page_title: Jelgava massacres
section_title: Burning of the synagogue
hierarchical_section_title: Jelgava massacres / Burning of the synagogue
caption_attribution_description: Mondscheinansichtskarte Mitau, Große Synagoge
context_page_description: The Jelgava massacres were the killing of the Jewish population of the city of Jelgava, Latvia that occurred in the second half of July or in early August 1941. The murders were carried out by German police units under the command of Alfred Becu, with a significant contribution by Latvian auxiliary police organized by Mārtiņš Vagulāns.
context_section_description: Two or three days after the Germans captured the city, the main Jelgava synagogue was burned, apparently by the Germans using hand grenades and gasoline.  As the fire burned, the building was ringed by guards wearing German helmets.  It was said in the city the next day that the rabbi refused to leave the synagogue, and perhaps other Jews were burned in the synagogue, or brutalized outside.   Some Latvian onlookers of the burning expressed sympathy for the Jews, who were forced to march by and witness the burning prayer house.
caption: Main synagogue in Jelgava (older photograph from a post card)
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