Burning the Reichstag (76 page)

An alert-looking van der Lubbe poses for the police soon after his arrest, package of firelighters in hand. (Bundesarchiv)

The devastation in the plenary chamber, deputies' nameplates clearly visible. (NARA)

Just an honest cop? Helmut Heisig in the 1930s. (Bundesarchiv)

Just another honest cop? Rudolf Braschwitz in the 1930s. (Bundesarchiv)

No longer alert: van der Lubbe as he appeared on almost every day of his trial. (Bundesarchiv)

Dimitrov on trial (standing), typically irritating the judges. Seated, his lawyer Teichert (middle) and van der Lubbe's lawyer Seuffert (left). (Bundesarchiv)

“Limping more than one would expect”: Joseph Goebbels arrives to testify at the Reichstag fire trial. (Bundesarchiv)

Ernst Torgler reads the
New York Times
in custody: the regime tries to score propaganda points through publicizing such good treatment. (Bundesarchiv)

“Pistol-Heini”: Hans-Georg Gewehr. (Bundesarchiv)

Main architect of one postwar Reichstag fire narrative: Heinrich Schnitzler in Luftwaffe uniform. (Courtesy of Dierk and Klaus-Michael Schnitzler)

Main architect of the other narrative: Hans Bernd Gisevius testifies at Nuremberg. (Ullstein Bilderdienst/Granger Collection)

Cop-stare: Fritz Tobias in the early 1970s, with his book and his files. (
Der Spiegel
)