Kristallnacht, The Night of Broken Glass
The Beginning of Terror for Jews in Nazi Germany
Oct 9, 2009
The horrific night of destruction and bloodshed on November 9, 1938 did not happen spontaneously or in isolation. It is documented in history as a calculated escalation of several years of Nazi propaganda targeted against the Jewish people.
The Rise of Anti-Semitism in Nazi Germany
The rise of the Nazi party was fueled primarily by the decline in Germany's economy after World War I. This led to the political unrest that catapulted Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party into power. HItler's plans for Germany centered on his fervent Anit-Semitism.
The Nazis capitalized on the fact that many Germans believed powerful Jews pressured the government to surrender prematurely during World War I, in effect, betraying their country. This idea of forced surrender became known as Dolchstoss or "stab in the back" and created a certain level of Anti-Semitism throughout Germany.
Hitler's belief in the inferiority of the Jewish race was the basis on which he founded the Nazi Party. He planned to force all Jews to leave Germany and used the growing Anti-Semitism following World War I to further his cause.
Upon taking power in 1933, Hitler initiated a series of edicts and regulations targeting the Jews, designed to convince all Jewish people to leave the country. It began with a boycott of Jewish businesses, a prohibition against Jews holding government jobs, and the outlawing of kosher butchering practices. It progressed into the Nuremberg Laws of 1935, stripping Jews of German citizenship and prohibiting marriage between Jews and non-Jews. HItler's plan seemed to succeed. By 1938, about one-fourth of Germany's Jewish population, approximately 100,000 people, had fled.
Germany annexed Austric in 1938, adding another 200,000 Jews to its population. By this time, many other countries had placed quotas or outright bans on Jewish immigration. Suddenly, the options disappeared. This forced an escalation against Jews and, in November 1938, the desperate actions of a young Jew gave the Nazis an important victory in their war of propaganda.
Herschel Grynszpan and the Assassination of Ernst von Rath
Herschel Grynszpan was seventeen years old and living in Paris in 1938. Hearing of his family's persecution in Germany, Grynszpan sought retribution. On November 7th, he entered the German embassy in Paris and asked to see the ambassador. The ambassador was already on his way out of the building. Grynszpan was taken to the only available official, Ernst von Rath. Grynszpan pulled out a gun and fired five shots, striking von Rath twice in the stomach; von Rath died two days later.
With those five shots, the Nazis had their justification for escalating persecution of the Jews and an additional source for propaganda increasing Anti-Semitism within the general German population. The popaganda ministry made sure all German newspapers covered the event in detail and incited the need for revenge. Joseph Goebbels, Hitler's head of propaganda, was in charge. Gestapo headquarters notified all local police that demonstrations against the Jews would soon occur across the country. They were told not to interfere with the SA storm troopers assigned to carry out the destruction, directed only to prevent looting and to insure that non-Jewish holdings were not affected. Goebbels called the plan the "Jewish Action."
The Infamous Night of Terror
In the late-night hours of November 9, 1938, the SA descended on Jews across Germany and Austria. Almost 8000 Jewish-owned businesses and homes were destroyed. The broken plate glass windows in the storefronts gave the night its historical name: Kristallnacht, the Night of the Broken Glass.
Synagogues were a second target. Valuables such as candelabras, chandeliers, prayer books, and even Torah scrolls were removed and buried in pits outside the towns. Hundreds of synagogues were burned to the ground.
The SA troops also turned their vegeance against individuals. Jewish women and children were terrorized in their homes; the men were beaten, some thrown from upper story windows, others shot. During the week following Kristallnacht, 30,000 Jewish men were arrested and transferred to concentration camps. No formal charges were filed; arrest was based on no other reason than Jewish heritage.
Most German citizens did not participate in the violence, but they also did nothing to stop it. Those who later spoke out against the destruction were arrested or killed. The rest of the world witnessed the event and did nothing to punish the Nazis. On November 15th, President Roosevelt gave a speech denouncing the action and recalled the American ambassador stationed in Berlin. No further action was taken.
The Aftermath
The terror instilled in the Jewish population as a result of Kristallnacht was viewed by the Nazis as a great success. The lack of response from the rest of the world increased Hitler's confidence in his plan for a powerful Aryan state populated by a "pure" superior race. His plans for conquering Europe were set.
The Jews of Germany and Austria probably thought, or at least hopeed, the worst was over. They surely never imagined the genocide that would begin after the Nazis poured into Poland. Ultimately, a second World War would be fought and millions of Jews would be murdered in the concentration camps.
Sources
Bard, Mitchell G. 48 Hours of Kristallnacht. Night of Destruction/Dawn of the Holocaust. An Oral History.Guilford: The Lyons Press, 2008.
Fitzgerald, Stephanie. Kristallnacht, The NIght of Broken Glass. Igniting the Nazi Wars Against Jews. Minneapolis: Compass Point Books, 2008.
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