Willy Brandt and the Warsaw genuflection

About this Event

On the morning of December 7, 1970, Willy Brandt knelt down in front of the Warsaw Ghetto memorial. Today, this silent gesture of humility is regarded as one of the most significant moments in German post-war history and a turning point in the confrontation with Nazi crimes. At the time, the Warsaw genuflection still caused controversy in the Federal Republic of Germany. In an Allensbach survey for SPIEGEL, almost half of those questioned rejected Willy Brandt's behavior as "exaggerated".