Nuremberg Military Tribunal. Nuremberg Tribunal: statute, main principles and exclusive competence

trial of a group of leading Germans. military criminals, held in Nuremberg from November 20. 1945 to 1 Oct. 1946; prepared and carried out established for this purpose (by virtue of an agreement dated August 8, 1945 between the governments of Great Britain, the USSR, the USA and the Provisional Government of the French Republic, which was joined by a number of other states) International. military tribunal. Goering, Hess, Ribbentrop, Ley, Keitel, Kaltenbrunner, Rosenberg, Frank, Frick, Streicher, Funk, Schacht, Gustav Krupp, Doenitz, Raeder, Schirach, Sauckel, Jodl, Papen, Seys-Inquart, Speer, Neurath, Fritsche and Bormann (Hitler committed suicide in April, Goebbels and Himmler in May 1945). Shortly before the start of the trial, Ley hanged himself, Gustav Krupp was declared terminally ill, and the case against him was suspended; Borman was not found, and he was tried in absentia. According to the accuser. conclusion, the defendants were charged with committing crimes against peace by planning, preparing, unleashing and waging aggressive wars in violation of international laws. treaties, agreements and guarantees, military. crimes and crimes against humanity. The tribunal also considered the issue of recognizing as criminal such organizations of the Hitlerite state as the Imperial Cabinet (Reich Government), the leadership of the Nazi Party, the SS (Nazi “security squads”), CA (assault squads), SD (security service), Gestapo, General Staff, High Command, etc. The accusation was supported by representatives of four states - Great Britain, the USSR, the USA and France. The process lasted approx. 11 months 403 open court hearings were held, at which, in addition to the defendants, 116 prosecution and defense witnesses were questioned. 143 defense witnesses testified by submitting written responses to interrogatories. 30 Sep. - 1 Oct. 1946 The verdict was announced. The Tribunal found the defendants guilty of conspiring to prepare and wage aggressive wars against peace-loving peoples, and of violating international law. treaties and agreements, in the commission of pre-planned wars. crimes accompanied by cruelty and terror on a huge scale, in crimes against humanity (destruction of peoples on racial and national grounds). The peoples of the USSR were one of the main targets of these heinous crimes. The tribunal sentenced Goering, Ribbentrop, Keitel, Kaltenbrunner, Rosenberg, Frank, Frick, Streicher, Sauckel, Jodl, Seys-Inquart and Bormann (in absentia) to death by hanging; Hess, Funk and Raeder - to life imprisonment; Schirach and Speer - to 20 years, Neurath - to 15 years and Doenitz - to 10 years in prison. The Tribunal declared the leadership of the National Socialist Party, SS, SD and Gestapo to be criminal organizations. But in connection with the position taken by representatives of England, the USA and France, the tribunal did not make a decision on recognizing the Hitlerite government, the high command and the general staff as criminal organizations (indicating that members of these organizations could be brought to trial individually) and acquitted Fritsche, Papen and Schacht (the acquittal of Schacht was used by the Western powers as a precedent when sentencing the leaders of German monopolies). A member of the tribunal from the USSR expressed disagreement with the tribunal’s decision not to recognize the above-mentioned organizations as criminal, with the acquittal of Schacht, Papen and Fritsche, as well as with the insufficient punishment of Hess. Military prisoners sentenced to death. the criminals (with the exception of Goering, who committed suicide 2.5 hours before execution) were on the night of October 16. 1946 were hanged in the building of the Nuremberg prison, their bodies were burned, and their ashes were scattered on the ground. N. p. - the first international in the history. a trial of a group of criminals who took possession of an entire state and made the state itself an instrument of monstrous crimes. The verdict passed by the International military tribunal, for the first time in legal. practice condemned by the state. figures responsible for the aggression. This was the first international in the history of mankind. military trial criminals. Principles of international the rights reflected in this verdict were confirmed in the resolution of the General. UN Assembly of 11 December. 1946. Having exposed the monstrous crimes of the Germans. fascism and militarism, N. p. showed the danger that its revival brings to the peoples of the whole world. N.'s materials are one of the most important sources of the history of the 2nd World War. On the basis of these and other materials, Erich Koch (in Poland) and in 1961 Adolf Eichmann (in Israel) were brought to trial and sentenced to death in 1959, one of Adenauer’s closest collaborators was exposed and forced to resign in 1963 Hans Globke (in 1963 convicted in absentia by the Supreme Court of the GDR) and in 1960 min. Producer of Germany Theodor Oberländer. These materials were also used in the trials against the Nazis. criminals who took place in various countries. The fascists brought to trial suffered their well-deserved punishment. criminals in the GDR. However, at the trials that took place in Germany, Fasc. criminals were given unreasonably lenient sentences, which contradicts the principles of the Nuremberg Tribunal. These principles are also contradicted by the refusal of the German authorities to bring tens of thousands of fascists to trial. criminals, many of whom took high positions in the government. apparatus, the Bundeswehr, the police, the courts and the prosecutor's office of the Federal Republic of Germany. These principles are also contradicted by the attempt of the Federal Republic of Germany to amnesty all Nazi criminals (1965) and the subsequent limitation of the statute of limitations for prosecution of Nazis in 1969, which followed its failure. Defense of the principles of N.P. is one of the forms of struggle against the forces of aggression and reaction. Documents: Nuremberg trial of the main war criminals. Sat. materials, vol. 1-7, M., 1957-61; Nuremberg trials... Sat. materials, vol. 1-, M., 1965-. Lit.: Volchkov A.F. and Poltorak A.I., Principles of the Nuremberg verdict and international law, "Soviet state and law", 1957, No. 1; Ivanova I.M., Nuremberg principles in international. law, in the same place, 1960, No. 8; Poltorak A.I., Nuremberg epilogue, M., 1965; his, Nuremberg Trials, M., 1966. A. I. Ioyrysh. Moscow.

The Nuremberg Tribunal Charter was formulated to ensure a fair trial for war criminals of Nazi Germany. It was a process of enormous scale and significance, which was carried out by the USSR, Great Britain, the USA and France over the main Nazi figures. The main one was followed by twelve additional processes.

Next, we will consider in more detail the main provisions of the Charter of the Tribunal, its area of ​​jurisdiction and exclusive competence, formation, and significance. The main trial, which took place in the fall of 1945, will also be covered, as well as brief information about the consideration of subsequent cases.

International Military Tribunal: concept, jurisdiction

The International (Nuremberg) Military Tribunal is a judicial body that prosecutes, tries and sentences major European war criminals who fought for Nazi Germany during the war. The basis of the Nuremberg Tribunal is an agreement that was concluded on August 8, 1945 in London, the capital of Great Britain, between the governments of the Soviet Union, the United States, Great Britain and France. The tribunal itself was located in Berlin, and the trial took place in Nuremberg, a German city located in north-central Bavaria.

The exclusive competence of the Nuremberg Tribunal was a requirement of the time. Jurisdiction extended to the following crimes:

1. Crimes against peace. This means planning, preparing, waging a war that violates international peace agreements or assurances, participating in any conspiracy, a general plan that involved the implementation of any of the above actions.
2. War crimes. That is, a violation of the laws of war. This clause includes torture, slavery, torture, labor or other duties imposed on the civilian population of the occupied territory, military personnel, and hostages. They are also tried for the looting of private or public property, the wanton destruction of infrastructure, and destruction that is not justified by military necessity.
3. Crimes against humanity. These include murder, exile, enslavement, extermination and other cruel acts committed against civilians, persecution on political, racial, religious or other grounds for the further implementation of any crime within the jurisdiction of the tribunal. It does not matter whether such acts are criminal under the domestic law of the country in which they were committed or not.

These crimes committed by the leaders of Hitler's Germany are the exclusive competence of the Nuremberg Tribunal. This composition of criminal acts is established by the sixth article of the Charter. A more detailed discussion of the provisions will be presented below.

Crimes against humanity, peace, and military cases were considered by a panel of eight people. The trial was conducted by one judge and deputy from each of the parties to the agreement signed in London on August 8, 1945.

London Conference on 8 August 1945: adoption of the Charter

The London Conference was a meeting of the leaders of the four victorious states in the war, which took place in London from June 26 to August 8, 1945. The USSR side was represented at the conference by Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Court I. T. Nikitchenko and Professor A. N. Trainin, criminologist and international specialist. No official minutes of the meeting were drawn up. The conference was held with the doors to the hall closed.

On the last day of the conference, an Agreement was signed between the leaderships of the USSR, Great Britain, France and the USA on the prosecution and judicial punishment of the main criminals of the Axis countries, that is, the Third Reich, Italy and the Japanese Empire. The International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg was given the power to try and punish people who committed criminal acts against the world order and humanity. The agreement was signed by: from the USSR - I. T. Nikitchenko and A. N. Trainin, from the USA - Robert H. Jackson, member of the Supreme Court, from France - Robert Falco, member of the Supreme Court, from Great Britain - Chancellor William Allen Jowitt.

At the same time, the charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal was adopted, defining the order of its organization, jurisdiction and general principles of work, guarantees for defendants during the trial, as well as rights. These issues will be discussed in detail below.

Charter of the military tribunal in Nuremberg: history of drafting

The Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal was an annex to the Agreement adopted at the London Conference on August 8, 1945. The document is usually called the London or Nuremberg Charter. The document was developed on the basis of the Moscow Declaration, adopted at the 1943 conference in Moscow by the foreign ministers of the USSR, Great Britain and the USA. The Declaration determined the conditions under which states would cooperate. Important topics were the disarmament of German troops and the trial of war criminals. The document provided for the occupation of Germany by Allied forces until the complete destruction of the Nazi regime.

The text of the Charter of the Nuremberg Military Tribunal was drawn up immediately after the surrender of Germany, on May 8, 1945, in London. Compilation was carried out by Robert Falco, Jonah Nikitchenko and Robert Jackson. The text was published on August 8, 1945. As mentioned earlier, the agreement between the USSR, Great Britain, the USA and France on the prosecution and sentencing of major Axis war criminals was officially signed at the London Conference in early August 1945. Subsequently, the Charter was ratified by 19 other participants in the anti-Hitler coalition.

Basic provisions of the Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal

Part I of the Charter concerns the organization of an international military tribunal. It is indicated that it was created for a fair trial and punishment of war criminals (Article 1). The composition of the tribunal is established in the amount of four judges and their deputies, with each party appointing one judge and one deputy (Article 2). A judge can only be replaced by a deputy, and none of the accused, defense counsel or prosecutors can be removed from the tribunal, its members or alternates (Article 3). In addition, the possibility of establishing additional courts if necessary was provided for (Article 7).

Part II of the Charter deals with jurisdiction and general principles of operation. Particularly noteworthy in this part is the article, which reveals what actions entail responsibility. Art. 6 of the Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal describes what is meant by the concepts by which the main criminals of Nazi Germany were accused. It is stated that the position of the defendants as head of state or official is not considered as a basis for mitigation of punishment or release from liability (Article 7). The fact that the convicted person acted on the orders of the government or command also does not exempt from responsibility, but may mitigate the punishment (Article 8). The tribunal has the right to consider the cases of persons convicted of crimes against peace even in the absence of the accused themselves at the hearing (Article 12).

Part III concerns the War Crimes Committee, and IV defines guarantees for defendants and establishes fair trial procedures (Article 16). Part V (Articles 17-25) describes the rights of the tribunal, VI considers the procedure for passing a sentence, and Part VII concerns costs. In the last two parts of the Charter we can highlight Art. 27, which gives the tribunal the right to sentence the defendant to death if this decision is considered fair. As for the costs, they were covered by the parties from the funds of the German Control Council.

Nuremberg Principles of International Law

The principles of the Nuremberg Tribunal were formulated in 1950 by a special Commission commissioned by the UN to subsequently create a Criminal Code of international significance. The members of the commission summarized the activities of the Nuremberg Tribunal and formulated the main principles that were expressed in the decision of the judges. Subsequently, these provisions were recognized by the international community. There are seven principles in total:

1. Any person who has committed a criminal act bears responsibility for it and is subject to fair punishment.
2. If some action is not a crime under the domestic law of a country, but is under international law, then the person is still liable.
3. Heads of state and members of government are not exempt from responsibility.
4. Persons who acted on orders from the government or command are not exempt from liability if the choice was actually possible.
5. Every accused person has the right to a fair trial based on the facts and principles of law.
6. Crimes against peace, war, and humanity are punished as international crimes.
7. Complicity in the above acts is equivalent to an international crime.

The main trial against the leaders of the Nazi regime

The first meeting of the Nuremberg Tribunal for the main leaders of the regime took place on November 20, 1945. From the USSR, the Nazis were tried by: I. Nikitchenko (Major General of Justice) and A. Volchkov (Colonel of Justice) as an assistant. The defendants were defended by German lawyers, the hearing was guarded and persons under investigation were escorted to the cells by US Army personnel.

The Bavarian city of Nuremberg was chosen as the venue for the tribunal. This decision was symbolic. It was here that the horrific racial legislation of Nazi Germany was signed, in this place the Nazis loved to hold party congresses, and the Palace of Justice suffered relatively little damage from bombs dropped by Allied aircraft, accommodated a sufficient number of people and was connected to the cells where the accused were kept by an underground passage.

There were 23 war criminals in the dock (among them were F. Sauckel, head of deportations from the occupied territory, G. Fritsche, head of one of the departments of the Ministry of Propaganda, G. W. Goering, Reichsmarshal, head of the air force, R. Hess, Hitler’s deputy , J. von Ribbentropp, Foreign Minister, A. Rosenberg, one of the main ideological leaders, and others) and accused in absentia. Absent from the meetings were Adolf Hitler, the chief SS man G. Himmler, and the Minister of Propaganda J. Goebbels, who committed suicide out of fear of responsibility for the crimes they had committed.

The defendants were accused of crimes against the world order, starting a war, pursuing a policy of anti-Semitism and racism, murder and cruel treatment of prisoners of war. The Nuremberg Tribunal especially carefully considered crimes against children, who often became victims of the Nazis. The most difficult points were supported by a significant evidence base. Dozens of witnesses to brutal crimes came forward. Unexpected for those who were in the dock was the speech of Friedrich Paulus, who was captured in Stalingrad. It was he who developed the plan, code-named “Barbarossa”.

Prominent figures of Hitler's Germany recorded all their crimes with German clarity, resorting to the help of stenographers and keeping diaries. They did this feeling like absolute winners, certainly not expecting that these documents would become the strongest evidence in the prosecution. The Nuremberg Tribunal condemned not only the main ideologists, military and political figures, but also recognized as criminal all organizations that carried out the instructions of the Nazis, that is, the Gestapo, SS, SD and the like.

The defendants were given hope by the fact that after Churchill's Fulton speech, relations between the USSR and Great Britain and the USA were very strained, this could bury the trial. But the truly dark day for the Nazi leaders was when the former commandant of the Auschwitz death camp spoke before the judges and deputies. The executioner said that two and a half million prisoners were killed in the camp. He almost proudly talked about the fact that in each of the cells two thousand people were killed at once, while in the other camp only two hundred unfortunates could be exterminated at a time. The executioner was hanged by court in Poland in April 1947.

Court decision in the case of the leaders of Hitler's Germany

The verdict began to be announced on September 30, 1945, but the list of charges was so long that it took the whole day. It all ended only on the first of October. During the announcement of the verdict, the defendants tried to pretend that they didn’t care, but in fact, excitement was visible. frantically drew something on scraps of paper, Hermann Goering tried to smile tightly, Alfred Rosenberg cowered, defiantly crossed his arms, and Hans Frank just shook his head.

The decision of the Nuremberg Tribunal was as follows:

• 12 people were sentenced to death, of whom Bormann was convicted in absentia, Jodl was posthumously acquitted during a review in 1953, and Goering committed suicide a few hours before his execution;
• 3 people were sentenced to life imprisonment: Funk, Reder, Hess;
• to 20 years in prison: Speer, Schirach;
• to 15 years in prison: Neurath;
• to 10 years in prison: Denitsa;
• Three people were acquitted: Papen (German Ambassador to Austria and Turkey), Fritsche (head of the press and radio broadcasting), Schacht (Minister of Economics, who held this position before the war).

Subsequent (Small) Nuremberg Trials

After the main trial of the top leaders of the Third Reich, twelve more subsequent ones were carried out, later called small ones. The main difference was that cases were conducted exclusively by American judges. Nazi doctors, judges, generals of the south-eastern front, persons guilty of racial crimes, and the German military command came under investigation. Separately, Alfried Krupp, Friedrich Flick, IG Farben (German industrialists), (Field Marshal of the Luftwaffe) were convicted. In total, 183 accused of various crimes appeared before twelve trials. Twenty-four people were sentenced to death (eleven of them were pardoned), twenty were sentenced to life imprisonment, 98 were sentenced to various terms, and 35 were acquitted. The remaining accused were not sentenced for various reasons. Some of them were declared insane, others died before trial. In 1951, many of the convicts were released under an amnesty, and some of the convicts had their sentences reduced.

Nuremberg International Tribunal and Bandera (OUN/UPA)

Stepan Bandera and the OUN/UPA were personally condemned by the Nuremberg Tribunal, but they were not brought before the International Military Court. There are no official convictions against them. The decision of the Nuremberg Tribunal on the Banderaites was not made, but this does not mean that their crimes are not classified as those committed against peace or humanity, military ones.

None of the tribunal's materials contain any mention of recognizing Stepan Bandera as a war criminal, although, according to the principles of international law, that is exactly what he is. Not a single mention of Bandera in the 42 tone of the case can be directly interpreted against him.

Some researchers prefer to make reference to the materials of the interrogation of E. Stolze, who during the conversation mentioned the order to Bandera’s supporters to organize demonstrations in Ukraine during the German attack on the USSR in order to tear apart the rear of the armies and convince the public of the possible collapse of the rear. Based on the results of the consideration of the case, Erwin Stolze’s organization was not recognized as criminal, so cooperation with him cannot be interpreted as a crime for which the person is liable before the Nuremberg Tribunal.

The significance of the Nuremberg trials and the tribunal for world history

The Nuremberg Military Tribunal and its significance in history is a topic for a separate article, since the process created a precedent for the trial of high officials and refuted the principle “Kings are subject to the jurisdiction of God alone.” The principles that were enshrined in the Charter are recognized by the UN as generally accepted for international law. The Nuremberg trials are often called the “trial of history,” since it had a very significant influence on the final victory over Nazism in the minds and hearts of people. An atmosphere of the strictest legality was observed; there was no case where the crimes of the defendants were mitigated at any stage of the case. To this day, the Nuremberg trials are a benchmark for conducting an international case of war crimes.

Goering in the dock at the Nuremberg trials

On October 1, 1946, the verdict of the International Military Tribunal was announced in Nuremberg, condemning the main war criminals. It is often called the “Court of History”. It was not only one of the largest trials in human history, but also a major milestone in the development of international law. The Nuremberg trials legally secured the final defeat of fascism.

In the dock:

For the first time, the criminals who made the entire state criminal were found and suffered severe punishment. The initial list of accused included:

1. Hermann Wilhelm Goering (German: Hermann Wilhelm Göring), Reichsmarshal, Commander-in-Chief of the German Air Force
2. Rudolf Hess (German: Rudolf Heß), Hitler's deputy for leadership of the Nazi Party.
3. Joachim von Ribbentrop (German: Ullrich Friedrich Willy Joachim von Ribbentrop), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany.
4. Robert Ley (German: Robert Ley), head of the Labor Front
5. Wilhelm Keitel (German: Wilhelm Keitel), Chief of Staff of the Supreme High Command of the German Armed Forces.
6. Ernst Kaltenbrunner (German: Ernst Kaltenbrunner), head of the RSHA.
7. Alfred Rosenberg (German: Alfred Rosenberg), one of the main ideologists of Nazism, Reich Minister for Eastern Territories.
8. Hans Frank (German: Dr. Hans Frank), head of the occupied Polish lands.
9. Wilhelm Frick (German: Wilhelm Frick), Reich Minister of the Interior.
10. Julius Streicher (German: Julius Streicher), Gauleiter, editor-in-chief of the anti-Semitic newspaper "Stormtrooper" (German: Der Stürmer - Der Sturmer).
11. Hjalmar Schacht, Reich Minister of Economics before the war.
12. Walter Funk (German: Walther Funk), Minister of Economics after Schacht.
13. Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (German: Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach), head of the Friedrich Krupp concern.
14. Karl Doenitz (German: Karl Dönitz), admiral of the fleet of the Third Reich.
15. Erich Raeder (German: Erich Raeder), Commander-in-Chief of the Navy.
16. Baldur von Schirach (German: Baldur Benedikt von Schirach), head of the Hitler Youth, Gauleiter of Vienna.
17. Fritz Sauckel (German: Fritz Sauckel), head of forced deportations to the Reich of labor from occupied territories.
18. Alfred Jodl (German: Alfred Jodl), Chief of Staff of the OKW Operations Command
19. Franz von Papen (German: Franz Joseph Hermann Michael Maria von Papen), Chancellor of Germany before Hitler, then ambassador to Austria and Turkey.
20. Arthur Seyß-Inquart (German: Dr. Arthur Seyß-Inquart), Chancellor of Austria, then Imperial Commissioner of occupied Holland.
21. Albert Speer (German: Albert Speer), Reich Minister of Armaments.
22. Konstantin von Neurath (German: Konstantin Freiherr von Neurath), in the first years of Hitler's reign, Minister of Foreign Affairs, then governor of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia.
23. Hans Fritzsche (German: Hans Fritzsche), head of the press and broadcasting department at the Ministry of Propaganda.

Twenty-fourth - Martin Bormann (German: Martin Bormann), head of the party chancellery, was accused in absentia. Groups or organizations to which the defendants belonged were also charged.

The investigation and the essence of the accusation

Shortly after the end of the war, the victorious countries of the USSR, USA, Great Britain and France, during the London conference, approved the Agreement on the establishment of the International Military Tribunal and its Charter, the principles of which the UN General Assembly approved as generally recognized in the fight against crimes against humanity. On August 29, 1945, a list of major war criminals was published, including 24 prominent Nazis. The charges brought against them included the following:

Nazi Party Plans

• -Use of Nazi control for aggression against foreign countries.
• -Aggressive actions against Austria and Czechoslovakia.
• -Attack on Poland.
• -Aggressive war against the whole world (1939-1941).
• -German invasion of the territory of the USSR in violation of the non-aggression pact of August 23, 1939.
• -Collaboration with Italy and Japan and aggressive war against the United States (November 1936 - December 1941).

Crimes against peace

“All of the defendants and various other persons, for a number of years prior to May 8, 1945, participated in the planning, preparation, initiation and conduct of wars of aggression, which were also wars in violation of international treaties, agreements and obligations.”

War crimes

• -Killings and ill-treatment of civilians in occupied territories and on the high seas.

• -Removal of the civilian population of the occupied territories into slavery and for other purposes.
• -Killings and cruel treatment of prisoners of war and military personnel of countries with which Germany was at war, as well as persons sailing on the high seas.
• -Aimless destruction of large and small cities and villages, devastation not justified by military necessity.
• -Germanization of the occupied territories.

Crimes against humanity

• -The defendants pursued a policy of persecution, repression and extermination of the enemies of the Nazi government. The Nazis imprisoned people without a trial, subjected them to persecution, humiliation, enslavement, torture, and killed them.

On October 18, 1945, the indictment was received by the International Military Tribunal and a month before the start of the trial, it was handed to each of the accused in German. On November 25, 1945, after reading the indictment, Robert Ley committed suicide, and Gustav Krupp was declared terminally ill by the medical commission, and the case against him was dropped before trial.

The remaining accused were brought to trial.

Court

In accordance with the London Agreement, the International Military Tribunal was formed on a parity basis from representatives of four countries. The British representative, Lord J. Lawrence, was appointed chief judge. From other countries, members of the tribunal were approved:

• - from the USSR: Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Court of the Soviet Union, Major General of Justice I. T. Nikitchenko.
• -from the USA: former Attorney General of the country F. Biddle.
• -from France: professor of criminal law A. Donnedier de Vabre.

Each of the 4 countries sent its main prosecutors, their deputies and assistants to the trial:

• - from the USSR: Prosecutor General of the Ukrainian SSR R. A. Rudenko.
• - from the USA: member of the federal Supreme Court Robert Jackson.
• -from UK: Hartley Shawcross
• -from France: François de Menton, who was absent during the first days of the trial and was replaced by Charles Dubost, and then Champentier de Ribes was appointed instead of de Menton.

The trial lasted ten months in Nuremberg. A total of 216 court hearings were held. Each side presented evidence of crimes committed by Nazi criminals.

Due to the unprecedented gravity of the crimes committed by the defendants, doubts arose whether democratic norms of legal proceedings would be observed in relation to them. For example, representatives of the prosecution from England and the USA proposed not to give the defendants the last word. However, the French and Soviet sides insisted on the opposite.

The trial was tense not only because of the unusual nature of the tribunal itself and the charges brought against the defendants.

The post-war aggravation of relations between the USSR and the West after Churchill’s famous Fulton speech also had an effect, and the defendants, sensing the current political situation, skillfully played for time and hoped to escape their well-deserved punishment. In such a difficult situation, the tough and professional actions of the Soviet prosecution played a key role. The film about concentration camps, shot by front-line cameramen, finally turned the tide of the process. The terrible pictures of Majdanek, Sachsenhausen, Auschwitz completely removed the doubts of the tribunal.

Court verdict

The International Military Tribunal sentenced:

• -To death by hanging: Goering, Ribbentrop, Keitel, Kaltenbrunner, Rosenberg, Frank, Frick, Streicher, Sauckel, Seyss-Inquart, Bormann (in absentia), Jodl (was posthumously acquitted during a review of the case by a Munich court in 1953).
• -To life imprisonment: Hess, Funk, Raeder.
• - To 20 years in prison: Schirach, Speer.
• -To 15 years in prison: Neurata.
• -To 10 years in prison: Denitsa.
• -Acquitted: Fritsche, Papen, Schacht.

The Soviet side protested in connection with the acquittal of Papen, Fritsche, Schacht and the non-application of the death penalty to Hess.
The Tribunal found the SS, SD, SA, Gestapo and the leadership of the Nazi Party criminal. The decision to recognize the Supreme Command and the General Staff as criminal was not made, which caused disagreement from a member of the tribunal from the USSR.

Most of the convicts filed petitions for clemency; Raeder - on replacing life imprisonment with the death penalty; Goering, Jodl and Keitel - about replacing hanging with shooting if the request for clemency is not granted. All of these requests were rejected.
The death penalty was carried out on the night of October 16, 1946 in the Nuremberg prison building. Goering poisoned himself in prison shortly before his execution.

The sentence was carried out “at his own request” by American Sergeant John Wood.

Sentenced to life imprisonment, Funk and Raeder were pardoned in 1957. After Speer and Schirach were released in 1966, only Hess remained in prison. The right-wing forces of Germany repeatedly demanded to pardon him, but the victorious powers refused to commute the sentence. On August 17, 1987, Hess was found hanged in his cell.

Results and conclusions

The Nuremberg Tribunal, having created a precedent for the jurisdiction of senior government officials by an international court, refuted the medieval principle “Kings are subject to the jurisdiction only of God.” It was with the Nuremberg trials that the history of international criminal law began. The principles enshrined in the Charter of the Tribunal were soon confirmed by decisions of the UN General Assembly as generally recognized principles of international law. Having convicted the main Nazi criminals, the International Military Tribunal recognized aggression as the gravest crime of an international character.

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*Extremist and terrorist organizations banned in the Russian Federation: Jehovah's Witnesses, National Bolshevik Party, Right Sector, Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), Islamic State (IS, ISIS, Daesh), Jabhat Fatah al-Sham", "Jabhat al-Nusra", "Al-Qaeda", "UNA-UNSO", "Taliban", "Majlis of the Crimean Tatar People", "Misanthropic Division", "Brotherhood" of Korchinsky, "Trident named after. Stepan Bandera", "Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists" (OUN)

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At the Nuremberg Tribunal

The Nuremberg Trials took place in Nuremberg (Germany) from November 20, 1945 to October 1, 1946

Defendants

• G. Goering - Minister of Aviation in Nazi Germany. On trial: “The winner is always the judge, and the loser is the accused!”
• R. Hess - SS Obergruppenführer, Hitler's deputy in the party, third person in the hierarchy of the Third Reich: "I don't regret anything"
• J. von Ribbentrop - German Foreign Minister: 'The wrong people have been charged'
• W. Keitel - Chief of Staff of the Supreme High Command of the German Armed Forces: “An order for a soldier is always an order!”
• E. Kaltenbrunner - SS Obergruppenführer, head of the Main Directorate of Reich Security (RSHA): “I am not responsible for war crimes, I was only fulfilling my duty as the head of the intelligence agencies, and I refuse to serve as some kind of ersatz Himmler.”
• A. Rosenberg - the main ideologist of the Third Reich, head of the foreign policy department of the NSDAP, the Fuhrer's representative on issues of moral and philosophical education of the NSDAP: “I reject the charge of ‘conspiracy’. Anti-Semitism was only a necessary defensive measure.”
• G. Frank - Governor General of occupied Poland, Reich Minister of Justice of the Third Reich: “I view this trial as God’s highest court to understand and bring to an end the terrible period of Hitler’s reign.”
• W. Frick - Reich Minister of the Interior of Germany, Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia: “The entire charge is based on the assumption of participation in a conspiracy.”
• J. Streicher - Gauleiter of Franconia, ideologist of racism: "This process is"
• W. Funk - German Minister of Economics, President of the Reichsbank: “Never in my life have I, either knowingly or ignorantly, done anything that would give rise to such accusations. If, out of ignorance or as a result of delusions, I committed the acts listed in the indictment, then my guilt should be considered in the light of my personal tragedy, but not as a crime.”
• K. Dönitz - Grand Admiral, Commander of the Submarine Fleet, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy of Nazi Germany: “None of the charges have anything to do with me. American inventions!
• E. Raeder - Grand Admiral, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy
• B. von Schirach - party and youth leader, Reichsjugendführer, Gauleiter of Vienna, Obergruppenführer of the SA: “All troubles come from racial politics”
• F. Sauckel - one of the main people responsible for organizing the use of forced labor in Nazi Germany, Gauleiter of Thuringia, Obergruppenführer of the SA, Obergruppenführer of the SS: “The gulf between the ideal of a socialist society, nurtured and defended by me, a former sailor and worker, and these terrible events - the concentration camps - deeply shocked me.”
• A. Jodl - Chief of Staff of the Operational Leadership of the Wehrmacht High Command, Colonel General: “The mixture of fair accusations and political propaganda is regrettable”
• A. Seys-Inquart - SS Obergruppenführer, minister without portfolio in Hitler's government, Reichskommissar of the Netherlands: “I would like to hope that this is the last act of the tragedy of the Second World War”
• A. Speer - Hitler’s personal architect, Reich Minister of Arms and Ammunition: “The process is necessary. Even an authoritarian state does not relieve each individual of responsibility for the terrible crimes committed.”
• K. von Neurath - German Foreign Minister and Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia (1939-1943), SS Obergruppenführer: “I have always been against accusations without a possible defense”
• G. Fritsche - head of the press and radio broadcasting department at the Ministry of Propaganda: “This is the worst accusation of all time. Only one thing can be more terrible: the impending accusation that the German people will bring against us for abusing their idealism.”
• J. Schacht - Reich Minister of Economics (1936-1937), Reich Minister without Portfolio (1937-1942), one of the main organizers of the war economy of Nazi Germany: “ I don’t understand at all why I’ve been charged.”
• R. Ley (hanged himself before the start of the trial) - Reichsleiter, Obergruppenführer of the SA, head of the organizational department of the NSDAP, head of the German Labor Front
• G. Krupp (was declared terminally ill, and his case was suspended) - industrialist and financial tycoon who provided significant material support to the Nazi movement
• M. Bormann (tried in absentia because he disappeared and was not found) - SS Obergruppenführer, SA Standartenführer, personal secretary and closest ally of Hitler
• F. von Papen - Chancellor of Germany before Hitler, then ambassador to Austria and Turkey: “The accusation horrified me, firstly, with the awareness of the irresponsibility as a result of which Germany was plunged into this war, which turned into a global catastrophe, and secondly, with the crimes that were committed by some of my compatriots. The latter are inexplicable from a psychological point of view. It seems to me that the years of godlessness and totalitarianism are to blame for everything. It was they who turned Hitler into a pathological liar."

Judges

• Lord Justice Geoffrey Lawrence (UK) – Chief Justice
• Iona Nikitchenko - Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Court of the Soviet Union, Major General of Justice
• Francis Biddle - former US Attorney General
• Henri Donnedier de Vabre - professor of criminal law in France

Main Prosecutors

• Roman Rudenko - Prosecutor General of the Ukrainian SSR
• Robert Jackson - Member of the US Federal Supreme Court
• Hartley Shawcross - UK Attorney General
• Charles Dubost, Francois de Menton, Champentier de Ribes (alternately) - representatives of France

Lawyers

At the trial, each defendant was represented by a lawyer of his own choice.

• Dr. Exner - professor of criminal law, defense attorney for A. Jodl
• G. Yarrice is a specialist in international and constitutional law. government defender
• Dr. R. Dix - head of the German Bar Association, defense attorney J. Schacht
• Dr. Kranzbüller - judge in the German navy, defender of K. Dönitz
• O. Stammer - lawyer, Goering's defender
• And others

Accusations

• crimes against peace: starting a war to establish German world domination
• war crimes: murder and torture of prisoners of war, deportation of civilians to Germany, killing of hostages, plunder and destruction of cities and villages of occupied countries
• crimes against humanity: extermination, enslavement of civilians for political, racial, religious reasons

Sentence

• Goering, Ribbentrop, Keitel, Kaltenbrunner, Rosenberg, Frank, Frick, Streicher, Sauckel, Seyss-Inquart, Bormann (in absentia), Jodl - death penalty by hanging
• Hess, Funk, Raeder - life imprisonment
• Schirach, Speer - 20 years in prison
• Neurath - 15 years in prison
• Dönitz - 10 years in prison
• Fritsche, Papen, Schacht - acquitted

The German state organizations SS, SD, Gestapo and the leadership of the Nazi Party were also recognized by the court as criminal

Chronicle of the Nuremberg Trials, Briefly

• 1942, October 14 - statement of the Soviet government: “... considers it necessary to immediately bring before a special international tribunal and punish to the fullest extent of the criminal law any of the leaders of Nazi Germany...”
• 1943, November 1 - the protocol of the Moscow Conference of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the USSR, USA and Great Britain was signed, the 18th point of which was the “Declaration on the responsibility of the Nazis for the atrocities committed”
• 1943, November 2 - “Declaration on the responsibility of the Nazis for the atrocities committed” was published in Pravda
• 1945, May 31-June 4 - conference of experts in London on the issue of punishing Axis war criminals, which was attended by representatives of 16 countries participating in the work of the United Nations War Crimes Commission
• 1945, August 8 - in London, an agreement was signed between the governments of the USSR, USA, Great Britain and France on the prosecution and punishment of major war criminals, according to which the International Military Tribunal was established.
• 1945, August 29 - a list of the main war criminals was published, consisting of 24 names
• 1945, October 18 - the indictment was handed over to the International Military Tribunal and, through its secretariat, transferred to each of the accused
• 1945, November 20 - beginning of the process
• 1945, November 25 - the head of the Labor Front, Robert Ley, committed suicide in his cell.
• 1945, November 29 - demonstration during the tribunal meeting of the documentary film “Concentration Camps”, which included German newsreel footage filmed in the Auschwitz camp, Buchenwald, Dachau
• 1945, December 17 - at a closed meeting, the judges expressed bewilderment to Streicher's lawyer, Dr. Marx, because he refused to satisfy the client's request to call some witnesses to the trial, in particular the defendant's wife
• 1946, January 5 - Gestapo lawyer Dr. Merkel petitions for... a postponement of the process, but does not receive support
• 1946, March 16 - interrogation of Goering, he admitted to minor crimes, but denied his involvement in the main charges
• 1946, August 15 - the American Office of Information published a review of surveys, according to which about 80 percent of Germans considered the Nuremberg trials fair and the guilt of the defendants undeniable
• 1946, October 1 - verdict for the accused
• 1946, April 11 - During interrogation, Kaltenbruner denies his knowledge of what is happening in the death camps: “I have nothing to do with it. I did not give any orders, nor did I carry out anyone else’s orders in this regard.”
• 1946, October 15 - the head of the prison, Colonel Andrews, announced to the convicts the results of the consideration of their petitions; at 22:45, Goering, sentenced to death, poisoned himself
• 1946, October 16 - execution of criminals sentenced to death