In his book "Die in unsern Landen eingesessen", Michael Schneeberger first describes the beginnings of Judaism in Kleinlangheim (1). The first evidence of at least one Jew in "Lanckheim" dates back to 1415. The "Jew" had been taken into custody by the Würzburg Bishop Johann von Brunn.
The Jewish community of Kleinlangheim around 1800 (2)
In the period around 1800, the Jewish community of Kleinlangheim had around 15 families with around 80 people and was able to fulfill all the functions of a normal Jewish village community. It had its first synagogue, built in 1737, a ritual immersion bath and a Jewish school (one class; in a building in front of the synagogue that no longer exists). The deceased were buried in the Rödelsee Jewish cemetery, which had existed since 1563. A teacher was employed to take care of the religious duties of the community, who also worked as a prayer leader and shochet.
The Bavarian registration law of 1813 gave the Kleinlangheim Jews 14, and later 17, registration places.
In the 19th century, the number of Jewish inhabitants developed as follows: 1814 82 Jewish inhabitants (8.5% of a total of 969 inhabitants), 1837 118 (9.8% of 1,210), 1867 116 (9.2% of 1,256), 1880 105 (8.3% of 1,258), 1900 83 (7.3% of 1,140), 1910 62 (5.7% of 1,092) (3).
In 1933, there were still 38 Jewish people living in the town (3.8% of a total of 999 inhabitants). From 1940, there were no more Jewish citizens in Kleinlangheim.
The picture on the left shows the first synagogue (built around 1725) next to the official residence of the Margraves of Ansbach-Brandenburg, photo: Monika Conrad