Reichstag fire facts for kids
Firefighters struggle to extinguish the fire.
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| Date | 27 February 1933 |
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| Location | Reichstag building, Berlin, Germany |
| Participants | Marinus van der Lubbe |
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The Reichstag fire (German: Der Reichstagsbrand) was an arson (setting fire) on the Reichstag building, the meeting place of the German Parliament, in Berlin on 27 February 1933. It was an important event in the creation of Nazi Germany.
A Berlin fire station was called, and by the time the police and firefighters had arrived, most of the building was covered in flames. Inside the building, Marinus van der Lubbe was found. He was a Dutch communist. The Nazis abused it as a proof that communists were beginning a plot against the German government. Van der Lubbe and four other Communist leaders were arrested shortly after that. Adolf Hitler, who had become Chancellor of Germany four weeks before, urged President Paul von Hindenburg to pass an emergency law neglecting rule of law to fight back "the confrontation of the Communist Party of Germany".
As a result, Enabling Act of 1933 was passed, increasing Hitler's power as dictator and the people had less freedom. Many Communists were arrested, including all the Communist Party members of Parliament. This made the Nazis the majority of the Parliament. Following elections gave Hitler more power.
More investigation continued. In early March 1933, three men were brought to the court. All of them were senior Bulgarians Comintern agents.
Historians still have no idea about the planning of the fire or who did it. It is still an ongoing topic of research.
Images for kids
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The window through which Marinus van der Lubbe supposedly entered the building
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Memorial at the Südfriedhof in Leipzig
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Göring (first row, far left) at the Nuremberg trials
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Willi Münzenberg
See also
In Spanish: Incendio del Reichstag para niños
