Kosher and Jewish Life in Reims

Between 1791, just after emancipation, and the eve of the first World War in 1914, over 176 synagogues were built in Alsace – nearly every town and village had one. Even though many of those synagogue buildings survive today, most are closed or are no longer used as religious centers. Historians are uncertain as to the location of Reims’s medieval synagogue, but it is believed to have been at 18, rue des Elus, a street whose name has changed over the centuries from the Vicus Judaeorum to the Rue de Gieu (a form of Juif) to the Rue des Elus. Jews from Alsace and Lorraine established a community in Reims in 1870. However, in 1941, on the eve of World War II, the 200 families who lived here were all deported by the Germans on a single day. Built in 1871, this synagogue contains a memorial plaque to those who were deported. 49, rue Clovis, tel. 03.26.47.68.47 During the 1960s, Jews from North Africa have settled in Reims. In 1979, the Community celebrated the centenary of his synagogue. The synagogue is still in business.