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On 10 November, the AJR community gathered at Belsize Square Synagogue to mark 88 years since Kristallnacht, remembering the victims of Nazi persecution and honouring the voices of those who witnessed it.
We were privileged to hear the moving testimony of 98-year-old AJR member Inge Gershfield, who recalled witnessing a synagogue burning in Berlin, and to celebrate a particularly poignant milestone as Kindertransport refugee Gabriele Keenaghan BEM marked her 100th birthday and had her Austrian citizenship formally returned.
Joined by Holocaust refugees, survivors, descendants and distinguished guests, we came together in remembrance, reflection and recognition of the responsibility we share to preserve these stories for future generations.
Today Gabriele Keenaghan turned 100 and had a decades-long dream come true; to have her Austrian Citizenship reinstated after she had it taken from her during the war, coming over to Britain on the Kindertransport.
Mazel Tov to Gabriele on her citizenship!
May the memories of all the victims of the Holocaust forever be a blessing. Today, on the anniversary of Kristallnacht, we recite the mourner’s Kaddish in their honour 🕯️
Today, Holocaust survivors lit candles to commemorate the anniversary of Kristallnacht - the night of the broken glass.
Through their stories we are reminded of the importance of remembrance and Jewish resilience.
”I’m probably one of the few people alive who can still remember Berlin before the war.”
Holocaust survivor Peter Summerfield BEM recalls his harrowing childhood memory of witnessing the burning of synagogues during Kristallnacht in Berlin.
At just five years old, Peter witnessed the terrifying destruction firsthand on his way to school, and shares how his father was kept safe from persecution during this brutal period after being hidden in a cellar by a brave local caretaker.
A defining turning point in the history of Jewish refugees in Britain.
Across two horrific nights in November 1938, orchestrated Nazi violence targeted Jewish communities on an unprecedented scale - burning synagogues, looting businesses, and terrorising families in their homes and on the streets.
The immediate aftermath changed everything. With tens of thousands sent to concentration camps, the desperate race to escape began. It was in the direct wake of this brutality that the Kindertransport was established, providing a lifeline for around 10,000 children who found refuge in Britain.
Before finding refuge on the Kindertransport, many children endured horrors that are rarely spoken about.
Following the violent state-sponsored pogroms of Kristallnacht (Reichspogromnacht) on 9–10 November 1938, thousands of Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues were looted and destroyed. But for many future Kinder, the terror went even further: some were directly arrested and incarcerated in concentration camps like Buchenwald and Dachau.
Arriving by train in Weimar, young children were forced to march 7 kilometres up to Buchenwald. Alongside severe violence and deaths inside the camps, the sheer devastation led many parents and grandparents to take their own lives.
When prisoners were finally released on the condition that they emigrate immediately, these children boarded the Kindertransport carrying the weight of total family upheaval and trauma before their journey had even begun.
As we mark the anniversary of the November Pogroms, we remember their strength and continue to share the full truth of their experiences.
Dancing into his 100th year! Holocaust survivor Maurice Peltz showing us all what resilience, gratitude, and pure joy look like as he celebrates a century of life. Happy 100th Birthday, Maurice!
