At the end of World War II, the Allies (U.S., Britain, France and U.S.S.R.) decided to put Nazi leaders on trial for “crimes” committed during the war

THE NUREMBERG TRIALS

At the end of World War II, the Allies (U.S., Britain, France and U.S.S.R.) decided to put Nazi leaders on trial for “crimes” committed during the war

The Allies created a “military tribunal” that tried these Nazis

The trials were called the Nuremberg Trials after the city in which they were held

There were, in fact, a number of trials.

The most famous of the trials dealt with the Nazi leadership.

The Nazi leaders were tried under a new set of international law which were controversial for three reasons

1. the were created “after the fact”

2. they were created by the “winners” and used against the “losers”

3. laws were imposed by an “international community” on people acting within their “home country”

There were four basic charges

CRIMES AGAINST PEACE

Planning, preparation, initiation or waging war of aggression

WAR CRIMES

Murder, ill-treatment or deportation to slave labour members of civilian populations

Murder, ill-treatment of prisoners of war

Killing of hostages Plunder or property

CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY

Murder, extermination, enslavement, deportation and other inhumane acts committed against any civilian population before or during war

Persecution on political, racial, religious grounds whether or not in violation of domestic laws of country where perpetrated

CONSPIRACY

This included plans to commit any of the three main charges, particularly, Crimes Against Peace

DEFENDANTS

24 defendants were originally charged in the Nuremberg Trials

Some Nazis like Heinrich Himmler, leader of the SS, committed suicide before they were brought to trial

Some like Martin Bormann escaped and were never captured

HERMAN GOERING

One of Hitler’s key deputies Created the Gestapo Built up the armed forces and led the

Luftwaffe in strikes against Poland and other countries

Created the first concentration camp Used slave labour Persecuted Jews in Germany and

occupied areas

CHARGE EVIDENCE VERDICT PUNISHMENT


WAR CRIMES


CONSPIRACY

ALFRED ROSENBERG

Developed key Nazis philosophies Created policies to exploited civilian

population including forced labour and extermination of Jews in occupied areas

Subordinates engaged in mass killings of Jews

Ordered 40,000 – 50,000 youths to be shipped to Germany



WAR CRIMES


CONSPIRACY

JOACHIM VON RIBBENTROP

Helped planned invasion into Czechoslovakia

Negotiated the secret Nazi-Soviet pact

Helped plan the invasion of Poland In 1942, helped develop the “final

solution” to the Jewish question Assisted in the deportation of Jews in

occupied territories



WAR CRIMES


CONSPIRACY

RUDOLF HESS

Was deputy to Hitler Top Nazi outside of Hitler, had authority

to make decisions in Hitler’s name Willing participant in the invasions of

Czechoslovakia and Poland Tried to negotiate peace with Britain

during a solo flight in 1941, was captured and imprisoned for rest of war

Shows signs of mental deterioration during the trials



WAR CRIMES


CONSPIRACY

VERDICTS

21 Nazi Chiefs Guilty, Nuremberg Trials 1946-10-8.url

Of the 24 defendants, 19 were found guilty

5 were acquitted 12 were sentenced to hang including

Martin Bormann but he was never found

11 were executed by hanging

DEFENDANT

COUNT 1 COUNT 2 COUNT 3 COUNT 4 SENTENCE

HERMANGOERING

GUILTY GUILTY GUILTY GUILTY DEATH

ALFRED ROSENBERG




RUDOLFHESS

GUILTY INNOCENT

INNOCENT

GUILTY LIFE

PUNISHMENT

DEFENDANT SENTENCE RESULT

HERMAN GOERING DEATH BY HANGING COMMITTED SUICIDE OCTOBER 15, 1946, DAY BEFORE SCHEDULED EXECUTION,. BODY WAS CREMATED AND ASHES WERE SCATTERED

ALFRED ROSENBERG DEATH BY HANGING EXECUTED OCTOBER 16, 1946. BODY WAS CREMATED AND ASHES WERE SCATTERED


DEATH BY HANGING EXECUTED OCTOBER 16, 1946. BODY WAS CREMATED AND ASHES WERE SCATTERED

RUDOLF HESS LIFE SENTENCE COMMITTED SUICIDE JULY 17, 1987, AT AGE 97. BODY WAS BURIED

THE DEFENSE

THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEW SET OF INTERNATIONAL LAWS FAILED TO DEAL WITH A KEY DEFENSE INTRODUCED BY MANY OF THE DEFENDANTS ON TRIAL:

“I WAS JUST FOLLOWING ORDERS”

RULE OF NUREMBURG

A new principle arose out of the trials that was to be applied to future cases of War Crimes:

a soldier has a duty to ignore a clearly immoral order.

This was put to the test during the Vietnam War

THE MY LAI MASSACRE

In 1968, U.S. troops were engaged in a massacre of elderly men, women and children in the village of My Lai

Women and children were raped, all villagers were shot and the village was torched

REACTION

When news reports surfaced about the massacre, there was public and international pressure on the U.S. government to prosecute the soldiers for War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity

This presents a problem: an army trying their own soldiers – this becomes an indictment of a system

DEFENSE

Many of the soldiers used the same defense as the Nazi leadership: “I was just following orders”

NEW PRINCIPLE

A soldier still has duty to disobey an immoral law

However, a soldier must be taught what an immoral law is.

Documents

At the end of World War II, the Allies (U.S., Britain, France and U.S.S.R.) decided to put Nazi leaders on trial for “crimes” committed during the war