The Nazis Didn’t Just Disappear – Dealing with National Socialism in Germany since 1945

January 30 – July 26 2026

Eighty years ago, at the end of World War II, Europe lay in ruins. The Nazi regime had persecuted and murdered millions of people and devastated and plundered large parts of the European continent. After 1945, Germans struggled to come to terms with their Nazi past. Most repressed their responsibility and remained silent about what had happened. Only gradually did attitudes toward the Nazi era begin to change, in different ways in East and West Germany.

The exhibition at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg’s School Museum focuses on this process and asks how we want to remember Nazi history in the future. It was developed in collaboration with schoolchildren from all over Germany and is aimed particularly at young people. The exhibition takes up the perspective of children and young people from different eras. It addresses the situation of the survivors of persecution as well as the former perpetrators and followers, but also their descendants.

The first stop of the traveling exhibition was the Topography of Terror Documentation Center in Berlin in July 2025. From January 30 to July 26, 2026, it is on display at the Museum for Communication in Frankfurt.

Impressions

Program Highlights

Please refer to our calendar for more information about events and how to attend.

June 10, 2026
Panel Discussion: “National Socialism in Family Memory”
National Socialism continues to play a role in many German family histories to this day. This panel discussion explores what has been shared or kept hidden within families. It also examines how descendants have uncovered hidden stories and how they live with these revelations today.

April 15, 2026
Panel discussion: “After Remembrance? – On the Future of Remembrance Culture”
The discussion focuses on the present and future of the culture of remembrance: How is remembrance changing in a diverse, digital, and politically polarized society? What role do political education, media publicity, and post-migrant perspectives play? And what does responsibility for history mean in an age when traditional forms of remembrance are coming under increasing pressure? With Marina Chernivsky, Hadija Haruna-Oelker and Prof. Dr. Karim Fereidooni. Sponsored by Hessische Landeszentrale für politische Bildung.

February 25 | April 15 | June 10, 2026
Training for teachers and multipliers: The Nazi past in the classroom
The workshop focuses on getting to know the exhibition and its participatory educational concept, which opens up new approaches to dealing with the Nazi era and its aftermath. The curator of the exhibition, Dr. Mathias Rösch, will be present and provide insights into the concept, objectives, and didactic considerations behind the exhibition. Building on this, participants will work in moderated small groups to develop contemporary approaches to teaching about the Nazi era in school and extracurricular contexts.

February 26, 2026
Children 1945 – Contemporary Witnesses 2025
In her documentary film “Children 1945 – Contemporary Witnesses 2025,” Rebekka Waitz portrays six people from the Rhine-Main area who look back on their childhoods in the state of emergency during and after World War II. Excerpts from the film form the basis for a conversation between exhibition curator Dr. Mathias Rösch and the two contemporary witnesses Bruni Freyeisen and Rolf Heinemann. Participating school classes will have the opportunity to actively engage with the living conditions of young people during and after the Nazi era in a personal conversation.

February 25, 2026
Storytelling café with initiatives for remembrance work
Following a joint tour, local initiatives provide insights into their work against forgetting and for a vibrant culture of remembrance. They report on their experiences, challenges, and successes in their commitment to education and social responsibility. Exhibition curator Mathias Rösch also talks about the creation of the exhibition and the intensive collaboration with young people, whose perspectives and questions were significantly incorporated into the concept.

Partners and Funding

Schulmuseum der Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Alfred Landecker Foundation, Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S., Fritz Bauer Institut

Programme