Nuremberg
20 November 1945 -13 April 1949
Palace of Justice in Nuremberg, where trials were held
In the months after the end of World War II, the Allied powers of the world struggled to come up with a way to bring Germany to justice for all of the atrocities committed during the war. The solution they arrived at was to form an international court, a trial of judgment for war crimes. In August 1945, the Americans, British, Soviets, and French signed the London Charter of the International Military Tribunal or IMT, which created the Nuremberg court and set the ground rules for the trial. The Tribunal was designed to document and rectify crimes committed during the second worldwide conflict known to mankind. The IMT first convened on the 18th of October, 1945, in Berlin, upon request by the Soviet Union, and then adjourned to Nuremberg, Germany, where the rest of the trial was held, beginning its first public session on November 20th, 1945 and lasting until October 1946. The IMT formally charged the Nuremberg defendants on four courts: crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity (defined as "murder, extermination, enslavement, deportation ... or persecutions on political, racial, or religious grounds."), and conspiracy to commit these crimes.
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The crimes outlined in the IMT had not been defined under international law,
exposing the Allies to accusations of ex
post facto prosecution, or punishing
actions that had not been established as crimes when they were committed. The
tribunal was also criticized for considering only acts of aggression by the
Axis, not those done by the Allies. Despite all of its flaws, the IMT remained
a landmark accomplishment: for the first time, political and military leaders
would be held accountable on an international level for atrocities committed in
the name of the state.
While the trial convened in Berlin, the prosecutors delivered the indictments. A total of twenty-four Nazi leaders were indicted on the four previously mentioned counts. Additionally, Nazi organizations including the Reich Cabinet, the Leadership Corps of the Nazi Party, the Elite Guard (SS), and the Secret State Police (Gestapo) where prosecuted by the Allies. The Allies appointed prosecutors and judges, and then arranged and paid for the defendants' attorneys, who were largely German.
While the trial convened in Berlin, the prosecutors delivered the indictments. A total of twenty-four Nazi leaders were indicted on the four previously mentioned counts. Additionally, Nazi organizations including the Reich Cabinet, the Leadership Corps of the Nazi Party, the Elite Guard (SS), and the Secret State Police (Gestapo) where prosecuted by the Allies. The Allies appointed prosecutors and judges, and then arranged and paid for the defendants' attorneys, who were largely German.
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As the events of the Holocaust had yet to be widely publicized, the trial
gave the world its first close look at the horror of the Holocaust. In response
to the extreme violence and hatred demonstrated by the Nazis during the
Holocaust, only three of the twenty-two defendants were released and more than
half were sentenced to death.
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The trial at Nuremberg
was an unprecedented achievement and represented an enormous leap in
international law. For the first time, a nation's leaders were prosecuted by
the international community for crimes committed by the state. The rules
created for the trial served and serve as guidelines for future international
conventions and principles for war.
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Additional Facts and Information:
· The Soviet Union wanted the trial held in Soviet-occupied Berlin, but it ended up in the American sector of Germany (in Nuremberg).
· The city of Nuremberg was a former location of Nazi Party rallies
· The trial was held at a Palace of Justice that had largely escaped damage by Allied bombers.
· The palace contained 20 courtrooms and a prison capable of holding 1,200 prisoners.
· The Allies doubled the main courtroom in size, built visitors' and press galleries, and installed a simultaneous translation system to communicate the proceedings in English, French, German, and Russian.
· Over 400 visitors attended the daily proceedings, with 325 correspondents representing 23 different countries.
· 3 of the defendants were acquitted, 19 found guilty, 1 committed suicide before being tried, and 1stood down due to illness.
· Of the 19 defendants found guilty, 3 were sentenced to life in prison, 4 to prison terms from 10 to 20 years, and 12 to death (one committed suicide the night before he was to be executed).
· 4 Nazi organizations were declared criminal
· General Staff and High Command of the Nazi government were condemned by the Tribunal as "a ruthless military caste."
Additional Facts and Information:
· The Soviet Union wanted the trial held in Soviet-occupied Berlin, but it ended up in the American sector of Germany (in Nuremberg).
· The city of Nuremberg was a former location of Nazi Party rallies
· The trial was held at a Palace of Justice that had largely escaped damage by Allied bombers.
· The palace contained 20 courtrooms and a prison capable of holding 1,200 prisoners.
· The Allies doubled the main courtroom in size, built visitors' and press galleries, and installed a simultaneous translation system to communicate the proceedings in English, French, German, and Russian.
· Over 400 visitors attended the daily proceedings, with 325 correspondents representing 23 different countries.
· 3 of the defendants were acquitted, 19 found guilty, 1 committed suicide before being tried, and 1stood down due to illness.
· Of the 19 defendants found guilty, 3 were sentenced to life in prison, 4 to prison terms from 10 to 20 years, and 12 to death (one committed suicide the night before he was to be executed).
· 4 Nazi organizations were declared criminal
· General Staff and High Command of the Nazi government were condemned by the Tribunal as "a ruthless military caste."