The Night of Broken Glass

The night of broken glass, also known as Kristallnacht took place on in the night of November 9 throughout 10, 1938 throughout Germany, some part of Austria and the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia recently occupied by Germans. Initiated by Natzi Party and Yoseph Hitler. Kristallnacht got its name from the broken glass lined in German streets. These were fragments from broken window of synagogues, homes, shops and private institutions of Jewish-owned businesses destroyed during the violence. The cost of broken glass in looted Jewish shops—$5 million marks ($1,250,000).

Afterwards German police announced that it was a spontaneous output of public as the reaction of the death of the german embassy in Paris, France by a Jew. Herschel Grynszpan, a 17-year-old Polish Jew went on a shooting spree at the german embassy on November 7,1938. A few days earlier, German authorities evicted thousands of Polish Jews living in Germany, and Herschel’s parents were among them, unable to enter Poland those Jews were sent to the camps on the border. Already illegally living in Paris Herschel was looking for revenge for what happened. He came to the embassy and shooted the diplomatic official assigned to his case. Vom Rath died 2 days after shooting on November 9. . It so happened that the day coincided with the “Beer Hall Putsch”, an important date in the calendar of the National Socialists. Ntzi’s leadership assigned in Munich for the ceremony decided to use this case as a pretext to launch the anti–Semitic abuse.

They decided that the pogrom should not be organized by the Narzi party, but no matter how far will this go they will not interfere. His words were taken as a command to start pogrom. After his speech the field policemen were informed. Violence occurred in different parts in the night of November 9, and in the early morning of November 10. Reinhard Heydrich as a chief of police informed all the police departures the instructions about the pogrom. SA and Hitler across Germany and annexed territory for destroying Jewish homes and business, member of many units wore civilian cloth to imitate the “spontaneous” protest of the citizens. Although everyone was reported that the property of non-Jewish citizens, foreigners(even Jewish) can not be touched. Even though killing was not a part of the instructions, more than 91 Jews were killed, and police records a lot of rapes and suicides.

Up to 30000 men were taken to the prison. a lot of them died because of the medication treatment they were subjected to. After 3 month most of them were let free if they will leave Germany. “The Night of Broken Glass” provoke immigration of Jews from Germany in coming month. Reich government refused all insurance for Jews whose business and homes got destroyed. In coming weeks the government made a law that forbade Jews to have a business, own a car, to go to “German” theaters, cinemas, concert halls. Jew’s children were expelled from German schools. A lot of countries like UK were accepting Jew’s children, but a lot of countries refused, for example US. Laura Delano Houghteling,the wife of the US Commissioner of Immigration: “20,000 charming children would all too soon grow into 20,000 ugly adults.”

As you see, not everyone was feeling the same way as UK. One German newspaper’s comment on Evian stands out: “We can see that one likes to pity the Jews… but no state is prepared to… accept a few thousand Jews. Thus, the conference serves to justify Germany’s policy against Jewry.” In this statement we can truly realise that Germany wanted Jews out of country..