The Nuremberg trials were one of the most important turning points in the history of international justice. After the dust of World War II had settled, many of the Allied nations debated and offered proposals for how Nazi leaders should be punished. These ranged from a show trial to even summary executions.
But ultimately, the Allied parties held a series of trials in the German city of Nuremberg, placing some of Nazi Germany’s most powerful surviving leaders before a court and forcing the world to confront how governments, military officials, and even doctors could be personally responsible for committing atrocities against humanity.
The trials were controversial and raised many difficult questions about fairness and punishment. But there is much that people don’t know about them. Click on to learn more.