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Synagogues may be considered "oldest" based on different criteria. A number of synagogues that predate the expulsion of the Jews from England have been discovered by archaeologists or by historians in buildings that have been in use for other purposes for many centuries. A second set of synagogues post-dates the legal return of Jews to England in the seventeenth century. Some synagogues have been destroyed or demolished and rebuilt on the same site, so that, while the site or congregation may be very old, the building may be modern. Still other old synagogue buildings exist, but were sold by the congregation and are now used for other purposes, some as churches or mosques, others for everything from residences to school recital halls. And some very old synagogues have been in continuous use as synagogues for many centuries.
Chatham Memorial Synagogue
built in 1867 *
* Synagogue established by Daniel Jaffe on
Synagogues may be considered "oldest" based on different criteria. A number of synagogues that predate the expulsion of the Jews from England have been discovered by archaeologists or by historians in buildings that have been in use for other purposes for many centuries. A second set of synagogues post-dates the legal return of Jews to England in the seventeenth century. Some synagogues have been destroyed or demolished and rebuilt on the same site, so that, while the site or congregation may be very old, the building may be modern. Still other old synagogue buildings exist, but were sold by the congregation and are now used for other purposes, some as churches or mosques, others for everything from residences to school recital halls. And some very old synagogues have been in continuous use as synagogues for many centuries.
England
* Jews' Court,Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
, built between 1150 and 1180. A recent architectural survey of the existing building has shown that there is very little medieval stonework above basement level in the existing building. Documentary evidence of 1290 when the Jewish community of Lincoln were expelled now shows that the Jews' Court has always been divided into two houses. A charter of 1316 mentions that a Jewish ''scola'' or synagogue had stood to the west in the tenement behind these two houses. Since 1992 The 'Lincolnshire Jewish Community' has held its services here.
* Guildford Synagogue
Guildford Synagogue refers both to a probably medieval synagogue and to a modern congregation in Guildford, Surrey, England.
Medieval synagogue
Jews probably arrived in Guildford during the 12th century. It is widely believed that they built a s ...
, built around 1180.
* Great Synagogue of London
The Great Synagogue of London was, for centuries, the centre of Ashkenazi synagogue and Jewish life in London. Built north of Aldgate in the 17th century, it was destroyed during World War II, in the Blitz.
History
The earliest Ashkenazi synagog ...
was built about 1690 and destroyed during the Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
on the night of 10/11 May 1941.
* Bevis Marks Synagogue
Bevis Marks Synagogue, officially Qahal Kadosh Sha'ar ha-Shamayim ( he, קָהָל קָדוֹשׁ שַׁעַר הַשָׁמַיִם, "Holy Congregation Gate of Heaven"), is the oldest synagogue in the United Kingdom in continuous use. It is loc ...
in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, built in 1701 is the oldest synagogue building in the United Kingdom in continuous use.
* The Plymouth Synagogue, built in 1762, is the oldest Ashkenazi synagogue building in the English-speaking world.
* The Exeter Synagogue, built in 1763 originally for a Sephardic Congregation.
* The Falmouth Synagogue, built in 1806, now inactive
Chatham Memorial Synagogue
built in 1867 *
West London Synagogue
The West London Synagogue of British Jews, abbreviated WLS ( he, ק"ק שער ציון, ''Kahal Kadosh Sha'ar Tziyon'', "Holy Congregation Gate of Zion"), is a synagogue and congregation, affiliated to Reform Judaism, near Marble Arch in cent ...
, built in 1870
* Princes Road Synagogue, Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
, built in 1872-1874
* New West End Synagogue
The ‘’’New West End Synagogue’’’, located in St. Petersburgh Place, Bayswater, London, is one of the oldest synagogues in the United Kingdom still in use. It is one of two synagogues which have been awarded Grade I listed building ...
, built in 1877–1879
Northern Ireland
* Synagogue established by Daniel Jaffe on Great Victoria Street, Belfast
Great Victoria Street in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is a major thoroughfare located in the city centre and is one of the important streets used by pedestrians alighting from Belfast Great Victoria Street railway station and walking into shopping s ...
, built 1870; first synagogue established in what was to become Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
*Annesley Street Synagogue, Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...
, built in 1904, closed 1965; oldest surviving synagogue in Northern IrelandScotland
*Garnethill Synagogue
Garnethill is a predominantly residential area of the city of Glasgow, Scotland with a number of important public buildings.
Geography
Located in the city centre, the area borders Cowcaddens to its north, Sauchiehall Street to its south, Camb ...
, built 1879–1881
Wales
The Merthyr Synagogue (1872) in Merthyr Tydfil,Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
, is thought to be the oldest purpose-built synagogue still standing in Wales.Glamorgan: (Mid Glamorgan, South Glamorgan and West Glamorgan), Stephen R. Hughes, Anthony Ward, Yale University Press, 1995, p. 438
See also
*Oldest synagogues in the world
Historic synagogues include synagogues that date back to ancient times and synagogues that represent the earliest Jewish presence in cities around the world. Some synagogues were destroyed and rebuilt several times on the same site. Others we ...
* Oldest synagogues in Canada Synagogues may be considered "oldest" based on different criteria, and can be oldest in the sense of oldest surviving building, or oldest in the sense of oldest congregation. Some old synagogue buildings have been in continuous use as synagogues, wh ...
* Oldest synagogues in the United States
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
* Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, ...
References
{{Religion-related lists of superlative buildings Jewish English history