When Hitler had those huge rallies with tens of thousands of people, what happened when someone had to take a dump or a pee? Were there outhouses? Were the soldiers furnished with diapers or something? Did the men drain their dragon on the ground? Could a soldier break ranks to run to the outhouse?
Probably you forgot you’re in General Questions and were just having fun. At least let the question be answered seriously for a bit before goofing off.
samclem Moderator, General Questions
Sadly but predictably, first hand information regarding the toilet arrangements at the Nuremberg rallies is somewhat thin on the ground.
So are eyewitness reports of any enterprising alternatives used by attendees in loo of the official Nazi lavatories. It should be pointed out that crowds at these rallies, especially the later ones, approached the 1 million mark so the problems identified by the OP must be multiplied accordingly.
According to Diamond Environmental Services’ short History of Portable Toilets, the industry didn’t get going until the 1940s, so it’s unlikely that temporary toilets were brought in for these occasions. I might be wrong about this. There isn’t a lot of detail available concerning official Nazi party policy on the provision of temporary urination facilities for the party faithful.
If anyone wants to read about the number of toilets required to cater for crowds of circa 1 million, here is an article from the Wall Street Journal discussing this very subject in relation to the inauguration of Barack Obama. You could print it off and read it at your convenience. Note that estimates of portable toilets necessary to cater for such a large number of people vary, depending upon whether you are a member of the Presidential Inaugural Committee or a director of the Portable Sanitation Association.
There is a Documentation Centre inside the Kongreßhalle at the Nazi Party Rallying Grounds in Nuremberg. The records there incorporate ‘priceless comments’ about the inadequate toilet facilities at the rallies. I am not privy to the contents, but it’s more than possible they contain similarly priceless comments concerning the non-standard lavatorial procedures employed by those unable to use the official Party Latrines.
If anyone has been to the Documentation Centre at Nuremberg and read about this subject, it would be instructive to get the heads-up on it. It sounds like a great way to spend a holiday. However, it’s more than likely I’ve missed something available online in the vast caverns of the internet, so any elucidation from this source would also be welcome.
In the past, football fans at big matches in Britain would mostly stand in the same spot for 2 hours or more (often the crowd was too thick to move through, and there was a chance that you wouldn’t be able to get a good view of the pitch if you moved.) There are many stories of men pissing in bottles or on the ground.
Back in the 80’s, while standing in the crowd at a concert festival, I suddenly felt something wet pour against my lower back, like spilled beer or something. Turned around to see a very tall black man zip up his fly, and quickly move away.
Bastard could have at least paid me ten bucks. :mad:
There. What you did. I see it.
There was that other miracle Jesus performed after the Feeding of the Five Thousand with the loaves and fishes, that didn’t make it into the Bible…
And my serious contribution to this thread is to speculate that it may have been less of a problem than we imagine, since I’m guessing people wouldn’t have been drinking or eating much at those rallies. (I don’t recall seeing refreshment stands selling water bottles or Big Gulp-size Cokes.) And since, in the old days, people may have, out of necessity, learned to exert more control over their bladders and bowels. Is this a reasonable speculation?
You didn’t see it all, did you? (Re-read Chez’ penultimate paragraph.)
You catch the first one, the rest of 'em just whiz by.