The site for the 1936 Olympics had been decided before Adolph Hitler took power.  But by the time the games were held, Hitler and his Nazi party were running Germany since 1933 and initially didn’t want the games held in Berlin.

Earlier in the year, Germany also hosted the Winter Games in Bavaria. But after realizing that the Summer Games could be turned into a massive propaganda campaign, Hitler pulled out all the stops and created an image of the new Germany, one of tolerance, peace and international cooperation, but also promoted his ideological belief of Arian racial supremacy.

The Nazis allowed only "Aryans” to compete under the German flag . They also allowed Jews and blacks athletes from other nations to participate freely, without discrimination typical of it’s minority citizens.

Germany won 89 metals out of 388 from 21 sports during the games, the most for any nation.  But America’s Jesse Owens won four gold medals, reportedly infuriating Hitler to a point where he would not even meet and congratulate Owens.  In reality, Hitler was instructed by the Olympic Committee not to congratulate any winner.

Film-maker Leni Riefenstahl, created the film Olympia, from miles of film taken of the many competitions. The film is still a standard for sports filmmakers.

The exhibit at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC features 32 pieces of 1936 Berlin Olympic memorabilia and artifacts in the museum’s exhibition, including an Olympic torch, visitor’s souvenirs, a US track uniform, as well as Olympic medals won by African-American athletes.

The exhibit closes on August 24, 2008, the final day of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.

The Nazi Olympics: Berlin 1936
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
Kimmel-Rowan Gallery – lower level
100 Raoul Wallenberg Place (15th Street)
Washington, DC  (map it)
202-488-0400

Dates and Times – Daily – 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.  through August 24, 2008

Tickets – Admission is free, but timed tickets, used to manage crowd flow are required.  You can get tickets at the museum. To avoid a possible wait, especially during the busier spring and summer months, reserve timed tickets are available in advance online, or by phone at 1-800-400–9373. A $1.75 per ticket surcharge applies to advanced reserved tickets.

NOTE: Due to some of the graphic images and the realities of the holocaust, the museum is not recommended for children under the age of 10.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Smithsonian – Orange and Blue lines then a 1-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Limited metered street parking is available in the area, or use the paid parking lot at 12th and C Streets, SW (east of the museum). The rate is usually around $4.00 per hour.

Photography – Photography is not allowed in any of the museum’s exhibits.

Images – Museum’s exhibit – Carl Cox for The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Olympic Fire in Berlin, 1936 – Josef Jindřich Šechtl

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Post from: The DC Traveler

Surrounding the majestic plaza are 56 17-foot pillars, each inscribed with the name of a state (48 at the time of the war), as well as the 8 districts or territories (DC, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Philippines, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands).  At either end of the memorial are two large inscribed arches, one for the Atlantic theater and the other for the Pacific theater.

With a view of the reflecting pool, The Freedom Wall at the west side of the memorial, holds 4,048 gold stars, each one representing 100 dead American soldiers.  About 76% of causalities were Army personnel, 21% Army Air Corps, 15% Navy, 6% Marines and 2% Coast Guard and Merchant Marine.  Surprisingly, the Merchant Marines had the highest percentage of casualties, close to 4%, slightly higher than the Marines at 3.7%.  Over 14,000 airmen, soldiers, sailors and marines also died as prisoners of war.

At various points, famous quotations are engraved from President Roosevelt, Admiral Nimitz, Generals Douglas MacArthur, George Marshall and Dwight D. Eisenhower, among others.

A list the many sites where major battles were fought are also engraved around the bases of the two end fountains in front of the arches.

During the war, a national icon, showing that the Americans had “been there”, sprung up across Europe and the Pacific, from troop transport ships to tanks, rural farmhouses to the Arc de Triomphe. The national joke, “KILROY WAS HERE”, was reported the invention of an American shipyard inspector, named J.J. Kilroy. While inspecting troop ships, instead of the typical chalk line, he would mark the rivets he had checked with his personal “KILROY WAS HERE” signature.  Tens of thousands of servicemen saw  his signature on ships heading to Europe and the Pacific theaters and servicemen started placing the slogan on just about everything.  It quickly became such a popular soldier’s icon that it was said that “The outrageousness of the graffiti was not so much what it said, but where it turned up.”

And if you look hard, you can find this most popular WW-II icon, Kilroy on the memorial.  But you need to look hard to find him.  Need a hint?

READ MORE —>

Check out The DC Traveler’s Insider Tip for directions.

The World War II memorial opened to the public in April of 2004, almost 60 years after the war ended. The concept of a national memorial on the Mall was originated by World War II vet, Roger Durbin of Ohio.  He asked his congressman if a WW-II memorial could be constructed and after 6 years of introducing multiple bills in Congress, it passed, just one day after a similar bill passed the Senate.   

Similar to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a design competition was held and architect Friedrich St. Florian’s submission was selected.

World War two was actually two simulations wars, one in Europe and North Africa, and the other in Asia and the Pacific. The two wars started years before the U.S. was involved.  The Pacific war was started when Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931 and in 1937, bombed and invaded mainland China, starting a full-scale war in Asia and the Pacific.  In 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland, starting the European war.

The U.S. had avoided entering the conflicts under treaties of neutrality. But on the morning of December 8th, 1941, the day after the Japanese simultaneously bombed U.S. military installations in Hawaii, Midway Island, Guam, Wake Island and the Philippines, the U.S. declared War on Japan. 

Germany and Italy, under treaties with Japan, soon also declared war on the U.S.

The war officially ended with the surrender of Japan on V-J Day, August 15, 1945, three months after Germany surrendered. Italy has surrender in Sept. 1943.  

Estimates of war causalities are 25 million military personnel from all sides, as well as 46 million civilians.  The total cost of WW-II was roughly 3.7% of the world’s population.

The Second World War has been described as America’s first truly national experience (excluding perhaps the Civil War). 

National World War II Memorial
17th Street, NW, between Constitution & Independence
Washington, DC  (map it)

Dates and Times – Open daily, 24-hours a day.

Admission – Admission is free.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Smithsonian, Blue and Orange lines, then a 6-block walk.

Parking – Limited metered and free street parking is available within a few blocks walk.

Images – Memorial photos from personal collection except Kilroy – Flickr.

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