DATES:

• 13 Sept. 2026 Open Monument Day (also at Himmelmoor)
• 14 Nov. 2026  "Stunde Null" (Zero Hour) – a play by Axensprung at the Artur-Grenz-Saal (https://www.axensprung-theater.de/termine)

September 10, 2026 – Lecture at the Artur-Grenz-Saal in Quickborn

"The Rendsburg Colonial School for Women"

The Rendsburg Colonial School for Women (*Koloniale Frauenschule Rendsburg*) was located between 1926 and 1945 on the site of what is now the Nordkolleg—a center for seminars, culture, and conferences. There, young women were trained in accordance with colonial-revisionist ideology, receiving instruction in both academic subjects and practical manual skills. The goal was to send them to former German colonial territories as representatives of "German identity" (*Deutschtum*).

Historian Joana Schröder (Heimatmuseum Heiligenhafen), who has extensively researched the history of the Colonial School for Women as part of an exhibition project, will outline the historical and political context of the school's founding in her lecture. She will introduce the key figures involved and explain the curriculum and the school's organizational operations. She will also highlight how educational objectives shifted under National Socialism from 1933 onwards.

To conclude, Joana Schröder will examine the school's legacy, outlining how the history of the Colonial School for Women was addressed politically and socially after 1945. The event will also feature excerpts from a documentary film in which graduates of the Colonial School for Women share their experiences.

An event organized by the Kaltenkirchen Concentration Camp Memorial and the Henri-Goldstein-Haus Memorial in Quickborn.

August 4, 2026: Visit by the State Minister of Education to the Henri-Goldstein-Haus

As part of her summer tour, Dr. Dorit Stenke—Schleswig-Holstein’s new Minister of Education, Science, Research, and Culture—visited the Henri-Goldstein-Haus memorial.

In a presentation, Jens-Olaf Nuckel (Chairman of the supporting association) explained the memorial's significance to Schleswig-Holstein and the current status of its renovation, while also providing an update on ongoing collaboration with schools in Quickborn.

He placed particular emphasis on the need to strengthen the memorial’s staff with a professional specialist, noting that the wide range of tasks involved cannot be handled solely by volunteers in the long run. Furthermore, Jens-Olaf Nuckel convinced the Minister that additional funding is required for the next phase of the project: the creation of a permanent exhibition.

Gruppenfoto von links: Prof. Raffael Scheck, Dr. Rüdiger Overmans, Amelie Berking, Dr. Regina Brunschön, Dr. Harald Schmid, Dr. Renata Kobylarz-Bula, Prof. Pavel Polian, Dr. Karsten Wilke,, Dr. Dominik Reither, Antonius Schanderwitz, Dr. Janine Doerry, Dr. Reimer Möller, Christiana Lefevbre, Prof. Yorai Linenberg, Dr. Lars Hellwinkel, Jens-Olaf Nuckel

The Henri-Goldstein-Haus Memorial used this occasion to commemorate two forced labor detachments that existed at the Himmelmoor bog in Quickborn during the Second World War. The prisoners of war forced to cut peat there comprised two groups: soldiers of the Red Army and Jewish members of the French Army. At least 15 of the up to one hundred Soviet prisoners of war died in Quickborn within a single year. In contrast—and paradoxically—all fifty or so Jewish prisoners of war survived their forced labor assignment at Himmelmoor.

This local case study served as the starting point for examining the starkly contrasting ways these two groups were treated. The conference also addressed Jewish prisoners of war from other countries of origin.

While the Wehrmacht systematically—and in violation of international law—denied humane treatment to Soviet prisoners of war, the fate of Jewish prisoners of war depended on the army in which they had served. Jewish soldiers in the Red Army were not to be taken prisoner at all; instead, they were to be murdered near the front lines. Many Jews who had served in the Polish Army were murdered during the Shoah. Conversely, prisoner-of-war status saved thousands of French Jews from deportation to extermination camps. As a rule, Jewish prisoners of war from the US, Britain, and Yugoslavia who were held by the Germans also survived the Holocaust.

The conference was conducted in both German and English and was aimed at interested individuals from the fields of research and education, as well as the general public.

Organizers: Träger- und Förderverein Henri-Goldstein-Haus Quickborn e.V. (Henri-Goldstein-Haus Quickborn Support Association), Dr. Janine Doerry, Dr. Karsten Wilke, Amelie Berking M.A. Venue: Comenius-Schule-Quickborn, Am Freibad 3-11, 25451 Quickborn

Date: June 13–14, 2026

Conference program

Lecture on May 8th – Anniversary of the End of World War II

May 8, 1945—the date of the German Wehrmacht’s unconditional surrender—marks the end of the Second World War in Europe. At the same time, it represents the overcoming of the Nazi dictatorship and its crimes. Despite the contradictory nature of the historical experiences involved—collapse, total military defeat, the liberation of surviving victims from concentration camps and prisons, catastrophe, and "Zero Hour" (*Stunde Null*)—May 8, 1945, stands as a watershed moment in 20th-century history. Not least, it created the conditions necessary for a humane and democratic reorientation following the horrors of war and tyranny. After intense controversy beginning in the mid-1980s, May 8, 1945, is now increasingly interpreted as a "Day of Liberation."

As the Henri-Goldstein-Haus Quickborn e.V. association (responsible for the center's operation and support), we wish to commemorate this significant day this year and are hosting the following event:

"The Memorial – Against Forgetting"

A lecture by journalist Michael Legband on the memorial created by Fritz Höger in Itzehoe.

The structure was initiated by Prof. Gyula Trebitsch, who would go on to become a legendary film and television producer (credits include *Des Teufels General*, *Hauptmann von Köpenick*, the founding of Studio Hamburg, *Die Bertinis*, *Diese Drombuschs*, and many more). A Hungarian Jew, Trebitsch had been liberated from the Wöbbelin concentration camp near Ludwigslust on May 2, 1945, and was brought to a hospital in Itzehoe via a British medical transport. It was there that the idea emerged to create a memorial for the victims of National Socialism—one that would simultaneously serve as a warning to ensure such events would never happen again. The architect was Johann Friedrich "Fritz" Höger (known for works such as the Chilehaus in Hamburg), a figure implicated in National Socialism. The memorial stands as a symbol of early Jewish life in Germany after 1945.

Michael Legband is a sought-after speaker nationwide, giving lectures on the moving and eventful history of the Itzehoe memorial. His latest book is titled *Das Mahnmal – 75 Jahre gegen das Vergessen* (published by Verlag Dr. Ludwig); among other things, it documents one hundred events that have taken place at the memorial.

The lecture will be held on May 8, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. at the Henri-Goldstein-Haus,

located at Himmelmoorstrasse 6 in Quickborn.

Sunday Opening Hours at the Henri-Goldstein-Haus

Every 1st and 3rd Sunday from April to October, 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

For anyone visiting Himmelmoor—whether to go for a walk, take a tour on the peat railway, or learn about the history of forced labor at Himmelmoor at the Henri-Goldstein-Haus.

Donation from the German Foundation for Monument Protection / Status of Renovation 

On February 26, 2026, Mr. Wolfgang Grandinger from the German Foundation for Monument Protection presented us with a check in the amount of €19,270. With this money, we can continue to advance the renovation of the building. It is intended to mill the walls of the laundry room and restore their color to the original state. The same applies to the toilets, the doors, and the gable wall. The ceiling in the overseer's room is also to be repaired, and new electrical wiring installed. 

Work has already begun, and we will continue to report on it.

12 Roll-Ups for our visitors

We are currently working on developing 12 so-called roll-ups (information stands) so that visitors can find their way around the rooms of the Henri Goldstein House independently of the members of the sponsoring association. Of course, we are available during opening hours to answer any detailed questions.

Workshop with Dataport Culture (Dataport Kultur)

We took advantage of a funding offer from LAGSH, the State Working Group of Memorials and Places of Remembrance in Schleswig-Holstein, to expand our digital services and further the development of our memorial.

Last year, LAGSH received more than 100,000 euros from the State Library to promote the digital transformation in the memorials. The basis for this was their “Digital-Analog Strategy,” developed in 2024 in collaboration with BGSH, the Citizen Foundation for Schleswig-Holstein Memorials, and the Dataport Kultur.Kompetenzzentrum. Dataport is the information and communication service provider of the state of Schleswig-Holstein, and its Kultur.Kompetenzzentrum has already developed the Stolperstein app.

First, on November 14, 2025, a totally rainy day, we had a Dataport employee record a virtual (digital) tour of our Henri Goldstein House. You can access this on the homepage. It now also allows those who cannot visit the memorial in person to get an impression of it. You’re supposed to follow the markings on the ground and then, when stepping out, go to the opposite building, the smithy.

Dataport also helped us so that we can now view our website in the three languages German, English, and French. In a one-and-a-half-day workshop, the board of the Henri Goldstein House, together with the extremely competent Dataport Culture Team developed an analog-digital strategy for the association, and worked out the long-term goals as well as the key steps for implementation.