As the 80th anniversary of the Nuremberg Trials approaches, visitors are returning to the historic courtroom where Nazi war criminals first faced justice after World War II in 1945.
The Memorium Nuremberg Trials in Germany, which stands on the original site of the judgment since 2010, exhibits a great deal of historical photos, documents and video records of the 216 trials held in 1945 and 1946.
The trials, held between November 1945 and October 1946, prosecuted prominent members of Nazi Germany's political, military, judicial and economic leadership who planned, carried out or participated in the Holocaust and other war crimes during World War II. Nuremberg was designated by Hitler as the "City of the Reich Party Rallies." In 1935, the infamous Nuremberg Race Laws were enacted here, marking the beginning of the genocide against the Jewish people.
Axel Fischer, a research associate at the Memorium Nuremberg Trials, said that no city in Germany has witnessed both the fervor of the Nazis and the reckoning against them quite like Nuremberg.
"The main trials of the Nuremberg trials were held here, lasting from November 1945 to October 1946, with several subsequent trials taking place here from 1946 to 1949. During the trials of major war criminals, this room accommodated around 400 to 500 people," said Fischer.
After World War II, Germany consistently expressed remorse for the wars initiated by the Nazi regime and the atrocities of genocide. This included publicly condemning Nazi crimes, issuing official apologies, declaring a "permanent responsibility" for these acts, and engaging in self-criticism and reckoning through education, legislation, and financial reparations.
Fischer also said that this reflection on war has become an important aspect of Germany's "culture of reflection." It is through this awareness that people can prevent future conflicts and find answers on how to coexist peacefully in the future.
"We must reflect on history. This is a matter of survival. Our reflection is crucial not only for how we coexist but also for how we face the future," he said.
Germany reflects as Nuremberg Trials site marks 80 years of justice, remorse
