What Were the Nuremberg Laws?

The Nazis passed the Nuremberg Laws in 1935 after their yearly rally in Nuremberg. These new laws acted to institutionalized many of the Nazi’s racial ideologies.

Jewish Rights

Through the Nuremberg laws, German Jews were denied Reich citizenship. Jews were also not allowed to marry or have sexual relations with anybody with German or Aryan blood. Jews were stripped from most of their political rights through ordinances to the laws, which were later also extended to include black people, Gypsies or their “bastard offspring.”

Definition of a Jew

The Nuremberg Laws did not use religion to define who should be considered Jewish, but race. Anybody who had three to four Jewish grandparents was considered Jewish, regardless of whether the individual actually belonged to any Jewish community. Many Germans who did not practise Judaism or identified as Jewish suddenly became victims of the Nazi terror. This often included Protestant ministers, nuns, Roman Catholic priests and other Christians who had Jewish grandparents.

This post is part of our collection of resources on Nazi Germany. Click here for our comprehensive information resource on the society, ideology, and key events in Nazi Germany.

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