On March 8, 1945, a group of American soldiers observed Purim in Rheydt, Germany. The actual holiday had taken place the prior week; wartime required flexibility. And this was a Purim none of them would forget.
It was celebrated at Joseph Goebbels' vacation home, Schloss Rheydt, a Renaissance-era palace.
Schloss Rheydt was originally built in 1060 for a noble family. During World War II, the town of Rheydt spent an enormous sum renovating the castle. Swastikas and the letter “G” (for Goebbels) decorated many rooms of the house. A huge painting of Hitler hung over a fireplace. The citizens of Rheydt considered it crucial the castle ooze with luxury and Nazi symbols before they gifted it to the town’s favorite son, Joseph Goebbels.
Goebbels was born in Rheydt in 1897. He joined the Nazi Party in 1924 and became Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda in 1933. He understood that rigidly controlled, false information combined with repetitive lies could shape a country's mindset. Goebbels said, “Think of the press as a great keyboard on which the government can play.” He was one of the most influential men in the Nazi era.
Goebbels was also one of the greatest hypocrites of the Nazi era.
He was an enthusiastic proponent of “Lebensunwertes Leben” or “Life Unworthy of Life” which pushed for killing babies born with disabilities. Yet Goebbels himself was born with a club foot and walked with a limp. He was rejected for military service in World War One because of this infirmity. Had Goebbels been born during the Nazi era, he would have been euthanized.
Goebbels’ propaganda machine promoted the ideal Aryan image – blond hair, blue eyes, fair skin and a tall, athletic build – an image Goebbels himself could never live up to. In addition to his limp, Goebbels had dark hair and eyes and swarthy, pockmarked skin. He was also very short. By his own definition, he was an inferior creature.
His propaganda depicted Jews in the most horrifying ways, pushing the ancient libel that Jews killed Christian children. But it was Goebbels who was the actual murderer of Christian children. Goebbels had one son and five daughters (each of their names began with an “H” in honor of Hitler) and on May 1st, 1945, he and wife murdered them with cyanide before they committed suicide.
Did Goebbels know American soldiers used his holiday villa for Jewish celebrations that March of 1945? What would he have thought of an ark and Torah resting on a swastika-draped table in his dining room, celebrating the triumph of good over evil, vanquishing a modern-day Haman?
Jewish Services at Schloss Reydt from Yank: The Army Weekly.
In Yank: The Army Weekly magazine, Cpl. Howard Katzander wrote that Chaplain Manuel Poliakoff assisted by Pfc. Arnold Reich and Cpl. Martin Willen “raised their voices in an ancient Hebrew hymn of jubilation sung at Purim to celebrate the deliverance of the Jews from an earlier Hitler–Haman of Persia.”
Purim was not the only holiday observed at Schloss Rheydt. Three weeks later, hundreds of American soldiers celebrated Passover in that same dining room. If Goebbels was aware of these celebrations, he must have recognized the irony of Jews praying in his holiday villa.
The war was ending. Evil and hatred were not eradicated, but they were beaten. And at Schloss Rhedyt, a celebration cast a ray of hope in a damaged world.
(19) Anonymous, March 31, 2020 6:38 PM
Excellent! Thank you!
(18) ARIELLE BARTLEY, March 14, 2020 12:29 PM
AM ISRAEL CHAI! THE JUSTICE OF HASHEM WILL FOREVER TRIUMPH OVER EVIL! EVIL CAN ONLY PREVAIL, IF GOOD MEN DO NOTHING.PRECIOUS MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN GAVE THEIR VERY LIVES TO ERADICATE THIS EVIL! VICTORY BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE OF G-D!
(17) Shimeon Weiner, March 12, 2020 5:58 PM
Thank youy
Well done - keep up the good work.
(16) Ronald Nuxon, March 12, 2020 5:18 PM
A small sample of justice.
Jewish servicemen celebrating Purim and Passover in Nazi Goebbels home is satisfying but hardly makes up for the travail experienced by millions. I hope only Goebbels looked up from hell to see and hear Jews in his house mocking Haman, at the mention of his name.
(15) Fred, March 12, 2020 11:44 AM
Great Article
Thank you.
(14) Raymond, March 12, 2020 1:56 AM
A World Devoid of Torah
The nazis were what too many human beings would be, without the influence of our Torah. The nazis were nothing but a bunch of heartless, savage bullies lacking even the slightest trace of a human soul. They spat on the idea of humanity, of civility, of basic human decency. In his thoroughly twisted, evil mind, adolf hitler called for the death of all Jews precisely because we Jews are the ones who brought moral conscience to the world. Judaism places the highest premium on the inherent value of human life, while those who find excuses to end the lives of innocent human beings, such as through most abortions as well as through euthanasia, are playing right into that same evil nazi worldview.
(13) Meghan, March 11, 2020 11:45 AM
Thought provoking piece
Interesting piece. I always enjoy the subtle analogies to the present in Laura Deutsch's historical articles. We see the past repeat itself, yet again. Thanks for sharing this powerful story!
(12) Anonymous, March 11, 2020 1:47 AM
Thank you for this article!
This article is powerful in a number of ways! It is almost like it belongs as an addendum to Scripture, further illustrating the ultimate destruction of Israel's enemies.
(11) Anonymous, March 10, 2020 8:11 PM
Great revenge!
Celebrating a Jewish holiday in an evil place, shows how good can triumph over evil. It's almost as if having that ceremony purified the disgusting evil that lurked there for many years.
(10) Rhonda B., March 10, 2020 7:48 PM
love it...
I hope that the murderous lunatic.....was rolling in his grave....during the Purim celebration...What great revenge!
We are a people who never give up......We are a people who have been through so much hatred, and cruelty, and devastation, and loss...that comes from lies told and ignorance from the beginning of time...yet...we survive with dignity and perseverance, and strength...
It is not easy being a Jew.....but that's what makes me so proud.....
(9) Meryl, March 10, 2020 5:14 PM
Ironic story well told!
How ironic that Goebbels Villa be used for Jewish celebrations. Thanks for sharing this story!
(8) Michele D Bartlett, March 10, 2020 3:57 PM
"We are all Jews here" he said to the stalag commandant
Today is Purim, and in accordance with Megillat Esther, 9:27 ... "the Jews took it on themselves to establish the custom that they and their descendants **and all who join them** should without fail observe these two days every year, in the way prescribed and at the time appointed." As I read the article, I couldn't help but wonder whether any of Master Sgt. Roddie Edmond's Jewish troops had been liberated from Stalag 9 and managed to make their way to Rheydt. Am Yisrael Chai! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roddie_Edmonds
(7) MESA, March 9, 2020 4:53 PM
THIS is the best kind of revenge. Wonderful article.
(6) Alan S., March 9, 2020 12:55 PM
Does this quote remind you of someone?
"(Goebbels) He understood that rigidly controlled, false information combined with repetitive lies could shape a country's mindset".
A fascinating article to read, sort of 'spitting in Goebbel's face.
(5) Joy Levy, March 8, 2020 3:25 PM
Deutsch’s fascinating article about the past should serve as a timely warning for the present.
I always look forward to Deutsch’s articles; they are thought-provoking. As an American who finds herself living in a country that has become a place where hate speech is constant and begins at the top, this article should impress all readers with the fact that our words have enormous power to do either good or evil. As a Jew, I have grown up with the effects of anti-Semitism, and this has made me believe in the critical importance of justice for all. Geobbels’ hypocrisy was evil and horrific, yet he was praised and respected for it. It is a lesson we should all fear, but we should all learn from. Our leaders should be held to the highest standards. This article relates a celebration from 1945, but there are parallels with the present. Laura Deutsch is a fine writer, and I hope to see more from her.
Raymond, March 12, 2020 1:15 AM
Hate Speech Is Constant
I agree with you that in this country, hate speech is constant and begins at the top. Our President, who is at the top, is indeed constantly the victim of such hate speech, by those who cannot stand the fact that he is doing such a fantastic job as our President, because the better he does, the less chance they have of obtaining unmitigated, limitless power over all of our lives.
(4) Chaya, March 8, 2020 12:09 PM
Incredible !
They elevated the Narrow Space; great article.
(3) Jared, March 8, 2020 12:44 AM
conflicting symbols
This is an incredible story. Celebrating passover and purim in a palace of swastikas would seem unbelievable had it not happened. Thanks for sharing this fascinating history.
(2) Marilyn, March 6, 2020 8:06 PM
Great article! I learn something new from every one of Ms. Deutsch’s articles. Her works elicit an emotional response by depicting the ironies in history in such creative and meaningful ways. The hateful Gobbels propaganda machine is well depicted alongside of the ironies that were highlighted in Gobbels deformities, and his far from pure Aryan qualities. So satisfying to learn that American soldiers celebrated Purim in his vacation home! Thank you for sharing this interesting article.
(1) Yaakov, March 6, 2020 5:41 PM
God Bless Our Jewish Troops
see nmajmh.org National Museum of American Jewish Military History and yahrtzeitrememebrance.org. I am very happy to remember my father this way. He was in US Army Air Corp 7th Air Force. May all their souls be elevated.
D