Nuremberg's Role In World War II

We spent our last day on the River Ambassador sailing the Main-Danube canal in the morning (and I got a massage!) and we arrived at Nuremberg around noon. Right before our arrival we were treated to a lecture about the modern history of Germany (post WWII). I was late because of my massage, so I sat in back and didn't see/hear as much as I had hoped, but my interest was piqued in the role of the Stazi in East Germany. I'll have to do some more research on this in the coming months. There's also an Academy Award-winning movie about their spy tactics—Other People's Lives—which I will be adding to my watch list.

We boarded the bus for our tour after lunch. This was another "choice" tour, which meant that the majority of the passengers went on the standard city tour. This tour was to focus solely on WWII history, and would not include a tour of the city center.

Zeppelin Field Visit

We began by visiting the Zeppelin Field, where Hitler would speak to crowds of up to half a million people. Our tour guide, Fiona, was a staff member of Geschichte fur Alles (History For All). She set the scene of what happened at the site, and how and why certain parts were destroyed. She didn't give the group the chance to climb the grandstand and stand where Hitler spoke, but Aaron and I hustled up there and had a chance for some quick pictures before a brisk walk/run back to the bus to catch the others without holding them up (it's nice to be among the young folk sometimes).

A panoramic of the grandstand. There used to be large Roman pillars on the back, but the city blew them up in 1967, rather than repair them.

The main area where Hitler spoke. There used to be a large swastika at the top, but the U.S. blew it up at the end of WWII.

A closeup of the platform where Hitler spoke.

The platform where Hitler spoke. Aaron did not want to stand on it while there were other visitors there, that were visibly upset.

A view from behind the platform. All of the greens pace would be full of soldiers, and grandstands on the left and right held tens of thousands of people.

Exploring the Documentation Center

Then we went to the documentation center, which was built in a former Nazi arena, Congress Hall (which was never completed). We toured this independently with the help of an audio guide, but did not have nearly enough time to get through the 19 exhibits before we had to leave (we had about 90 minutes). My dad listened to every single recording as he viewed the exhibits and only made it through number 7.

Hitler Face Documentation Center Nuremberg

This was too creepy to ignore.

The view from inside Congress Hall. It was meant to model the Roman coliseum (although it was larger) and could assemble 50,000 people. It was never finished.

The front of the Documentation Center, which occupies a wing of Congress Hall.

Courtroom 600 - Site of the Nuremberg Trials

After the short trip to the museum, we crossed town to visit the Hall of Justice. We went straight to courtroom 600, where many officers were tried for war crimes. The court room really doesn't look very similar to what was used in the 1940's. The orientation of the courtroom has changed, and it has been made smaller.

The outside of the Hall of Justice, where Courtroom 600 is located.

How the courtroom looks today. It's still used as an active court room (the cross was added long after WWII).

Ornate ceiling of the courtroom.

What the courtroom looked like in the 1940's.

Tour Review

While the tour was interesting, I feel like I still have a few gaps in the role Nuremberg played in WWII, especially the trials. The documentation center didn't cover many topics that I wasn't already familiar with, but it did provide a new, interesting perspective that I hadn't considered before. The documentation center is not something I'd do as part of an organized tour. We only had 90 minutes to see all the exhibits, and I probably could have used at least 2-3 hours. There is a lot of information presented, so a better way to experience it might be 1-2 hours for the first half, then a snack break (there's a cafe downstairs), then 1-2 hours to finish. Time is also needed to watch all of the films included in the exhibits. I only saw one or two.

Also, because we opted for this tour, we didn't get a city tour of Nuremberg (although a few sites were pointed out as the bus drove through town). We knew this when we signed up, but I assumed that meant we'd have enough time to experience the WWII sites. We definitely felt like we could have used a full day in Nuremberg, instead of a 4-hour tour.

Farewell Dinner

We got back to the ship a little after 5:30, and I executed a quick wardrobe change into a cocktail dress for the captain's farewell reception and dinner. The senior staff said goodbye, and then we were treated to yet another multi-course meal. All of the meals were spectacular, but our only critique of this menu was that it lacked local specialties. It just screamed, "AMERICA!" I'm sure many of the passengers appreciated that, but we really liked the regional dishes.