Carrying placards with slogans including “Missing in Iraq, found in Büchel,” the protestors called for the weapons – thought to be the last ones still on German soil – to be removed and destroyed.
Several hundred police officers were on duty, and arrested 24 people, three of whom had scaled the fence around the base.
The demonstrators targeted Büchel after a report in June about alleged security problems at most of the US nuclear weapons in Europe.
Although officials will not confirm the presence of such weapons in Büchel, the place is on a list of spots visited by US experts for nuclear weapon security.