The Holocaust Memorial in Hyde Park, London, was the first public memorial in Great Britain dedicated to victims of the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

.Cooke (2000), pp. 449–465. It lies to the east of the

Serpentine Lake The Serpentine (also known as the Serpentine River) is a recreational lake in Hyde Park, London, England, created in 1730 at the behest of Queen Caroline. Although it is common to refer to the entire body of water as the Serpentine, strict ...

, in The Dell, an open-air area within the park. Since its unveiling in 1983 remembrance services have taken place at the memorial every year.

Construction and unveiling

The memorial was built in 1983, funded by the

Board of Deputies of British Jews The Board of Deputies of British Jews, commonly referred to as the Board of Deputies, is the largest and second oldest Jewish communal organisation in the United Kingdom, after only the Initiation Society which was founded in 1745. Established ...

under the impetus of then-President Greville Janner, a Labour Party MP. It was designed by Mark Badger, Richard Seifert, Derek Lovejoy and partners. It was unveiling on 28 June 1983, during a service led by then-Environment Secretary

Patrick Jenkin, Baron Jenkin of Roding Charles Patrick Fleeming Jenkin, Baron Jenkin of Roding, (7 September 1926 – 20 December 2016) was a British Conservative Party politician who served as a cabinet minister in Margaret Thatcher's first government. Life and career Jenkin wa ...

. Attended by a crowd of 500 spectators including Sir

Immanuel Jakobovits, Baron Jakobovits Immanuel Jakobovits, Baron Jakobovits (8 February 192131 October 1999) was the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth from 1967 to 1991. Prior to this, he had served as Chief Rabbi of Ireland and as rabbi of the Fift ...

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...

of the United Hebrew Congregations of the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

, Jenkin described the memorial as "a reminder of the past and a warning for the future." The attending guests then sang hymns and "

Adon Olam Adon Olam ( he, אֲדוֹן עוֹלָם; "Eternal Lord" or "Sovereign of the Universe") is a hymn in the Jewish liturgy. It has been a regular part of the daily and Shabbat ( Sabbath) liturgy since the 15th century.Nulman, Macy, ''Encyclopedia ...

", a

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as ...

hymn. The then-shadow Environment Secretary

Gerald Kaufman Sir Gerald Bernard Kaufman (21 June 1930 – 26 February 2017) was a British politician and author who served as a minister throughout the Labour government of 1974 to 1979. Elected as a member of parliament (MP) at the 1970 general election, ...

, whose grandmother was murdered by the Nazis in Poland, also stated that "the memorial was essential because the German responsibility was partly shared by other countries."

Design

The memorial consists of two boulders lying within a gravel bed, surrounded by a copse of silver birch trees. It is inscribed in both English and

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

with the words "For these I weep. Streams of tears flow from my eyes because of the destruction of my people" which is a quotation from the

Book of Lamentations The Book of Lamentations ( he, אֵיכָה, , from its incipit meaning "how") is a collection of poetic laments for the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE. In the Hebrew Bible it appears in the Ketuvim ("Writings") as one of the Five Megill ...

References

Notes

Written works

External links