Memorable Day(s)

November 9th, along with being my good friend Alisa's birthday, is a very significant day in German history.

In 1848, Robert Blum, a member of the Frankfurt national assembly, was assassinated. The national assembly was a legislative body meant to create a constitution for a unified Germany. Revolutions were breaking out all over Europe but in Germany, the revolution stressed pan-Germanism, which was the desire to united the largely autocratic political structures of the thirty-nine independent states of the former Holy Roman Empire.

Blum worked hard to contain the radical elements of the working class which supporting the moderate desires of the middle class. He joined the revolutionary fighting in Vienna and was arrested on the surrender of the capital. He was found guilty and sentenced to be executed on November 9th. His death became a symbol for the futility of Germany's 1848 rebellion.

In 1918, seventy years and many wars later, in the wake of Kaiser Wilhelm's abdication, Philipp Scheidemann proclaimed the Weimar Republic from a window of the Reichstag. Two hours later, Karl Liebknecht proclaimed a Free Socialist Republic from a balcony of the Berliner Stadtschloss. Two days later, World War I ended, which in turn led to the events of the inter-war period as well as the rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party.

In 1932, Adolph Hitler and the Nazi Party led a coalition group in an attempted coup d'etat which is now called the Beer Hall Putsch. Their goal was to begin in Munich and seize control of the state government and then march on Berlin and overthrow the German federal government. Although the putsch failed and Bavarian officials were able to prosecute nine participants, including Hitler, the leaders ultimately redefined it as a heroic effort to save the nation and integrated it into the mythos of Hitler and the Nazis' rise to power.

Despite being able to secure some government buildings, the "putschers" failed to secure other key places. They were too disorganized to take advantage of the short window of confusion that may have helped them. Hitler's indecision, a characteristic which usually does not describe him, gave Bavarian authorities time to defend Munich and organize well.

Hitler and the putsch leaders were tried in March. As usual, Hitler took the opportunity on trial to speak out against the Weimar Republic and the Treaty of Versailles and to justify his actions. In the end, he only served eight months which was ample time for him to write Mein Kampf.

The Beer Hall Putsch has several ominous legacies. Among those who marched with Hitler, like Hermann Goring, Heinrich Himmler, Rudolf Hess, Julius Streicher and Wilhelm Frick, were men who would later hold key positions in Nazi Germany. Also, Hitler learned many lessons about Nazi movement organization, use of the Army and police, and the importance of subverting the state from within by coming to power by means of the popular vote.

In 1938, Nazi Party officials and members of the SA (Sturmabteilungen- literally Assault Detachments) as well as Hitler Youth instigated which is now called Kristallnacht, Night of Crystal or Night of Broken Glass. It's called this because of the shards of shattered glass from the windows of synagogues, homes and Jewish-owned businesses that were plundered and destroyed during the violence.

Officially, the Nazi party announced that Kristallnacht was a result of the "spontaneous" outburst of public sentiment after the assassination of Ernst vom Rath, a German official stationed in Paris by Herschel Grynszpan. Grynszpan, a seventeen-year-old Polish Jew had shot Ernest vom Rath in response to the expulsion of Polish Jews from Germany. Grynszpan, in an attempt to help his parents who had lived in Germany since 1911 and were now in a refugee camp, shot the diplomatic official assigned to help him and his parents.

Vom Rath's death on November 9th, two days after the shooting, coincided with the anniversary of the Beer Hall Putsch and Nazi officials used that occasion as a pretext to launch of night of anti-Semitic violence. The rioters destroyed 267 synagogues throughout Germany, Austria and the Sudentenland. Synagogues burned while firefighters stood by only to pretend flames from spreading to nearby building. SA and Hitler Youth members across the country shattered the shop windows of 7,500 Jewish-owner commercial establishment and looted their wares, as well as desecrated Jewish cemeteries. In the days that followed, the SS and Gestapo arrested up to 30,000 Jewish males and transferred them to Dachau, Buchenwald and Sachsenhausen.

The events of Kristallnacht represented one of the most important turning points in anti-Semitic policy. After Kristallnacht, anti-Jewish policy began to be more concentrated into the hands of he SS and the German public became more passive to the violence.

Finally, in 1989, the communist leadership of East Germany decided to allow citizens to travel freely. Although originally the change in policy was not supposed to take effect until November 10th, Guenter Schabowski of the politburo, was unaware of this and announced the new regulation would take effect immediately. Thousands of East Berliners rushed to crossing points to West Berlin, overwhelming the border guards who decided to let them pass. November 9th, once again, became a German "day of destiny", marking the first, triumphant steps towards reunification.

It's incredible to think that one day marks so many different events over the last 163 years. November 9th reminds us to reflect on all the possibilities that we can be offered- revolution, taking a stand, tearing things down, unification. What might happen on November 9ths in the future? The possibilities are endless.