Bad Nauheim in Wetteraukreis, Hesse, Germany — Central Europe
Gegen die Atombewaffnung
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Against Nuclear Armament
Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, May 22, 2024
1. Gegen die Atombewaffnung / Against Nuclear Armament Marker
In diesem Haus, Aliceplatz 5, das früher als Hotel Malepartus Tausende von Gästen beherbergte, trafen sich am Abend des 11. April 1957 führende Köpfe der deutschen Atomphysik.
Im Anschluss an die Tagung des Fachausschusses "Kernphysik und kosmische Strahlung der Deutschen Physikalischen Gesellschaft" wollten sie eine vom Nobelpreisträger Otto Hahn und dem Physiker Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker angeregte Erklärung gegen die geplante Atombewaffnung der Bundeswehr beraten. Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker war persönlich anwesend, um für die Zustimmung der Wissenschaftler zu werben.
Es wurde ein Memorandum verabschiedet, das am Morgen des 12. April 1957 telefonisch an das Sekretariat von Otto Hahn, dem Entdecker der Kernspaltung, nach Göttingen übermittelt wurde. Der Text wurde von der Presse als:
„Göttinger Erklärung gegen die Atombewaffnung"
veröffentlicht und ist unter diesem Titel bis heute bekannt, obwohl er letztendlich in Bad Nauheim besiegelt wurde.
Auszug aus der Göttinger Erklärung":
„Die Pläne einer atomaren Bewaffnung
this page online
Zu den Unterzeichnenden gehörten:
Fritz Bopp, Max Born, Rudolf Fleischmann, Walther Gerlach, Otto Hahn, Otto Haxel, Werner Heisenberg, Hans Kopfermann, Max v. Laue, Heinz Maier- Leibnitz, Josef Mattauch, Friedrich-Adolf Paneth, Wolfgang Pauli, Wolfgang Riezler, Fritz Straßmann, Wilhelm Walcher, Carl Friedrich Frhr. v. Weizsäcker, Karl Wirtz.
Against Nuclear Armament
In this house, Aliceplatz 5, which formerly housed thousands of guests as the Hotel Malepartus, leading minds in German nuclear physics met on the evening of April 11, 1957.
Following the meeting of the expert committee "Nuclear Physics and Cosmic Radiation of the German Physical Society", they wanted to discuss a declaration
Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, May 22, 2024
2. Gegen die Atombewaffnung / Against Nuclear Armament Marker - wide view
The marker is visible here just to the left of the blue-arched window.
A memorandum was adopted, which was sent by telephone to the secretary of Otto Hahn, the discoverer of nuclear fission, in Göttingen on the morning of April 12, 1957. The text was published by the press as:
"Göttingen Declaration against Nuclear Armament"
and is known under this title to this day, although it was ultimately worked out in Bad Nauheim.
Extract from the Göttingen Declaration:
"The plans to arm the German army with nuclear weapons fill the undersigned nuclear researchers with deep concern.... For a small country such as the Federal Republic, we believe that it can best protect itself and best promote world peace if it expressly and voluntarily renounces the possession of nuclear weapons of any kind. In any case, none of the undersigned would be prepared to participate in any way in the production, testing or use of nuclear weapons. At the same time, we stress that it is extremely important to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy by all means."
The undersigned included:
Fritz Bopp, Max Born, Rudolf Fleischmann, Walther Gerlach, Otto Hahn, Otto Haxel, Werner Heisenberg, Hans Kopfermann, Max v. Laue, Heinz Maier- Leibnitz, Josef Mattauch, Friedrich-Adolf Paneth, Wolfgang Pauli, Wolfgang Riezler, Fritz Straßmann, Wilhelm Walcher, Carl Friedrich Frhr. v. Weizsäcker, Karl Wirtz.
Erected by Arbeitsgemeinschaft Geschichte Bad Nauheim.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Peace • Science & Medicine. A significant historical date for this entry is April 11, 1957.
Location. 50° 21.884′ N, 8° 44.282′ E. Marker is in Bad Nauheim, Hessen (Hesse), in Wetteraukreis. It is at the intersection of Stresemannstraße and Alicestrasse, on the left when traveling east on Stresemannstraße. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Alicestraße 5, Bad Nauheim HE 61231, Germany. Touch for directions.
Regionally, it is in Europe, the European Union, Atlantic Europe, Central Europe, the Schengen Area, Western Europe, and the Western World. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Roman Empire and specifically also the Holy Roman Empire.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Reinhardstraße / “Reinhard Street” (about 120 meters away, measured in a direct line); Parkstraße / “Park Street” (about 210 meters away); Berliner Meilenstein / Berlin Milestone (approx. 0.2 kilometers away); Die (Bad) Nauheimer Spielbank / The Bad Nauheim Casino (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Elvis Aaron Presley (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Terrassenstraße / “Terrace Street” (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Elvis-Presley-Platz (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Kurhaus / Spa Complex (approx. 0.3 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bad Nauheim.
Also see . . . Göttingen Manifesto.
Overview: The Göttingen Manifesto was a declaration of 18 leading nuclear scientists of West Germany (among them the Nobel laureates Otto Hahn, Max Born, Werner Heisenberg and Max von Laue) against arming the West German army with tactical nuclear weapons in the 1950s, the early part of the Cold War, as the West German government under chancellor Adenauer had suggested.(Submitted on June 24, 2024.)
Credits. This page was last revised on June 24, 2024. It was originally submitted on June 23, 2024, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 137 times since then and 7 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on June 23, 2024, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. 2. submitted on June 24, 2024, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.
