The Nuremberg Palace of Justice ''(german: Justizpalast)'' is a building complex in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

, Bavaria,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It was constructed from 1909 to 1916 and houses the appellate court (''Oberlandesgericht''), the regional court (''Landgericht''), the local court (''Amtsgericht'') and the public prosecutor's office (''

Staatsanwaltschaft Public prosecutor's offices are criminal justice bodies attached to the judiciary. They are separate from the courts in Germany, Austria and the German-speaking parts of Switzerland, and are called the Staatsanwaltschaft. This kind of office als ...

''). The Nuremberg Trials Memorial (''Memorium Nürnberger Prozesse'') is located on the top floor of the courthouse.

Nuremberg trials

The building was chosen as the location of the

Nuremberg trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies of World War II, Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945 ...

(19451949) for the main surviving German war criminals of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

because it was almost undamaged, was large enough, and included a large prison complex. The choice of the city of Nuremberg was symbolic as the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

had held its large

Nuremberg rallies The Nuremberg Rallies (officially ', meaning ''Reich Party Congress'') refer to a series of celebratory events coordinated by the Nazi Party in Germany. The first rally held took place in 1923. This rally was not particularly large or impactful; ...

in the city. The trials took place in courtroom number 600, situated in the eastern wing of the palace of Justice. The courtroom is still used, especially for murder trials. At the end of the Nuremberg Trials the courtroom was refurbished, and is now smaller. A wall that had been removed during the trials in order to create more space was re-erected. In addition, the judges’ bench was turned 90 degrees and is no longer situated in front of the window, but stands where the witness box was placed during the trials. From the year 2000 on, courtroom 600 could be visited by tourists, during weekends. In December 2008, the courtroom was closed to the public due to construction works creating a permanent exhibition. The ''Nuremberg Trials Memorial'' hosted by the Nuremberg Municipal Museums was opened in November 2010.

References

External links

Memorium Nuremberg Trials
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History of the Palace of Justice
Buildings and structures in Nuremberg Courthouses Nuremberg trials Museums in Nuremberg Buildings and structures completed in 1916 {{Bavaria-struct-stub