Nuremberg World War II

From 1933 to 1938, the National Socialists held their Party Rallies in Nuremberg. Today remains of huge structures still bear witness to how this propaganda display was organized and produced. The exhibition in the Documentation Center Nazi Party Rally Grounds gives a comprehensive picture of the National Socialist dictatorship as well as the history of the Party Rallies. The educational forum offers numerous programs, and information boards on the Nazi Party Rally Grounds, which cover 4 square kilometers, explain the history of the site.

In the years 1935 to 1937 the Zeppelinwiese was redesigned to a design by Albert Speer (1934) in a parade grounds with grandstands, with the built on the northeast side of the field Zeppelin grandstand as a dominant backdrop. It is the only completed building on the Reichsparteitagsgelände.

The building was the location of the Nuremberg trials that were held from 1945 to 1949 for the main surviving German war criminals of World War II. The Palace of Justice was chosen as the site of the trials because it was almost undamaged, offered sufficient space and included a large prison complex. The choice of the city of Nuremberg was symbolic as the Nazis had held large Nuremberg Rallies in the city. The trials took place in courtroom number 600, situated in the eastern wing of the palace of Justice. The courtroom is still used, especially for murder trials. At the end of the Nuremberg Trials the courtroom was refurbished, and is now smaller. A wall that had been removed during the trials in order to create more space was re-erected. In addition, the judges’ bench was turned 90 degrees and is no longer situated in front of the window, but stands where the witness box was placed during the trials.