Where Evil Reigned: the Bürgerbräukeller and Dachau (Munich) - from the Archives 1979

The Bürgerbräukeller

Bürgerbräukeller (no longer extant)

In 1923, Adolf Hitler and his closest followers and cronies gathered in the Bürgerbräukeller, a huge beer hall in the Haidhausen district of Munich. It had been one of the main gathering places of the Nazi Party in the early 1920s. On 8-9 November of 1923, he and his closest followers marched to the Bürgerbräukeller and declared a putsch, or a coup d'état, to overthrow the Bavarian government. The march to the beer hall was inspired by Mussolini's March to Rome. The police were ready and crushed the putsch, resulting in 19 deaths among the police and putschists. Adolf Hitler was arrested two days later and tried for treason. 

Hitler brilliantly used the trial as a propaganda mouthpiece rather than a defense of his actions. He claimed he was being persecuted, that the judges were corrupt, and that he was a German patriot. The trial thrust this minor figure and his evil Nazi party into the country's consciousness. The rest is gruesome history. Compare with a certain trial that recently ended in Manhattan for another demagog, who claims he is being politically persecuted.

Hitler was convicted to five years in the Landsberg prison, of which he served five months. There, he wrote his infamous political autobiography, Mein Kampf (“My Struggle”), which later became obligatory reading for Germans. Compare and contrast with "Agenda 47" and the Heritage Foundation's "Project 2025," both radical blueprints to reshape American government and society. They clearly outline how they plan to impose authoritative government and eliminate many of the checks and balances of our current political system.. 

My friends took me to the  Bürgerbräukeller on Saturday evening, a good way to get a taste of authentic Bavarian beer hall culture. The crowd was mellow, and the obligatory stein of beer was 1-litre. After two of them, I was buzzy. The pretzels and sausages were similarly ponderous. The cig smoke rose to the ceiling, adding to the fog of stale air and aroma of spilled beer. The entertainment early in the evening was very Bavarian. Strong gents tried to pull each other over using rings attached to one finger. They also carried big rocks around the stage using a rope in their teeth. Finally, pretty Bavarian ladies sang ballads and high-stepped.  

The Bürgerbräukeller no longer exists. It was demolished in 1979 as part of a redevelopment program in Munich. I am glad I had the opportunity to see the infamous beer hall.

Dachau

The National Socialist (Nazi) government established the Dachau concentration camp in March 1933 at an old munitions plant in the town of Dachau, about 10 miles northwest of Munich. The camp remained in operation during the entire time of the Nazi government. American troops finally liberated the camp on April 29, 1945. 

 "Arbeit macht frei" ("work sets you free") gate

This infamous gate was stolen in 2014 and recovered near Bergen, Norway, in 2016. The mysterious thieves were never found. This slogan is one of the more cynical and cruel examples of Nazi propaganda. Most prisoners found freedom in death.

Dachau was ominous and horrifying, especially on a gloomy March day. I had never been to a site like this before. How could this happen? A few months before, I read William Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, possibly the definitive record of the 20th century's darkest years. But this monumental record of the dark years does not give answers.

Long-term readers may remember I visited Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland. Please click the link to see these pictures. 

This ended my short visit to Munich. Next: the train ride to London.