1937 – Zeppelin Field, Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany

Zeppelin Field was constructed under Albert Speer’s management between 1934 and 1937 for mass rallies of the Nazi Party. Lage scale events, such as ceremonies for Nazi political leaders or the National Labour Front drew up to 100,000 people. Hitler intended for the buildings at the Party Rally Grounds to stand for thousands of years, like the great cathedrals of the past. Four days after the fall of Nuremberg in April 1945, the US Army blew up the swastika which had been installed at the center of the Grandstand. After the war, the US Army used parts of the Rally Grounds for their own purposes. In 1967 the colonnade of the Grandstand was removed because it had become unstable. The height of the side towers was also reduced by half in the 1970s. The regularly spaced buildings around Zeppelin Field have fallen into disrepair. Flags once ringed the field and great searchlights pointed into the sky created a “dome of light” for evening events. Today grass grows between the terraces and the searchlight podiums.

1955 Photographs Courtesy and Copyright of Ken Brock.