In the City of International Human Rights or at least working for that title

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5/19/08



I loved going to the court where the Nazi party leaders were charged! That was really an amazing experience. I want to talk facts about it for a little first. So, if you were the allied forces trying to think where the best place to charge those involved with some of the most heinous war crimes of the 20th century, what would be a place that would probably come to mind first? Most would probably say Berlin or Munich I would think. Nuremberg was chosen for a few reasons. First, they have a prison on the campus that is accessible through a series of tunnels under the court house, with an elevator connecting the tunnels to the court room. This way, prisoners would not be out in open areas. Plus, it is not in a busy city. Nuremberg is much smaller than Berlin and Munich and so holding the trials there would cause less interruption to the area. Something else that is interesting is that the court room there was FAR to small for all 23, I believe, defendants, the 2 judges from each allied country, a host of journalists from countries around the world, all the lawyers on top of that. They brought it back to its original size afterwards, and you can tell where the new and old wood meet. Speaking about the judges, there was two from each of the allied forces, but only from each could vote. The second was there just in case the other got sick or could not attend. That never happened however. Something else was that since the journalists needed so much light, there were lights added in the court room. Because of this, defendants had to wear sunglasses some times! Something there that you would NEVER see in a US courtroom today was a huge crucifix affixed over the judge’s seats. It is more of a cultural symbol here rather than a religious symbol. It is in all public administrative offices and all schools. Also, the Nuremberg trials were the first time that there was a simultaneous translation of something into many different languages, something that the UN uses today.

On judgment day, October 1 1946, seven were imprisoned, three were let go, and the rest received the death penalty. The reason that some were let go was because they were not directly connected to the war effort. Later, they were sentenced by German courts.

A myth that I had always believed was that Goring was given Cyanide by an officer who snuck it in for him. Actually, it was the case that he hid a pill in his luggage that the prison did not find. He asked to see his luggage, got it out and took it before his hanging time.

I had always wondered what they had done with the bodies. Today, I learned. The bodies of those who received the death penalty were cremated and thrown in a river so that any with Nazi leanings could not go and make it a pilgrimage site. The reason I had been thinking about this is I was wondering if Hitler’s body had not disappeared, what would they have done to his body? It might have become something like Lennon’s tomb if they had buried it somewhere.

Probably the coolest thing I learned today was the reason for a bakers dozen! In Germany, if a baker’s bread was underweight, the baker was subject to our equivalent of water-boarding as a punishment! He would be tied to a board with a metal apparatus and dunked to the point of drowning three times. So, a baker to ensure that the customer got the right weight of bread would throw in an extra roll or loaf or something just to be on the safe side.

Things to remember: Just because it is the best pretzel in Germany, does not make it the best pretzel, German chocolate places however do have the best kinds of chocolate, Haribo gummies are not all they are cracked up to be, Medieval prisons were not fun places to be sent, although you could be put there for basically anything, when you are not sure, make extra and always keep trying.

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