Book Burnings

In May 1933, pro-Nazi university students carried out book burning ceremonies in towns and cities across Germany. They burned books that they considered to be “un-German." This included books by Jewish authors; pacifist works that criticized war; and works praising or promoting leftist political movements, such as socialism and communism. In many places, the book burning ceremonies began with a rally or speech. This was often followed by a torchlit parade through the city. After the speeches, the students threw books onto bonfires with great ceremony and enthusiasm. In some places, there was a band playing, and speakers read the “fire oaths.”

The largest and most significant book burning ceremony took place in the center of Berlin. Some 40,000 persons gathered on the Opernplatz (a public square in Berlin, today Bebelplatz), where participants burned about 20,000 volumes. Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels attended the Berlin book burning. There, he delivered a fiery address. He proclaimed, “The age of excessive Jewish intellectualism is now over, and the breakthrough of the German revolution has also cleared the path for the German way.”