Old University Marburg

Founded in 1527, Philipps University was the first Protestant university in the world. In 1901, the university's physician and professor, Emil von Behring, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discovery of a serum against diphtheria and tetanus.

Many at the university applauded Hitler's seizure of power. From January 1933 onwards, lectures promoting National Socialist ideology were frequently given here. By the summer of 1934, the National Socialist German Students' League (NSDStB) had 256 members, making it the largest student organization. In the spring of 1933, Nazi students, like those elsewhere in the country, organized book burnings, consigning literature by leftist, pacifist, and Jewish writers to the flames.

Students generally couldn't expect a critical stance towards National Socialism from most professors. Some were outspoken Nazis themselves, such as Wilhelm Pfannenstiel, a renowned hygiene professor who headed the Hygiene Institute at Marburg University.

One department at the university that the Nazis couldn't control was the Faculty of Theology. On September 19, 1933, this faculty rejected the introduction of the Aryan Paragraph, which stipulated that converted Jews could not hold official positions within the church. Of the 130 theology students, 90% belonged to or sympathized with the opposition Confessing Church. Among other activities, they engaged in distributing writings about the church struggle.

On June 17, 1934, a speech criticizing the National Socialists' policies was held at the university. The speaker was none other than Vice-Chancellor Franz von Papen, the architect of the Hitler cabinet. In the university's large auditorium, he initially spoke out against the republic and praised the "unity of spirit" in the new Reich. However, he also expressed his belief that the Nazis were taking their revolution too far. The Nazi leadership was displeased with the speech, which was broadcast on the radio. Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels prohibited further dissemination.

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Source

• Text: Kevin Prenger
• Photos: Coen Prenger
• Kevin Prenger, 'De bruine stad'.