Issue of the newspaper Combat - Twelve death sentences in Nuremberg - extensive report on the sentencing of the ...

Issue of the newspaper Combat - Twelve death sentences in Nuremberg - extensive report on the sentencing of the Nazi war criminals in the Nuremberg Trials

Issue of the French newspaper Combat, documenting in real time the verdict in the Nuremberg Trials and the reactions of the defendants as their sentences were read aloud by the judges. Nuremberg, October 2, 1946 - the day after the pronouncement of the verdicts in the main trial.

“DOUZE CONDAMNATIONS À MORT À NUREMBERG” - Twelve death sentences in Nuremberg. The issue reports on the conviction of senior figures of the Nazi regime and their sentences. In the subheading, the names are listed: Göring, Ribbentrop, Keitel, Kaltenbrunner, Rosenberg, Frank, Frick, Streicher, Sauckel, Jodl, and Seyss-Inquart - “to be executed by hanging.” With photographs from the courtroom in Nuremberg of the defendants who have just been sentenced. In the leading articles by Raymond Aron and Paul Bodin, appearing on the front page, there is sharp criticism of the outcome of the trial. It is written that the verdict surprised the international community not for its severity, but for its leniency. Death sentences were expected, not acquittals, and the decision of the court not to execute Schacht and Papen is criticized: “Special correspondents from around the world flooded the courtroom and gathered around it in order to see the defendants as closely as possible, until the usher, in a loud voice, announced: ‘The Court.’ Defendants and spectators alike stood as the judges passed solemnly before the flags of the Allied powers, while bright neon lights from all sides violently illuminated the faces of the Nazi leaders. The entire courtroom froze in solemn respect; no one could falter at that moment. But immediately after President Lawrence began to read the various verdicts… When I examined through binoculars the features of Göring, Ribbentrop, and Keitel, I saw only masks whose deep expression conveyed coldness, formal gravity. Göring himself, after the reading of his sentence, apart from a certain pallor, showed no reaction. The most interesting moment of the morning session was the reading of Schacht’s sentence, which ended in his acquittal and immediate release. There was a slight commotion on the defendants’ bench. Schacht’s bloated face grew redder and redder, and Göring, his old enemy, covered his face… Not a muscle moved in the faces of the three men who were acquitted when the court ordered their immediate release.”

The issue continues by describing the reaction of each of the defendants as their sentences were read: “Three in the afternoon, the final session of the Nuremberg tribunal took place. For the last time, eighteen defendants entered the courtroom. Each defendant came alone to hear the sentence, surrounded by two imposing guards. The door through which they appeared resembled a trapdoor. The tribunal was about to pronounce the sentences. Göring arrives, putting on his headset and complaining that the earphones are not working. He has an ironic smile, and the judge reads the sentence: ‘Based on the facts presented against you, the court sentences you to death by hanging.’ Göring becomes furious… he raises his head with a foolish expression. Ribbentrop is sentenced to death by hanging. He raised his head but did not react; he waited until a member of the public prosecutor’s office pushed him. A strange silence prevails in the room. People listen. The atmosphere is heavy with gravity. Keitel arrives, dressed in his uniform. He clicks his heels together, listens to the sentence: death by hanging. He appears surprised, raises his head, and rushes toward the door. Kaltenbrunner bows. There is no hostility on his face. He is sentenced to death by hanging. He bows again in acknowledgment. Rosenberg: sentenced to death by hanging. He is attentive, his eyes scanning the courtroom for the last time, and then disappears. Frank: sentenced to death by hanging. He smirks slightly, nods his head, says a word that makes a member of parliament smile, and disappears. Frick: sentenced to death by hanging. He bows. He looks like a boxer who has risen after being knocked down…”, and so with the other defendants.

At the lower left, the sentences of each of the defendants are listed within a black frame. It is noted that a spokesman for the Allied Control Council issued a statement that the Nazi war criminals sentenced to death that day would be executed by hanging in Nuremberg Prison. Those sentenced to imprisonment would be held in Berlin in a prison controlled by the four occupying powers. There are also extensive articles dealing with the “triumph of justice” as expressed in Nuremberg.

It is further reported in the inner pages that the Soviet judges protested the verdict given to von Papen, Schacht, and Fritzsche. They believed that the three should have been convicted rather than acquitted. The statements of the Soviet judges sparked a heated debate in the courtroom.

Combat was one of the principal newspapers established in France מתוך the Resistance movement during the German occupation, and it continued to appear after the liberation as a publication with a distinctly moral-political character. It was founded as an underground paper and, after 1944, became a daily newspaper with broad public influence, guided by values of justice, responsibility, and the prosecution of war criminals. Among the key figures associated with it was Albert Camus, who served as an editor and leading writer and contributed to shaping its intellectual voice. The newspaper was published in Paris במסגרת the former Resistance press network and became known for its direct and incisive reporting on the events of the postwar period.

4 pages. 61 cm. Light stains. Fold marks. Good condition.