June 21, 2023 - Germany
Nuremburg Rally Grounds
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We left Rothenburg and drove east to Nuremburg. One of the things to see in Nuremburg is Zeppelin Field, where the infamous Nazi Party rallies took place.
The Nuremberg rallies were a series of celebratory events coordinated by the Nazi Party in Germany. The first Nazi Nuremberg rally took place in 1923. This rally was not particularly large and did not have much impact; however, as the party grew in size, the rallies became more elaborate and featured larger crowds. They played a seminal role in Nazi propaganda events, conveying a unified and strong Germany under Nazi control. The rallies became a national event once Adolf Hitler rose to power in 1933, when they became annual occurrences. Once the Nazi dictatorship was firmly established, the party's propagandists began filming them for a national and international audience. Nazi filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl produced some of her best known work including Triumph of the Will (1934) and The Victory of Faith (1933), both filmed at the Nazi party rally grounds near Nuremberg. The party's 1938 Nuremberg rally celebrated the Anschluss that occurred earlier that year. The 1939 scheduled rally never came to pass and the Nazi regime never held another one as both the government and Nazi Party prioritized Germany's effort in the Second World War over everything else.
Six Nazi party rallies were here at Zeppelin Field between 1933 and 1938.
Below is the monolithic grandstand designed by Albert Speer as it was in the 1930's.
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This is how it looks today.
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The facility was built between 1933 and 1938 by the Architect Albert Speer. The field itself covered 12 football fields stadiums and could hold 200 000 people. It was one of Speer's first works for the Nazi party; the grandstand was based upon the Pergamon Altar. The grandstand is famous as the building that had the swastika blown from atop it in 1945, after Germany surrendered. The name "Zeppelinfeld" refers to the fact that in August 1909 Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin landed with one of his airships (LZ6) in this location.
Looking straight ahead from the grandstand over what used to be Zeppelin Field. Now it is used for all sorts of activities including concerts, sporting events and even car races. At center is the "Fuhrer's Rostrum", jutting out from grandstand center.
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| Looking to the right from grandstand center. Bleachers surrounded the field in front of the grandstand. 34 tower-like structures -- still in existence and visible in this picture -- ringed the field and housed the toilet facilities. |
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| And to the left. |
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| After 1945 the city of Nuremberg redesigned the area into a park again. All buildings from the NS era were demolished. |
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| Lynnette on the "Fuhrer's Rostrum". |
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| A big swastica once stood on top of the grandstand here. You can watch a video of it being blown up soon after the war. |
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| Although the site is somewhat dilapidated, they have done a good job with the information placards. Both in German and English. |
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A picture from one of the big rallies here.
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| A good look at some of the 34 tower-like structures ringing the field. |
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Off in the distance was the massive Congress Hall. It is the biggest preserved national socialist monumental building. It was intended to serve as a congress centre for the NSDAP with a self-supporting roof and would have provided 50,000 seats. The design (especially the outer facade, among other features) is inspired by the Colosseum in Rome. The foundation stone was laid in 1935, but the building -- like so many of Hitler's architectural projects -- was never finished and has no roof.
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| P27 |
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| P28 |
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P29
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| The rear of the stone grandstand. |
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