Ernst vom Rath

           

Image from Wikipedia. Photograph of Ernst vom Rath.

On November 7, 1938, Ernst vom Rath was assassinated.

    Ernst vom Rath was a German diplomat who went down in history as a Nazi martyr, primarily because of the implications of his assassination. More notable, however, is the story of his assassin, Herschel Grynszpan. Grynszpan was a Polish-German Jew whose life began in a prosperous position but quickly declined as a result of Nazi discrimination and restrictions against Jews. He moved to France at the age of 15, but his stay was cut short and he became a stateless refugee. 

    In early November of 1938, Herschel Grynszpan received a letter from his sister that detailed the unfortunate situation the rest of his family had found themselves in. Viewing this as the last straw, he sought revenge on the Nazis; on November 7, the 17 year old bought a revolver and went to the German Embassy in Paris, where he asked to meet with an official. He was met by Ernst vom Rath, whom he shot twice in the abdomen. Two days later, vom Rath was dead. 

    Grynszpan was arrested and taken into custody. He never received a trial, and was frequently moved between prisons. While the details of his fate are unknown, Grynszpan was declared officially deceased by the German government in the 1960s. The assassination of Ernst vom Rath was the perfect excuse for Hitler and the Nazis to launch an attack on Jewish communities: Kristallnacht. The "Night of Broken Glass" began on November 9th and resulted in the destruction of thousands of Jewish-owned businesses and synagogues, as well as the arrest of the tens of thousands of Jewish individuals.