The Night of Broken Glass: A Warning of Future Nazi Crimes

On the morning after Kristallnacht, local residents watch as fire destroys the Ober Ramstadt synagogue. The local fire department prevented the fire from spreading to a nearby home, but did not try to limit the damage to the synagogue. —USHMM, courtesy of Trudy Isenberg

Starting on November 9, 1938, the Nazis orchestrated a wave of nationwide violence targeting Jewish communities. Rioters destroyed synagogues, attacked and looted Jewish shops, and ambushed people in their homes. Around 30,000 men were arrested and sent to concentration camps merely for being Jewish. Jews were left bereft, desperate to escape Nazi Germany by any means possible. After the initial outrage, world attention faded and the Nazis carried out even greater horrors. Eighty-five years after the “Night of Broken Glass,” watch this digital program to understand this pivotal moment on the path to mass murder.

The Night of Broken Glass: A Warning of Future Nazi Crimes