to inaugurate a commemorative plaque at Szeged's central railway station. Their representatives organize an annual commemoration at that railway station, even though the Jews from Szeged were deported from Szeged's other railway station (called Rókus).

78 years have passed since the deportations, but to this day, there is no complete, reliable list of the deportees. Currently, in an international project (funded by the Claims Conference and IHRA) led by the author of this article, an international team of researchers is attempting to reconstruct the transportation lists of Jewish victims deported from Szeged in the last days of June 1944. This is a further step towards fulfilling the words of Isaiah 56: 5: "I will give them an everlasting name / Which shall not perish."10