There are many facets to the history of Nuremburg and its place in the scheme of things. Firstly it dates from back in the 11th century as it was a town at a crossroad of Europe's trading routes. It soon became a city of 45,000 living within a square mile behind the city walls overlooked by an imposing castle, which, by the way, had never been conquered. The first time the city of Nuremburg was ever conquered by a foreign power was in 1945 when the American forces finally entered the city and took it over. One of the reasons, among many, was that access to the castle was very difficult - even the bridge over the moat which was not just around the city, but also around the castle had a bend in it which meant battering rams were of little consequence. The other is for us, more immediate - on seeing what was being established here as part of Hitler's dream for a 1000 year Reich, heaven help us all if the Allied forces had not prevailed and Germany was defeated in 1945!!!!. But also of course, much earlier Nuremburg was also the centre of the Reformation very influenced by Martin Luther. At that stage it was the centre of the Holy Roman Emperor, even though no Emperor ever lived here (the Nuremburgers liked it that way) so Luther had to front up and defend himself here. Needless to say, because of Nuremburg's role in the early scheme of the Reich (empire) Hitler made it the centre of the Nazi party. In the morning we joined an English speaking walking tour to explore the town rather than do it ourselves. Needless to say we went past the obligatory church but to our surprise, Nuremburg does njot have, never has had a Cathedral! In the afternoon, the tour took us out to the Nazi
Party Rally Grounds, a massive arfea that was to be developed to be the showcase of Nazi power. I've included below a photo which many of us will be well familiar, or have seen film footage of the massive pre-war Nazi rallies. Of course, after the war, the US forces destroyed all vestiges of these Nazi symbols so that they could never provide a rallying ground for such activity again. What was the big flat ground has been turned into park land, but it is quite clear where the various aspects of the many rally activities were and displays of what ws further planned. The Congress Centre still stands, only because it looks impressive on the outside, but inside is shoddy brickwork, it is only in recent years since about 2006 that it has become a Museum as the Documentation Centre of Nazi activity. A bit of a reminder of when Jesus talked about external appearances. Rather interestingly, just as we were leaving a whole pile of uniformed young men arrived for a tour - they were officers in training of the current German Armed Forces. Needless to say, Nuremburg was also the place of the War Trials, but the Court Room 600 area is undergoing refurbishment and so it was pointless going the distance out of the city to just see an exterior. Well - the trip is just about over. We catch the train in the morning for a one hour journey back to Munich where we will spend the night, re-organise our casesand then on Saturday head for the airport and meet up again with Natalie and Megan and fly home. So, unless anything untoward occurs this will be our last blog entry. We look forward to seeing you all live and in person in a few days time. Over and out. Auf weidersehen.
Party Rally Grounds, a massive arfea that was to be developed to be the showcase of Nazi power. I've included below a photo which many of us will be well familiar, or have seen film footage of the massive pre-war Nazi rallies. Of course, after the war, the US forces destroyed all vestiges of these Nazi symbols so that they could never provide a rallying ground for such activity again. What was the big flat ground has been turned into park land, but it is quite clear where the various aspects of the many rally activities were and displays of what ws further planned. The Congress Centre still stands, only because it looks impressive on the outside, but inside is shoddy brickwork, it is only in recent years since about 2006 that it has become a Museum as the Documentation Centre of Nazi activity. A bit of a reminder of when Jesus talked about external appearances. Rather interestingly, just as we were leaving a whole pile of uniformed young men arrived for a tour - they were officers in training of the current German Armed Forces. Needless to say, Nuremburg was also the place of the War Trials, but the Court Room 600 area is undergoing refurbishment and so it was pointless going the distance out of the city to just see an exterior. Well - the trip is just about over. We catch the train in the morning for a one hour journey back to Munich where we will spend the night, re-organise our casesand then on Saturday head for the airport and meet up again with Natalie and Megan and fly home. So, unless anything untoward occurs this will be our last blog entry. We look forward to seeing you all live and in person in a few days time. Over and out. Auf weidersehen.
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