25 “citizens of the Reich” who were preparing a coup d’état arrested in Germany

For some time now, Europe has seen a new wave of rise of the far right, a prime example of which is Italy, which received its first far right government. However, to date there has been no attempted coup d’état to overthrow the republic. The exception now is Germany, where the Citizens of the Reich organization has long planned to overthrow the republic and establish its own regime.

“Citizens of the Reich” deny all state formations that existed on the territory of Germany after the overthrow of the monarchy of the Hohenzollern dynasty in 1918 and consider themselves subjects of the German Empire (Second Reich), which existed from 1871 to 1918.

On Wednesday morning, December 7, in Germany, as part of a large-scale operation, 25 people from among the so-called “Reichsburgers” were detained – members of the right-wing radical movement who do not recognize the existence of the FRG and consider themselves citizens of the “German Reich”. They are suspected of participating in or supporting a terrorist network. According to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, the “Reichsburgers” planned to overthrow the constitutional authorities in the country.

By the afternoon, by a court decision, the leader of the group and seven other people were taken into custody, and an investigation was launched against them. The raid involved over three thousand German law enforcement officers, including the GSG 9 special forces. This is one of the largest police operations against extremists in German history.

Who was arrested by the police

A total of 52 people are suspected of being involved in or supporting the terrorist network. Among the 25 detainees, according to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, 22 alleged members of the group, all of them are citizens of Germany. Three more detainees are suspected of supporting the network. These are two citizens of Germany – Alexander K. (Alexander Q.) and Frank R. (Frank R.), as well as a citizen of the Russian Federation Vitaly B. A citizen of Russia in the Prosecutor General’s Office was called a supporter of criminals. As noted in the Prosecutor General’s Office, there is no reason to believe that Russian officials were involved in or supported the conspirators.

According to Der Spiegel, among those detained are a former Bundestag deputy from the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, judge Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, several former Bundeswehr soldiers, and an active staff sergeant major who was suspended from service a police officer, a lawyer with a degree, a general practitioner and a pilot. A number of detainees, according to the publication, performed in Germany at anti-coronavirus demonstrations.

The leader of the terrorist network in the Federal Prosecutor’s Office called the 71-year-old Prince Henry XIII P.R. (Heinrich XIII PR) from the noble family of Reuss (Reuß). According to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, another significant person in the group is Rüdiger von P. (Rüdiger v. P.), a retired Lieutenant Colonel of the Bundeswehr.

“The arrests took place in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Berlin, Hesse, Lower Saxony, Saxony, Thuringia, and in one case in Austria (Kitzbühel) and Italy (Perugia). At the same time, there and in other federal states (Brandenburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland), searches began by court order at more than 130 objects, ”the department noted.

According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, the terrorist organization was created “no later than the end of November 2021.” Its goal is “the overthrow of the existing state order in Germany and the replacement of its own, already in its main features developed by the state form.”

“Members of the association are aware that this undertaking can only be carried out through the use of military means and force against representatives of the state. This includes the commission of crimes related to murder. The accused are united by a deep rejection of state institutions and the free democratic basic order of the Federal Republic of Germany, ”the department stressed.

What was the plan of the “Reichsburgers”

German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann said on his Twitter microblog that the group is suspected of preparing an armed attack on constitutional authorities. A press release from the Federal Prosecutor’s Office says that individual members of the network took specific actions to forcibly enter the Bundestag building by a small armed group. “Details are yet to be established,” the ministry said.

According to Der Spiegel, the conspirators planned, among other things, to detain German politicians. The suspects probably assumed that this would lead to unrest in the country. As a result, part of the security forces, in their opinion, would express solidarity with the network, which would lead to a coup.

The prosecutor’s office indicates that preparations for the implementation of this plan began no later than November 2021. It provided for the acquisition of the necessary equipment, training firing and the recruitment of new participants. The central body of the group was to be a “council” headed by Prince Henry XIII, which, like the government, included various structures – in particular, in the field of justice, health and foreign affairs.

According to the prosecutor’s office, along with the “council” it was supposed to create a “military wing” that was to be responsible for seizing power by force. For this, it was planned to use the so-called “companies of internal security.” Rüdiger von P was allegedly responsible for the “military wing”. According to the Attorney General of Germany, Peter Frank, this unit, as conceived by the conspirators, was also supposed to create a new army in the country.

What does Russia have to do with it?
The overthrow of power in Germany, according to network members, was to be followed by the intervention of the “Alliance” – a secret alliance of governments, intelligence services and armed forces of several states, including Russia and the United States. The suspects believed, according to the prosecutor’s office, that the German transitional government should negotiate a new state system with the victorious countries in World War II. At the same time, Russia was supposed to be the main participant in the negotiations.

Investigators found out that Prince Henry XIII established contact with representatives of the Russian Federation in Germany, but there is no evidence that they reacted positively to his appeal. In Russia, the prosecutor’s office has already responded to this statement.

The Russian Embassy in Berlin assured that Russian diplomatic institutions in Germany “do not maintain contacts with representatives of terrorist groups and other illegal formations.” Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov noted that “there can be no question of any involvement of Russia in the situation,” adding that “the German authorities themselves state this.”

How dangerous are the “Reichsburgers”?
The “Reichsburgers” do not recognize the FRG and consider themselves citizens of the “German Reich”. They make alternative identities and driver’s licenses for a defunct empire. This movement originated in the 1980s.

A recent report by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution stated that there were about 21,000 “Reichsburgers” in Germany. The name of the movement is an abbreviation for “a large and heterogeneous environment of imperial ideology,” according to the German Amadeu Antonio Foundation (Amadeu-Antonio-Stiftung). The Foundation conducted a study and came to the conclusion that this environment includes the so-called “sovereignists”, “Reichsburgers” and right-wing extremists.

According to the executive director of the Amadeu Foundation Antonio Timo Reinfrank (Timo Reinfrank), a coup d’état in Germany is unlikely to happen. “The state order and the constitution are too strong in the country,” Reinfrank said in an interview with DW. “But these people believe in such a possibility, which shows, among other things, how bogged down they are in their delirium.”

PS The story of the attempted coup d’état in Germany is both funny and sad. Such an amazing farce, when the authorities themselves very well played along with the “putschists”, giving them special significance. And as for me, the putschists should be satisfied. After all, in a different scenario, no one would have known about them at all.

And the fact that discontented right-wingers are sure to appear in today’s Germany is not at all surprising. It is very noteworthy that these took a reference to Kaiser’s Germany, Germany of the time of Reich Chancellor Bismarck. By the way, the same Bismarck is fiercely hated by the current German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock, which also says a lot.