In English we spell the city we visited today Nurenburg, but I am going with the German spelling as I always think a city ought to know how to spell its own name. The city is famous in history as the site of the Nazi party rallies under Hitler and the trials of the Nazis at the conclusion of the war. The city was chosen for the Nazi Party conventions, known as the Nuremberg rallies, due to its proximity to the center of Germany. Rallies were held in 1927, 1929, and annually from 1933 thru 1938. Today we visited the site of these rallies and the site of the trials.
Thanks to a very knowledgeable and insightful tour guide, we learned a lot about the Nazi history of Germany. We learned about the reasons for the rise of Nazism and antisemitism and why it is important to remember this part of their history so it is not repeated. Seeing these sites and knowing what happened there, made it an emotional day.
Congress Hall is the unfinished site being built for the rallies. It dwarfs the Roman Coliseum and was intended to be about 25% higher and have a cantilevered roof when finished. The architects advised that a cantilevered roof was not technically possible, but Hitler never accepted that. The outside of the Congress Hall is granite blocks, but the interior is brick.Construction stopped in 1939.After the Nazis were defeated, Nuremberg faced the decision of what to do with the unfinished Congress Hall. According to our guide, Germany does not want people to forget what happened during the Nazi period as that risks repeating history. They also want to make use of the building. Therefore, the symphony orchestra performs in one wing of the building. We visited the Documentation Center in another wing of the building, which explains the causes, connections, and consequences of Nazi Germany. The Center is closed for remodeling so we saw a temporary exhibit.The Zeppelin Fields or Rally Grounds were nearby. The large structure to the right of the stands is the podium area where Hitler stood to deliver his speeches. There is an equally large sitting area on the other side of the podium and a huge field in front of it. You can barely make out a few people in the stands to give you some scale.A closer look at the podium with someone standing on it. As a point of interest, it is illegal to give the Nazi salute in Germany and our guide warned one could be arrested if they did it.These are the rest rooms lining both sides of the rally grounds. There were six airplane search lights mounted to the top of each one shining columns of light into the sky at night.This is the Palace of Justice where the Nuremberg trials were held in room 600 on the top floor behind the blue covering.The room where the trials were held is under renovation, so we could only look into it through this window.There were some more attractive sites in town such as the Cathedral. Notice the blue and yellow Ukraine flag to the lower left.Germany has accepted a large number of Ukrainian refugees. This group had a large number of people wrapped in Ukraine flags or wearing Ukraine tee shirts. I’m not sure if it was a refugee gathering or a support/fund raising rally. It looked like they were preparing for a quartet to sing for the group.While Nuremberg was not as pretty as some of the cities, it did have some pretty spots.
I’m sure it was an emotional day. I probably would have been in tears. That’s why we can Never Forget
Very interesting. Thank you for sharing.
I would have been in tears with Anita!
Wonderful pictures –
Sue, you look great! You do too, Bruce –
What a emotional day. Hard to believe what went on even now.
Very informative post. I really enjoyed it. Andrea