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1 correction found
they failed to convict almost anyone?
This appears mistaken: the Nuremberg trials convicted many defendants, not “almost anyone.” The main International Military Tribunal convicted 19 of 22 defendants, and the later U.S. Nuremberg proceedings convicted 142 of 177 tried defendants.
Full reasoning
The historical record does not support the idea that the Nuremberg trials "failed to convict almost anyone."
- In the International Military Tribunal (IMT) at Nuremberg, 22 defendants stood trial and the tribunal convicted 19 while acquitting 3.
- In the 12 Subsequent Nuremberg Proceedings run by U.S. military tribunals, 177 defendants were tried and 142 were convicted.
So while it is true that many Nazi perpetrators were never tried or punished, the specific claim that the Nuremberg trials failed to convict almost anyone is contradicted by the actual conviction totals.
The distinction matters: a fair criticism of postwar justice is that many perpetrators escaped accountability overall, but the Nuremberg proceedings themselves produced substantial numbers of convictions rather than almost none.
3 sources
- International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg | Holocaust Encyclopedia
The trial began on November 20, 1945... On October 1, 1946, the judges delivered their verdict. They convicted 19 of the defendants and acquitted three.
- Subsequent Nuremberg Proceedings | Holocaust Encyclopedia
In total the United States indicted 185 defendants (of whom 177 stood trial) in 12 subsequent Nuremberg trials. These resulted in 24 death sentences, 20 life sentences and 98 other terms of imprisonment. Thirty-five defendants were acquitted.
- Military Agency Records RG 238 | National Archives
IMT rendered judgments... acquitting 3 defendants and convicting 19... Of 177 defendants ultimately judged... 35 were acquitted and 142 were convicted, with 25 given the death penalty.