On the night/morning of November 9-10th, 1938, a massive uprising known as a pogrom occurred. Directed at Jews, it was the first of its kind in which the police and other members of authority did nothing to stop, maintaining a passive role. Kristallnacht was the supposed beginning of the end for German Jews - it highlighted the first nationwide action against the religious group, and was the start of the government endorsed campaign of systematic genocide. As these events unfolded, it was almost certain that the population of Germany could foresee what was going to happen, but the extent of persecution was yet to be revealed.
With the NSDAP (Nazi) party leading the German nation, the totalitarian government had been operational for some time now, and the views of this government were instilled into mainstream society. Anti-Semitism was prevalent in all facets of German society during this period, and Jewish boycott and humiliation had been instigated throughout Germany and Austria. …
