Munich

We left Schwangau destined for Salzburg, with a stop in Munich on the way. Our stay in Munich was short, just long enough to take a 3rd Reich walking tour. I had poor information on the tour starting time, we arrived at the meeting place under the glockenspiel after the tour had left. Fortunately there was someone from the tour company still there; he was nice enough to call the guide to find his location and direct us where to find the group. After a few laps and consternation we found the group; joining just in time to enter one of the beer halls where Hitler made his political start. German politics was conducted in large, noisy beer halls. To compete in this environment, you needed a forceful voice and a compelling message to distract those seated at the long tables from their beer and conversation. Quite a chaotic scene. Munich was where Hitler made his first attempts to seize political power. His first coup landed him in prison. He and his supporters crashed through several police barricades before being stopped. Hitler spent several months in prison during which he wrote Mein Kampf. During the hostilities several men on both sides were killed. When Hitler was in power he had a monument to his followers who were killed placed in the plaza where the fighting ended. People walking by were required to salute the statue. To avoid this, many took a small side street around the memorial, which came to be known as “dodger’s alley”. Now the monument has been removed and there is a plaque on the ground commemorating the policeman who died stopping Hitler’s coup. History is written by the winners.

Since WWII, government transparency has been a theme in Germany. The government administration building in Munich was destroyed during the bombings and was rebuilt in a modern style with glass walls and glass ceilings. Emphasizing that politics should be debated in the open. In front of this building there is a WWI memorial that shows a German soldier reposing with his rifle. He is only asleep and has a serene expression, with hands clasped around the gun. The Germans fully expected to rebound from WWI and fight another day. Around the corner we stopped in view of a classically ugly Nazi building, all squares and plain gray stone. This had housed a Nazi art museum, filled with paintings and sculpture of Aryans prancing naked on horseback through gardens and forests. Hideously ugly “art”. During the several years the museum was open less than a couple hundred people visited. But when the museum was opening, the Renaissance art that was being replaced was displayed in the park nearby for a few days. Millions of people came in these few days to see the classically beautiful and creative artwork, thinking it was the last time they would ever see it. This was one of the few ways that people could safely show there true feelings without risking the wrath of the secret police. Nearby is a small memorial to the White Rose society, a group of students from the University of Munich who published 6 pamphlets opposing the Nazi regime. The members were executed by decapitation in 1943. Public opposition was rare for this exact reason: the Nazi machine was efficient and ruthless in killing those opposed. We also visited the building where Hitler would greet world leaders. Inside the entry a long, straight staircase dominates the foyer. Hitler would stand at the top of the stairs looking down on his guest. A nearby house is where Hitler spent time schmoozing with the local business leaders to gain monetary support. Without the financial support of business Hitler would have had difficulty reaching the critical mass required to lead Germany. A short walk brought us to an open plaza surrounded by Greek style buildings where Hitler would march his troops. At that time the area was covered in concrete, the better to accentuate the sound of tramping Nazi boots.

Of course, Munich has much more to offer than this. We would have liked to stay longer than our 2 hour tour.