Nuremberg Trials: A History from Beginning to End

by Hourly History

Discover the remarkable history of the Nuremberg Trials... Free BONUS Inside! In 1933, the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, triumphant after the July 1932 elections, was the largest political party in Germany. The Nazis quickly banned all other political parties and, under the leadership of Adolf Hitler, proceeded to implement the policies which aroused the anti-Semitic sentiment of the German people. By 1933, the first concentration camp in Dachau was already in operation, punishing Jews, intellectuals, the mentally and physically handicapped, homosexuals, and Romani because, in Nazi ideology, they were inferior and unfit to live in the Third Reich. In September 1935, the Nazis passed the Nuremberg Laws, which consisted of the Reich Citizenship Law and the Law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honor. These laws established the legal foundation upon which the systematic persecution and extermination of Jews and non-Aryans became the law of the land. Between 1933 and 1945, the Nazis established more than 42,000 camps and ghettoes to implement this policy. When the Allied Powers joined forces to fight the Nazis, they were determined to bring the German leaders to justice in an international court where they would be tried for their war crimes. The location for the trial would be Nuremberg in Germany, the site where the Nazi Party had held its famous rallies and where the Nuremberg Laws had been legislated. Now, the tables were turned and the city of Nuremberg would be the place where justice would be served. What we call the Nuremberg trials was actually a series of 13 trials that took place between 1945 and 1949. The most famous of the trials was the Trial of Major War Criminals, which began in November 1945 and ended in October 1946. Nazi leaders such as Joachim von Ribbentrop were hanged; others, such as Albert Speer and Rudolf Hess, were sentenced to prison terms. Hermann Goering was also sentenced to hang, but he cheated the noose by committing suicide with a cyanide pill that he had smuggled into his cell. Although there were some, including several American Supreme Court justices, who felt that the Nuremberg trials failed to deliver justice, the contemporary view holds them as a milestone in the annals of the law and as the forerunner of a permanent international court charged with the task of addressing crimes against humanity. Discover a plethora of topics such as Hiding the Evidence The Defendants The Trial Begins The Prosecution A Brain without a Conscience Sentencing and Executions And much more!So if you want a concise and informative book on the Nuremberg Trials, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Holocaust, Historical

37 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 15, 2020

About the author

At Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.

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Reviews

[Labijose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Acaban de cumplirse 75 años desde el comienzo de Los Juicios de Nuremberg (20-11-1945 hasta 01-10-1946), donde las naciones aliadas vencedoras juzgaron a los máximos dirigentes, así como a las organizaciones del Reich, acusadas de crímenes y abusos contra la humanidad. Principalmente aquellos cometidos contra judíos, eslavos, personas deficientes, gitanos y homosexuales, por citar los colectivos más afectados. También se juzgaron como actos de guerra las invasiones por parte de los alemanes de países como Checoslovaquia, Polonia, Dinamarca, Noruega, Bélgica, Holanda, Luxemburgo, Grecia, Yugoslavia, y parte de la Unión Soviética. Aunque los Nazis intentaron quemar y ocultar documentación comprometedora, había material más que suficiente para llevar a buen término el proceso. Se eligió Nuremberg por ser el mismo lugar donde Hitler había promovido las famosas leyes, de carácter racista y antisemita. Nuremberg, además, se había librado de la peor parte de los bombarderos aliados, conservaba su famoso Palacio de Justicia casi intacto, y disponía de capacidad hotelera suficiente para albergar a jueces, periodistas y juzgados.

A lo largo de una escasa hora de lectura, asistiremos a los aspectos más relevantes del juicio, y desfilarán ante nuestros ojos personajes tan macabros como Hermann Goering (que se suicidó durante el juicio), Rudolf Hess, Albert Speer, etc. Recordemos que el propio Hitler, así como Joseph Goebbels (ministro de propaganda), Heinrich Himmler (cabeza de las SS) y algunos otros escaparon del juicio, prefiriendo poner fin a sus vidas que afrontar la vergüenza pública de verse ante un tribunal. Aún así, personajes tan nefarios para la humanidad como Josef Mengele, y algunos más, escaparon a la justicia, aunque a parte de ellos se les fue capturando a lo largo de los años (p.e Adolf Eichmann). Finalmente, el 16 de Octubre de 1946 se llevaron a cabo las ejecuciones, aunque la mayoría fue condenada a cadena perpetua.

Tras este famoso juicio, que no quedó exento de polémica por haber obviado los crímenes cometidos por la parte aliada, se celebraron 12 juicios más, finalizando todo el proceso en Abril del 49.

Los juicios de Nuremberg fueron el aparato precursor de la Declaración Universal de los Derechos del Hombre, y del Tribunal Internacional de La Haya, entre otros.

Interesante repaso en otra valiosa entrega de “Hourly History”. Duro, pero necesario. Breve, pero intenso.

“Si no hubiésemos hecho el juicio de Nuremberg es como si no hubiese habido guerra, no hubiese habido muertos. Una forma de cerrar la guerra fue hacer justicia”
Robert Jackson, fiscal estadounidense durante los juicios.

[Udit Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nazis may have perceived their actions as a patriotic defense of Germany but the thuggish brutality of their deeds proved that they were criminals,not heroes. It becomes important that the authoritarian leaders remember the end of the nazi regime and not the peak of power. The fuhrer committed suicide and other two top leaders also did. Close to 20 other leaders of nazi party were sentenced to death.

[Anil Swarup · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nuremberg trials were complex. However, Hourly History presents them in a manner that they are intelligible even to those that may not have the background. The description also reveals some little known facts, like the un-repenting Goering, "a brain without a conscience", about the trials. All of it makes the book an extremely fascinating read.

[Paul Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short history of utmost importance.

Nuremberg brought to mind the Nazi pageantry of marching, music and celebration of Adolf Hitler's warped vision of the future world. How appropriately the very same city would see a different display of Nazi crimes for all the world, just years later. Hourly History gives a simple, yet important overview of the most important of documentation of human's inhumanity to its fellow beings.

[Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

a helpful study and summation

This book offers a helpful study and summation of the individuals tried and sentenced by the IMT (International Military Tribunal), the charges brought against them, and the evidence used. It shares the opinions of those who did not support the Nuremberg Trials as well as making the case for those who supported the trials.

This is not a dry textbook read but includes important quotes, testimonies and anecdotal information. This makes it a straightforward read.

Recommended.

[Apollo Hesiod · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nuremberg Trials: A History from Beginning to end

Very informative. Never really knew alot about the trials, so I found this very informative and interesting. I would recommend this book

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read

This was a good overview of the Trials - laid out many of the facts. It was also written much better than the other Hourly book I read (Anne Frank). It would have been nice if it had mentioned Operation Paperclip though, even if just a few lines at the end.

[Mahesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never Forget

As the time passes by the holocaust slowly fading from the memory of the people. It never should be.

It should be a reminder , what will happen whenever a manipulative group gains power. How a group considers itself as superior can cause Atrocities to its own kind.

Never Forget and this is not over yet.

[Dr.J.G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth reading, especially one hasn't time for works by William Shirer.
***

"As the Allied leaders met in 1942 to plan their strategy against the Nazi conquests that were redrawing the map of Europe, they did not only have military matters on their minds. They agreed that the Nazi leaders needed to face justice for their heinous acts. Although British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was in favor of shooting the leaders, Soviet leader Josef Stalin said that in the Soviet Union, they preferred public trials for propaganda purposes. That the British leader, the product of centuries of legal tradition, should have espoused vengeance while the dictator Stalin supported a trial reveals the conundrum that faced the Allies: what to do with the Nazis?

"It was, in 1942, a hypothetical question. The Nazis virtually owned Europe thanks to their blitzkrieg victories and occupation of territory. They had already embarked on the policies of genocide that were intended to eradicate the Jews. ... "

Author assumes that world outside, specifically the Allies' leaders, knew about this genocide. That has not been admitted, if so.

" ... They had expanded their slaughter to include peoples they regarded as subhuman—not only the Jews, but the Slavs, Romani, homosexuals, and the mentally and physically handicapped. ... "

Again, that these things were known before Germany was defeated, or even pushed back, hasn't been admitted.

Has it?

" ... Anyone who stood in their way was an enemy; anyone who did not accept Germany’s right to subjugate what they deemed lesser beings was a traitor.

"The roots of their hatred for Jews ran deep. Although Jews had fought for Germany in the First World War, Adolf Hitler rose to power by insisting that Germany would have won the war if it had not been for the enemies at home. Germany had not been defeated in battle, he exclaimed, and his followers eagerly adopted his hateful policies. The Nazi Party came to power in 1933. By that time, their rallies in Nuremberg were already established as the stage upon which Hitler mesmerized his fanatical audiences with his promise that the Third Reich would achieve its deserved dominance over Europe, elevating the Aryan man above lesser humans. The rallies featured swastikas, the music of Wagner, goose-stepping marches, and of course, inflammatory orations by Hitler and his leaders."

Both words, Aryan and Swastika, are stolen from Sanskrit and from India. In addition, the originals have been twisted, not only literally, but far more horribly in their meaning.

The original word is Aarya, and is not about race, definitely not about any physical characteristics that define Europe, but about culture and conduct of the utmost enlightened bringing up that was defined in India's ancient culture.

The original symbol Swastika was twisted in its depictions and usage by nazis. The name of the symbol, Swastika, literally means Well-Being, in Sanskrit. It's a powerful occult symbol of antiquity, and if used for nefarious purposes or inappropriately, will turn on yhe user. This happened to Germany, which ultimately saw not only defeat but destruction.
***

"When the tide of war turned and it became apparent that the Allies would win, the subject of a trial for war crimes rose to the top of the agenda. What better city for the site of the trial than Nuremberg? Although the Soviets wanted the trial to be held in the capital of Germany, Berlin had suffered massive bombing during the war. Nuremberg, on the other hand, had the Palace of Justice which, with some renovation, could host the trial, and the Grand Hotel, where reporters and other observers could stay."

Those matters were comparatively of secondary importance than the symbolism of Nuremberg, which also, apart from the nazi rallies, had been planned to receive major nazi renewal in terms of mind-bogglingly stupendous architecture, second only to Berlin.

"The suicide of Adolf Hitler and the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in April 1945 did not deter the determination to hold the war crimes trial. ... "

Latter event was celebrated by Hitler, who thought he'd certainly win now; he'd been abusive of FDR and attributed it to a Jewish lineage of the latter.

But recent researches, shown on an infochannel (Discovery?) documentary in recent years, state that Hitler escaped via Canaries in a submarine across South Atlantic, and lived out his life in a fortified fortress in a remote place surrounded by forests, and came occasionally out into society of his former associates who had managed to escaped across the South Atlantic.

" ... While some felt that a trial could accomplish nothing, others felt it necessary to establish the foundation for a judicial process that would punish the perpetrators of what would be described as crimes against humanity. Hitler could not be tried, but there were other Nazi leaders, most notably Hermann Goering, who were alive and could be brought to justice. Upon taking office, President Harry Truman was intent upon fulfilling the intentions of FDR to bring the war criminals to trial.
***

"In the end, the Nuremberg trials consisted of thirteen trials involving more than one hundred defendants. The most famous of the trials was the first one, which involved determining the guilt or innocence of major Nazi leaders accused of being war criminals. Other trials included the Justice Trial involving sixteen German judges and Reich Ministry officials. Others included the Doctors’ Trial and the Einsatzgruppen Trial. When people hear of the Nuremberg trials, what usually comes to mind is the legal proceedings that brought Nazi leaders like Hermann Goering to face an international tribunal.

"In order to prosecute the Nazis, the attorneys decided that their case would be strongest if it were built upon the records and documents that the Nazis themselves had written. The Germans, as the chaotic end of the war made it apparent that they would not be the victors, had tried to destroy evidence of what they had done. Still, they could not get rid of all the records, and when the trial began, Allied prosecutors had approximately 3,000 tons of documents to submit as proof of what the Nazis had done."

Fact is, despite orders, nazis had delayed destruction of the papers, because they didn't believe Germany would lose, despite enemy being at the doors.
***

"By the time the trials concluded, 199 defendants were tried, 161 convicted, and 37 sentenced to death."

Majority, however, not only escaped prosecution, but were certified innocent, mostly with help of church and local authorities, who knew them personally; great many escaped to lands across South Atlantic, using help of Vatican and Red Cross, and certifying one another as not war criminals. Some escaped to West Asia where some nations were intent on employing them. And, surprisingly, some escaped to US, not known or discovered publicly for most part, except very few.

"For some, the Nuremberg trials provided a legal indictment of the evils of the Nazi regime. While the defendants admitted that the crimes had taken place, they said that they were innocent of any crime because they had been following orders administered by a higher authority. The ignominy of their executions demonstrated that in the eyes of the world, Nazism was an evil which had to be punished. The Germany that rose from the ashes of the Nazi regime has been one where democracy is prized and the events of the Holocaust are condemned."

Officially so, yes. Privately, in their hearts, as taught in families, the picture might be very different.

An English colleague in Germany was told by a real estate dealer, when he'd balked at a house for rent bring 'not for foreigners', that he wasn't 'that kind of foreigner'.

Another, a born and brought up US citizen, a woman of the 'right' race too, incidentally, who'd narried a German and works in a highly reputed multinational concern in Germany, was told in street by a German to "go back to Turkey ", because she was speaking to her husband in English.

"However, FDR’s hope that the Nuremberg trials would render war illegal has not come to pass, nor is there any likelihood that it will ever happen. Wars continue to abound all over the globe, atrocities remain, and genocide is as prevalent as ever. Nonetheless, the Nuremberg trials were not a hollow assertion of victor’s justice; they established the foundation for a legal process by which the international legal community can accuse those who violate the standards of acceptable human conduct."
****

"“The conscience of the peoples, who only yesterday were enslaved and tortured both in soul and body, calls upon you to judge and to condemn the monstrous attempt at domination and barbarism of all times.”

"—Francois de Menthon"

What could be milder description for enslave, torture, work to death, starve, and massacre, than "domination and barbarism"?
***


"The Third Reich was intended to last one thousand years according to Adolf Hitler. In his role as the leader of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party and then as the chancellor of Germany, Hitler predicted that not only would Germany rise up as a superpower from the humiliating defeat the nation had suffered during World War I, but also as the super race, dominating the ethnic groups that the Nazis despised. ... "

Most people have, in an effort to be fair and imagining that that amounts to equal considerations for whatever each side says, have, in an effort to be fair, accepted the German claim that Germany had a "humiliating defeat" in WWI, forgetting the fact that Germany had no business stretching a local dispute between Serbia and Austria-Hungary into a war that became continental, to say the least. Had Germany not declared war on Russia, there would be no WWI.

But worse is the acceptance of post WWI German claims that French terms were vindictive and unfair, and German babies were starving to death because of French war reparations demanded.

Germany had imposed, whenever it won, far more reparations on countries it occupied or defeated, to begin with.

France had suffered humongous due to German forces inflicting destruction on forests, fields and homes in France, apart from loss of millions of young men.

But even more to the point, while Germany claimed German babies were starving to death, in reality Germany was depending huge quantities of gold marks in covert efforts to spread discontent in France politically, in an effort to wreck France financially by paying provocateurs for agitations and industrial havoc.

Those gold marks should have paid for needs of the babies in Germany, if Germany were honest.

But it was a bully that was humiliated because of being defeated in not standing over a destroyed Europe, except for Russia which did get destroyed in large part, especially the massacres wreaked on Romanov clans - a personal vendetta by Cousin Willy who'd felt humiliated by cousin Alexandra who rejected him and married Nicholas instead.

" ... At the Nazi Party rallies at Nuremberg between 1927 and 1938, Hitler reminded Germany of its great destiny. Germany had not been defeated in World War I, he proclaimed. Germany had not lost on the battlefield but had been betrayed at home by the Jews, the Communists, and the enemies who had stabbed the great nation in the back. The crowds at Nuremberg, euphoric over Hitler’s promise of a Germany reborn, responded with fervor to his vow that the enemies of the state would pay for their betrayal."

Blaming everyone else other than the real one at fault is typical of a base, ignoble character, not good enough to lead - and German leaders were manipulated into accepting such a leadership, not voted into power by German people.
***

"Before Germany began its military conquest of Europe, the first targets of the Nazi regime were those that Hitler blamed for the defeat in the previous war. Jews and Slavs would be the targets of Nazi violence, and victims also included the mentally ill, the handicapped, the Romani, homosexuals, and anyone who did not fit the Nazi definition of German. As the boundaries of Germany spread with military conquest, it became easier to establish sites where Nazi atrocities could be implemented upon occupied lands. It seemed as if the Third Reich would last forever, and with such a future, there was no need to worry about what the world would think if the truth ever emerged."

It had been all planned, set in writing and generals informed personally by Hitler thereof in a high level secret conference in winter of 1938-39, including the dates of invasions of Poland (carried out almost exactly on the planned date), and also Russia, which got pushed by weeks due to Hitler being incensed at Balkan and ordering his forces to teach them a lesson, which cost precious weeks, delaying invasion of Russia, fatally for nazis - and fortunately for the world.

"By the winter of 1945, however, the fortunes of the Nazi war machine had dramatically altered. The blitzkrieg successes earlier in the decade were gone. Now the Russians were advancing after Germany’s disastrous defeat on the Eastern Front. Not only did the German military have to face the prospect of the Red Army intent on victory and revenge, but they also knew that they had to try to eradicate all evidence of what they had done since the Nazi Party ascended to power in 1933."

No, as a matter of fact, they'd been ordered to do so by top nazi leaders, but did not do so until it was too late; also, there's a confusion there by the author, in saying -

" ... Not only did the German military have to face the prospect of the Red Army intent on victory and revenge, but they also knew that they had to try to eradicate all evidence of what they had done since the Nazi Party ascended to power in 1933."

- there's confusion there, between military that was facing defeat, and nazis responsible for the atrocities who'd been responsible for atrocitiesperpetrated since 1933, and had been ordered to destroy documents related thereto.
***

"The concentration camps were the most blatant source of incrimination against the Nazis. By this point, the Nazis had assembled more than 42,000 centers for incarcerating their enemies, which meant that, if they were going to hide their crimes, they had a lot to do and not much time to do it. A series of forced marches were undertaken, during which the Nazis attempted to move their prisoners away from the front and into Germany proper. The starved, weak, and ailing concentration camp inmates were forced to walk to their destinations as their guards murdered the prisoners who attempted to escape, shooting the ones who fell behind due to exhaustion."

Over half a century later, it's heartbreaking to read memoirs of survivors of the Holocaust. It's very informative, too, of various details not usually discussed.

"Auschwitz, the Nazi death camp located in occupied Poland, awaited the Russian and American forces approaching from the east and the west. More than a million prisoners of the camp had already been killed—6,000 Jews were put to death each day—and more were destined to die in the forthcoming death march. As the Nazis sought to empty the notorious camp, marching the inmates to other camps that were sometimes hundreds of miles away, teenager Shmuel Beller saw the guards shoot the prisoners who fell behind from exhaustion, some of them women and children."

This has been mentioned in every memoir by every survivor who wrote one, if they'd been on such a march, which was often enough the case.
***

"Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, had already begun to read the writing on the wall in November of 1944 when he issued an order to destroy the gas chambers at the largest of the three main camps at Auschwitz, even though Adolf Hitler had previously given an order that the remaining Jews left in Europe must be destroyed. But by the end of 1944, the camp officials could see the way the war was going and they heeded Himmler. They dismantled part of the gas chambers. Meanwhile, the Sonderkommando, the Jews whose macabre duty it had been to operate the chambers, were ordered to do the breaking down of the facility.

"By January, as the Soviets drew nearer, the Germans blew up the remaining structures, leaving ruins behind. At the same time, approximately 60,000 prisoners were assembled into columns to march out of the camp. The remaining 7,000 left behind were regarded as too weak to make the journey out of southern Poland en route to Germany. The conditions were grueling and barbaric, even compared to what they had endured inside the camp. The German plan was to continue to make use of the inmates by using them as slave labor within the Reich.

"Of those left in the camps because they were regarded as too weak to make what the Germans called an “evacuation,” 700 were killed by the SS. Yet the chaos that was beginning to overcome the government had spread to the camps as well, and the guards started to realize that they had to look out for their own welfare. Some officers chose to flee. The ones who remained at their posts began to burn the documents that attested to the activities of the camp.
***


"When the Soviets reached the camp on January 27, 1945, they found evidence that the harried Nazis had not been able to destroy: there were the emaciated prisoners, the children who had been the victims of grotesque medical experiments, and the storerooms where personal belongings that had belonged to the prisoners had been stored, including more than 7.7 tons of human hair, 370,000 men’s suits, and 837,000 women’s coats and dresses.

"Although the Soviet soldiers did what they could to provide aid for the doomed prisoners, half of the 7,000 died not long after the camp was liberated, the advance of their starvation and disease too pronounced to be mediated. Those who were left were displaced persons; in many cases, they had no home to return to, as the map of Europe had been so thoroughly fragmented by the Nazi occupation of the continent."

That sentence - "they had no home to return to", was most often correct, but for more specific reasons. Jews had been deprived of their homes, given to others while the jews were forced into ghettos prior to being transported to extermination camps, and whole families, whole clans were massacred, few survivors left having most often no families.

That "the map of Europe had been so thoroughly fragmented" is a non-sequitur, however true in this context; while regions had changed hands often in these few years, and again after the war, survivors did something a choice of destination, through helping agencies.

It was rarely their old hometowns, where others had taken ....

[Jerron Orton · Rating 4 out of 5]

STORY
Nuremberg Trials progressed in a logical and chronological fashion, covering the background events leading to the trials, including various proposals by the Allies on how to handle the Nazis post-war. The content was expressed clearly and simply. There is no thesis per se, since the book is intended to be a summary of historic events, rather than present an original thesis.

STYLE
The prose is clear and concise, and the structure is logically arranged with chapters in chronological order.

EMOTIVE EFFECT
Much like the trials themselves undoubtedly did, the book invokes a sense of outrage for the various crimes committed by the Third Reich under Nazi rule. In particular, the way the author addresses Goering’s continued arrogance and insistence that he did no wrong by his actions invokes strong emotions in the reader. The clear message that the book–and the trials themselves–convey is that the trials were meant to be an act of justice without resorting to uncivilized retribution.

VOICE & PERSPECTIVE
The book is written in a modest, but authoritative tone. Jason Zenobia, who reads the Audiobook version, has a calming yet engaging voice that adds to the solemnity of the topic discussed. Quotations are not excessive and are used to enhance the historic narrative.

PURE ENTERTAINMENT
Nuremberg Trials was neither exceptionally exciting nor particularly dull. It holds attention but does not bring you to the edge of the seat. It is, to its credit, not rooted in expositional fact and not sensationalism. It flows well and the typology of the book is not distracting.

INTELLECTUAL VALUE
This book has as much depth and breadth as can be expected in an hour-long rendering. The summaries in this series are not quite to the level of the Oxford Very Short Introduction series or Cambridge Elements collection.

The series doesn’t pack the prestige, but is useful if you have an underlying understanding of what you’re getting—an unattributed summary in about an hour.

Unless purchased as a school resource to get kids interested in various historic topics, I would not recommend the purchase of the hardcover or softcover, since the price cannot be justified given the limitations and length of the book. However, the audiobook and eBook are worth the price for individual use if they are on sale (they usually are).

The lack of citations or bibliography is worrisome, and likely a product of Hourly History’s desire to pump out short works at an industrial rate. Without references, it is difficult for a reader to verify the factual accuracy of the book without prior expertise on the subject matter.

Having read several Hourly History books, it appears that each chapter is independently authored, and then these chapters are plug-and-played into various books where the topics are relevant. Sometimes there are contradictions between the chapters.

For example, in Nuremberg Trials Chapter 1 states “Although British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was in favor of shooting the leaders, Soviet leader Josef Stalin said that in the Soviet Union, they preferred public trials for propaganda purposes”—giving the impression that it was the Soviets who convinced the allies to be judicial with the Nazis—and Chapter 2 states “The Soviets and the British, who had directly suffered from the Nazi attacks, were more punitive in their intentions than the Americans. At one point, Stalin proposed trying and executing as many as 100,000 German staff officers. Churchill suggested executing high-ranking Nazis without a trial. But the Americans believed that a criminal trial would document the charges and avoid subsequent accusations that the defendants were condemned without evidence”—giving the impression that it was the Americans who convinced the allies to choose justice over vengeance.

The intellectual value of the book is watered down by not using the technical or official terms. For example, the book states, “Nonetheless, Franklin D. Roosevelt of the United States, Winston Churchill of Great Britain, and Josef Stalin of the U.S.S.R. issued their first joint declaration noting the mass murder of the Jews of Europe with a resolution to prosecute the ones responsible.” In this instance, the author fails to name the Joint Declaration of Atrocities, of December 17 1942. If widely-recognized historic events and documents were named, it would widely enhance the scholastic usefulness of the book.

The book also does not give equal weight to all topics. For example, the author devotes two whole chapters to the arguments of the prosecution, but only four paragraphs to the defense.

Yet overall, Nuremberg Trials is an objective, unbiased presentation of the history of that historic event. The author presents the viewpoints of critics of the trials as well as advocates.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Hourly History’s Nuremberg Trials meets expectations. It is exactly what it claims to be, no more no less–a historic summation that can be consumed in about an hour.

Overall Rating: 8.05/10

[James Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is no doubt that the Nazis were some of the most vicious, evil beings that ever existed. Their hatred of Jews, homosexuals and anyone who didn't buy into their philosophy was virtually unlimited. Their attempted genocide of the entire Jewish race and the German concentration camps should be well known.

(Not in the book: There are, though, some people today who deny that the Holocast ever happened. There are unfortunately a number of very sick people who imitate the Nazi mentality with their hatred, their demonstrations and their violence. This is a perfect example of how the human race somehow never really learns from the mistakes of the past.)

The book goes into the planning of the trials long before the war was even over, the men who were put on trial and the ones who died before being tried, the makeup of the prosecuting groups, the questioning, the attitude of some of the prisoners, the results of the trials and what happened to those who were found guilty.

The book also notes Hitler was dead already so, obviously, he couldn't be put on trial. The book also goes into just how the prosecution used a lot of Nazi documents during the prosecution, using the Nazi's own words against them.

This is in my opinion a good introductory book to this incredibly dark period of human history.

[Quinton Baran · Rating 5 out of 5]

An overview of a modern horror

With all hourly history, I am going to start with this standard review:
I recommend the hourly history books as a starting area to:

1) See if the subject is personally interesting

2) Become conversant in the material

3) Pursue additional information starting with the bibliographies provided

This book gives a history of the Nuremberg trials, why and how they happened, and the major items in the first trial

The horrors that were perpetrated on the Jews and other minority groups are full of evil and maliciousness - the disregard for human life and morality is tough to read at times. It is disheartening that anyone can sink to such depravity.

One thing must be said though, that the winners write the history and rarely hold themselves accountable - war crimes and depravity on the side of the allies was exempted, which sets a very bad precedent.

I hope for the day when all wicked behavior is eliminated and we all live together in peace and love.

[Joseph Allen Paine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great account of a horrible time

The book is well written, as many of the Hourly History books are. Having read many of the HH books, this one gets special notice from me because it finally includes a Bibliography in the end, which I recommend for all non-fiction books that speak of historical events, quotes or claims. After all, why should we take the author's word for it? Especially with a pseudonym author named 'Hourly History,'— credibility through proper citations is expected. Please include them in all future writings and give yourself some credit for the great books you write, whoever you really are. Consider other authors wanting to cite your writings in their books. What author would they choose, or is the credibility and citation formatting lacking to the point that HH is missing opportunities to be in the bibliographies of other books? Just some friendly criticism.

[Μαρία · Rating 5 out of 5]

Το βιβλίο δίνει ένα σύντομο ιστορικό στρατιωτικό πλαίσιο για το τι οδήγησε στις δίκες της Νυρεμβέργης, τις διαδικασίες και την κληρονομιά που εκείνες άφησαν. Επικεφαλής των συμμετεχόντων ήταν οι ΗΠΑ, ενώ συνέβαλαν η Βρετανία, η Γαλλία και η Σοβιετική Ένωση. Οι δίκες έγιναν στην πόλη της Νυρεμβέργης στο Μέγαρο της Δικαιοσύνης, επειδή ήταν άθικτο κατά τη διάρκεια του πολέμου και διέθετε μεγάλη φυλακή. Κάποια από τα υψηλόβαθμα στελέχη που διώχθηκαν ήταν οι Hermann Goring, Rudolf Hess, Martin Bormann. Πολλοί καταδικάστηκαν σε θανατική ποινή, άλλοι εξέτισαν ποινή φυλάκισης. Για κάποιον που θέλει να ξεκινήσει το ταξίδι του στο θέμα, είναι ό,τι καλύτερο!

[Bob Raleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick history

Good review of the Nuremberg proceedings. Like most history of the event it walks through the first trial most extensively. But the other trials are covered.
Leaves the reader wondering exactly what this process even accomplished. War has been a brutal extension of political will since the beginning. Trying to compartmentalize this into a law format seemed pointless in reality but lawyers look on it as a victory. The sentences, in the end, felt random and disjointed. But, thats what happened and this book covers a lot which is why it is a good read.

[Paige Tomkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick overview of the Nuremberg Trials.

Even though this book is much shorter than I expected, it is a thorough overview of the Nuremberg International Military Trials. In these succinct pages, the reader will find all of the basic information about the
trials; why they happened, their purpose, and their ultimate results.

I was looking for something more in-depth about the trials, perhaps including some transcripts. If that is what you want, this book isn't it. It does, however, provide the basics about the trials, and the effects they've had on the world.

[Bonnie Gleckler Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Basis for all Future War Crime Tribunals.

Having just finished reading “Resistance Women” by Jennifer Chiaverini I came across this hourly history and felt like it would be a good wrap up and or bring closure to my previous reading.
The Nuremberg trials formed the basis for how all future war criminals would be handled. They ultimately were 13 trials through this process. Culminating in well over 60 Nazis or related criminals being either hung or sentenced to prison.

[Robert Waldo · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading through all the facts and documentation associated with the Trials, the horrors of which most of us had already known from other sources (after-war films, e.g.), most surprising to me were the after thoughts of top U.S. officials who saw the trials as little more than a victor's lynching. Was nothing learned?

[Nihal · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Nuremberg Trials were set up by the Allies to prosecute the Nazi Leaders and to bring back justice. But what good did it make by killing the Leaders, even though all the destruction was made?
This book provides the major details of these trials. It is the only book of Hourly History that I read that makes everything clear without leaving anything.

[Randolph Rossi · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is Never Perfect Justice but the Nuremberg Trials Came Closest

Although, this book was brief, it did a very good job summarizing the crimes that the leaders of the Third Reich were guilty of. It also did an excellent job recounting the proceedings and it did reference the arguments again the trials. Overall an excellent book that I learned a great deal from.

[Neera Kapahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the book very informative and easy to read. The Nuremberg trials were by the Allies against Nazi Germany for committing unimaginable atrocities and invasions across Europe. It gives a detailed account of the trials - the history, choice of location, the actual trials and the outcome. The book is a fascinating read.

[Bruce K. Beyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

It Can Happen Here

This book nicely summarizes the Nuremberg Trials, although the body details about the Nazi atrocities are only referenced in passing. While critics disputed the fairness of the trials, they established a valuable precedent for holding perpetrators responsible for crimes against humanity.

[Jack Hughes Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Short Introduction

Good for intro but need to read other books and opinions and German response in later years. The older movie 'Judgment at Nuremberg' with Tracy and Lancaster is nice intro to subject.

[David W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fratcher

Had a law school professor who was an adjutant to one of the prosecutors @ Nuremberg; this was a nice explanation of not only how the trials proceeded, but, more importantly ‘what it took’ to get this first international tribunal put together.

[Gwilda Byrd · Rating 3 out of 5]

To short

I thought there would be more information! Disappointed! Can't submit not enough words I guess . Still discounted. Guess I will have to find more war books to read if I want more information. I was born in 1948 never learned anything about the war in school .

[Robert Kapitsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Book

I lik d this book very much. T
he book gave me new information, that I did not know on the subject matter. These books give more information than most books. These books are worth being recommended to others.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good primer

This was a very concise overview of the Nuremberg Trials. Obviously it’s intent is to whet the readers whistle in hopes the reader will want to delve deeper. It seems to accomplish that goal.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the writing style want necessarily interesting or eloquent, it was informative and condensed into digestible bites. I learned a lot of new history!

“Violence in war was not a novelty, but the Nuremberg trials demanded a reckoning.”

[John Foley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Abbreviated Explanation

This book, which apparently is designed, to be read, in an hour, fulfills its premise. The text is concise and easy to read and understand and answers the basic questions.

[John Budish · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short but complete history of Germany's Guilt. In WW2

This short but complete history of Germany's inhumane behavior in World War 2 and the resulting consequences...the final results... then.