The First Jewish Champion Shot
From Our Holdings
"My father was announced champion shot in 1962 at Warendorf's Hinter den Drei Brücken shooting club. This was no doubt a symbolic occasion," said Paul Spiegel, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany from 2000 to 2006, of his father Hugo Spiegel (1905–1987). "It was the first time that a Jew had been made champion shot in Warendorf, in Münsterland, or even in Germany."
"A worthy champion"
And he continued: "He was a worthy champion – but not an unmindful one. When we… were finally alone, he, who never talked about the past, said… 'You see! It was right to come home to Warendorf!' And then, under his breath: 'If only our little Rosa could have seen this…'"
Persecution and a New Start: The Story of the Spiegel Family
The cattle dealer Hugo Spiegel came from a traditional Jewish family that had lived in Westphalia for several centuries. He fled with his family to Brussels following the Night of Broken Glass. He was arrested and deported in 1940. Spiegel survived the concentration camp and returned to Warendorf after his liberation. His wife and son, who had survived in hiding, also returned shortly after him. Their daughter Rosa was murdered in Auschwitz. Hugo Spiegel took up his work as a cattle dealer again and applied himself to rebuilding the Jewish community in Münster.
Leonard Freed, the Photographer
The photograph showing Hugo Spiegel as champion shot is one of a series from 1961–62 by the celebrated photographer Leonard Freed (1929–2006). He documented the revival of the Jewish communities in West Germany, showing images of Jewish life in Germany that were largely positive with few exceptions. Freed published a book of his photographs in a deliberate sequence and sometimes with extended captions: Leonard Freed. Deutsche Juden heute. Munich: Rütten & Loening Verlag, 1965.
| Photographer | Leonard Freed |
|---|---|
| Title | Hugo Spiegel as Champion Shot from the series German Jews Today |
| Collection | Photography |
| Location and year of origin | Warendorf 1962 |
| Medium | Silver gelatine print on baryt paper |
| Dimensions | 35 x 23,6 cm |
Leonard Freed: Hugo Spiegel as Champion Shot; Jewish Museum Berlin
Selected Objects: Photographic Collection (6)
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Photographic Collection
From an early promotional photograph by Yva to documentation of Jewish life in Germany before and after the Shoah, discover selected objects from our Photographic Collection and the stories behind them.
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“Amor Skin”
The vintage print is an example of early promotional photography. Using multiple exposures, the photographer Yva was able to produce unreal and dreamlike images
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“White Weeks” at the Ury Department Store
With a brightly lit façade, the Ury brothers promoted “White Weeks” to their customers in February 1930. The promotional campaign testified to their modern business practices and their resulting success
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Hugo Spiegel as Champion Shot
The photograph by Leonard Freed depicts the father of Paul Spiegel, who would later be president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. The Holocaust survivor was probably the first Jewish champion marksman in Germany
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Sally Israel in a Bavarian Costume
Three vacationers in folk costumes gather around the Berlin businessman for a souvenir photo from Bad Reichenhall. The spa town had been a prime destination for Jewish vacationers since the mid-nineteenth century
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Synagogue in the Jewish Retreat Center in Lehnitz
The synagogue was one of the last in Germany to be dedicated before the Second World War. For many, the retreat center became a place where Jews could assert their identity and culture in a hostile environment
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Rededication of the Synagogue at the Jewish Hospital
One year after the end of the Second World War, in 1946, the synagogue at the Jewish hospital on Iranische Strasse in the Berlin district of Wedding was rededicated. Gradually, it became the center of community work in Berlin
