This documentary deals with the impressive trials in Nuremberg after World War II. They took one year and in the end 12 people were executed. On November 20th 1945 the court sat together for the first time to decide about the guilt of the main war criminals. During the trials 40 hours of film material were made, that vanished into the archives of the Americans and the Russians. This documentary shortens the material and draws an atmospheric picture of the defendants, the defenders and the judges during the trials. The film also shows the motives of the defendants, but it never forgets the dimension of the crimes.