Why go
The trials deserve focused time because they addressed individual responsibility for the Nazi regime's crimes and helped shape later international criminal law. The Palace of Justice gives the events a specific place; the broader subject includes the tribunal's origins, proceedings, legal debates, and legacy.
The full story
The best-known Nuremberg trial was held before the International Military Tribunal from November 1945 to October 1946. The United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and France formed the tribunal to prosecute leading figures of Nazi Germany. Charges included crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The proceedings took place in Nuremberg's Palace of Justice, a large court complex that had survived the war with a prison nearby. After this first trial, American authorities held further proceedings against other defendants in Nuremberg. The city had also been a stage for Nazi Party rallies, giving the postwar choice of location symbolic force. The trials were a major attempt to use a court, evidence, and individual charges to answer state violence on a vast scale. They also raised difficult legal questions about new charges and the conduct of the victorious powers. A visit centered on the Palace of Justice is strongest when you allow time for both aspects: what the court established and what remains debated about how it did so.