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Screenshot der biographischen Datenbank mit Porträts verfolgter Zeugen Jehovas und der Überschrift „Erfahren Sie mehr über die Menschen“.
Screenshot der Startseite des Wissensportals »Biographien verfolgter Zeugen Jehovas«. Quelle: Stiftung Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas, abgerufen am 3. August 2026.

“Biographies of Persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses” – New Digital Knowledge Portal Launched

AI disclosure: This English version was translated from the German original with the assistance of artificial intelligence. Ahead of the official dedication ceremony of the Memorial to Jehovah’s Witnesses Persecuted and Murdered under National Socialism, a press conference was held on June 18, 2026 at the Information Centre of the

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Four men in suits are sitting in red armchairs during a panel discussion. The three panelists on the left are holding microphones, while the moderator on the right, holding a microphone and some notecards, is asking a question. In front of them is a low table with pads for resting the microphones and some notes; in the foreground, members of the audience can be seen.
Matthias Leeck, Uwe Langhals, and Uwe Klages (from left) talking with Mario Bergmann (right) about the creation of the memorial. Photo: Arnold-Liebster-Stiftung

Event on the Day Before the Dedication of the Memorial to Persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses—Background and Life Stories

On the day before the dedication to the public of the memorial to Jehovah’s Witnesses persecuted and murdered under National Socialism, the Arnold-Liebster-Stiftung invited guests to an event at the Akademie der Künste on Pariser Platz—very close to the Brandenburg Gate and the Großer Tiergarten, where this same ceremony—the dedication

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Photo of the presentation of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany by Consul General Thomas Pröpstl
Consul General Thomas Pröpstl presents Simone Arnold-Liebster with the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany © Jolene Chu

Simone Arnold-Liebster awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany

On December 15, 2023, Consul General Thomas Pröpstl presented the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany to contemporary witness Simone Arnold-Liebster in Chambéry, near her home in Aix-les-Bains in the French Savoy. On August 17, 2023, the German ambassador to France, Stephan Steinlein, informed Simone Arnold-Liebster, who

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Numerous guests sit in rows of chairs on an outdoor wooden platform in sunny weather, some protecting themselves with parasols and hats. They look toward the stage under a dark canopy, where a speaker stands at a lectern. To the right, a tree-shaped bronze sculpture several meters high rises among the trees.
President of the Bundestag Julia Klöckner speaks at the ceremony for the dedication of the memorial to the public. To the right of the image is the approximately five-meter-high bronze sculpture in the shape of a tree by artist Matthias Leeck, Berlin Tiergarten, June 24, 2026. Photo: Peter Maciol.

Memorial for Persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses Formally Dedicated

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The finished memorial in the form of a tall, gleaming golden tree trunk stands in a clearing in Berlin's Tiergarten; in the background are trees and the high-rise buildings on Potsdamer Platz.
The memorial near the goldfish pond, with the high-rise buildings on Potsdamer Platz in the background. The memorial site is still fenced in - it will be handed over to the public on June 24, 2026. Photo: Peter Maciol

The Memorial Stands: Bronze Sculpture Erected in Tiergarten for the Persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses

An important milestone has been reached in Berlin’s Tiergarten: on Thursday, May 28, 2026, the memorial to the Jehovah’s Witnesses persecuted and murdered under National Socialism was erected near the Goldfischteich (Goldfish Pond). After months of work, the bronze sculpture, which is almost five meters high and weighs around twelve

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Close-up of a freshly laid, shiny gold Stolperstein (stumbling stones) in the pavement of Bornbruchweg 3 in Ueckermünde. The inscription reads: "HERE LIVED MARTHA GEHRKE GEB. GILLMANN BORN 1889 JEHOVAH'S WITNESS ARRESTED 1936 SEVERAL PRISONS 1937 LICHTENBURG CONCENTRATION CAMP 1939 RAVENSBRÜCK CONCENTRATION CAMP LIBERATED". To the left and right of the stone are pink and white roses with green leaves laid down on the dark cobblestones for the inauguration on May 19, 2026.
Stolpersteine (stumbling stone) for Martha Gehrke. Photo: Falk Bersch

500 Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) for Jehovah’s Witnesses

On May 19, 2026, the town of Ueckermünde in Western Pomerania commemorated some of the victims of the Nazi regime by laying Stolpersteine (stumbling stones). Among others, a Stolperstein (stumbling stone) for Jehovah’s Witness Martha Gehrke was dedicated at Bornbruchweg 3 – the 500th to commemorate men and women from

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General view of the construction site of the memorial to the Jehovah's Witnesses persecuted and murdered under National Socialism in Berlin's Tiergarten. In the foreground the construction site banner on the site fence, behind it the open area with earthworks and construction vehicles. The buildings on Potsdamer Platz can be seen on the horizon. The trees of the Tiergarten can be seen in the background on the right.
View of the construction site near the goldfish pond in the Großer Tiergarten. The Gestapo carried out an arrest operation against Jehovah's Witnesses at this historically significant site on August 22, 1936, April 2026. Photo: Christoph Wilker.

Construction work has begun on the memorial for persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses

History is currently coming to life in Berlin’s Tiergarten: Construction work on the memorial to the Jehovah’s Witnesses persecuted and murdered under National Socialism has begun on schedule. The memorial, which the German Bundestag decided to erect on June 22, 2023, is being built near the Goldfischteich. The construction site

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Artist Matthias Leeck and Uwe Langhals from the Arnold Liebster Foundation look at a segment of the memorial to the persecuted Jehovah's Witnesses in a metal factory in Wermelskirchen. The bronze-colored sculpture has a heavily fissured surface structure.
Matthias Leeck (left) and Uwe Langhals look at the first segment of the memorial to the Jehovah's Witnesses persecuted under National Socialism. The scars in the bronze-colored surface tell of the suffering of the victims. Photo: Manuel Schmid.

A Bronze Tree: the Memorial for the Persecuted Jehovah’s Witnesses Takes Shape

History is currently being milled in a metalworking shop in Wermelskirchen, Germany – literally. The memorial to Jehovah’s Witnesses persecuted and murdered under National Socialism, which is to be formally dedicated in Berlin’s Tiergarten park on June 24, 2026, is being built there. It is a special moment for Matthias

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Three-dimensional view of the closed book, standing at a slight angle on a beige surface with a gray background.
Mock-up of the planned book. Cover picture: Goldfish pond in Berlin's Tiergarten around 1930, © Austrian Archives/brandstaetter images/picturedesk.com

Remembering History in Berlin—New Publication on the Memorial’s Dedication

Forthcoming publication Mahnmal für die im Nationalsozialismus verfolgten und ermordeten Zeugen Jehovas – Dokumentation der Geschichte eines Gedenkprojekts Scheduled for publication in fall 2026 Hardcover, 650 pages More than 200 images, maps, and foldout maps Comprehensive indexes, statistics, and chronologies Their resistance put their lives at risk because it challenged

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