16/11/2025
I had a guided tour around the N**i Rally Grounds in Nuremberg – such an eye-opening and sobering experience.
One of the most striking places was the Congress Hall. It was designed to be a massive horseshoe-shaped arena inspired by the Colosseum, meant to hold 50,000 people… yet it was never finished and never used. Construction stopped during the war, and today it stands as a powerful reminder of the regime’s obsession with propaganda and scale. What’s fascinating is that part of the building is now being converted into a new opera theatre, giving the space a completely different purpose – one focused on culture, art, and openness rather than intimidation.
The tour also went along the Great Road, the huge 2-kilometre-long granite avenue aligned perfectly with the Imperial Castle in the distance. It was designed as a monumental marching route for parades that, in reality, never actually took place.
Then the tour went to th3 Zepplin Field, the huge parade ground where Hi**er staged his rallies. The central podium where he stood is currently being restored, not to glorify it, but to preserve it as a site of education, remembrance, and warning. The entire area is being carefully maintained so future generations can learn about the dangers of dictatorship, hatred, and the manipulation of mass gatherings.
Walking around the grounds, it’s impossible not to reflect on how deeply the N**is invested in spectacle and symbolism to control people. Today, the city is very deliberate in transforming these spaces into places that condemn the ideology, promote critical thinking, and honour the victims of the regime.
The sheer scale of it was meant to overwhelm and symbolise the supposed “eternity” of the regime. Today it’s an empty, open space, sometimes used for events, serving as another reminder of how much effort the N**is put into projecting power – and how completely their plans ultimately collapsed.
A powerful visit – and a reminder of why remembering history is so important
**iRallyGrounds
