Kristallnacht, or the November Pogrom, were violent nation-wide pogroms held from 9 to 11 November 1938. The Nazis unleashed brutal violence against Jewish communities in Germany and Austria. The pogroms were reprisals after the assassination of a German official in Paris. The violence caused international outrage and created an exodus of Jewish refugees who were trying to flee further violence. Tens of thousands of Jewish men were arrested and taken to concentration camps, while synagogues were destroyed. This was the first time Jewish people were arrested simply because they were Jewish. This was a major turning point towards systematic, bureaucratic, state-sponsored violence.
