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Summary

Although the Freikorps were officially disbanded in 1921, many were signed up to the Arbeitskommandos – 'work units' formed to secretly expand the German Army in defiance of the Treaty of Versailles.   The man employed to organise this, Bruno Buchrucker, had been dismissed from the Army for his role in the Kapp Putsch.

When the French invaded the Rhineland in 1923, Buchrucker was sure the Weimar government would capitulate to them.   In August, he met with Ludendorff, Hitler and other right-wing agitators to plan a rebellion should that happen.

In September the Weimar govenment did indeed call off the passive resistance.   In addition, on 30 September, Buchrucker learned that he was about to be arrested.  He drove to the Black Reichswehr unit at Küstrin fortress and next day marched into the office of the local Reichwehr Colonel ... who immediately told him he was under arrest.  Buchrucker went to pieces, his men deserted him, and the 'putsch' collapsed an hour after it had started.

Those perpetrators were all leniently treated, including Buchrucker.

 

 

Black Reichswehr, 1923

Causes

  1. Disbanding of the Freikorps: in 1921, Germany defaulted on its reparations payments.  Britain and France invaded the Rhineland and demanded payment, and also that Germany disband the unofficial Freikorps armies.  Ebert agreed to both these demands PLUS he agreed to allow the League of Nations to decide the future of Upper Silesia, which Freikorps Units had just fought Poland to retain.  Result: a large number of very disgruntled, violent Freikorps soldiers.

  2. Black Reichswehr: the Treaty of Versailles allowed Germany an army of only 100,000 men.  The French-British and Polish invasions of 1921 convinced Army Chief Seeckt that this was not enough.  To divert the Freikorps anger, and to secretly increase Army numbers, Seeckt authorised Arbeitskommandos (work-soldier) units and employed Bruno Buchrucker (a former army Major dismissed for supporting the Kapp Putsch) to set them up.  They did civilian work, guard duty and Treaty work like collecting illegal firearms, but they were (very well-) armed, did military training, and wore Army uniforms.  They were funded by the government, but also by wealthy industrialists and estate owners fearful of socialist uprisings.  By 1923, they may have numbered as many as 80,000.  They had a strict system of informal discipline, and ‘traitors’ were murdered.

  3. French Invasion of 1923: in 1923, the French invaded the Rhineland again.  The German government ordered a campaign of passive resistance, but in August 1923 a meeting was held which included Buchrucker, Hitler and former General Ludendorff, and which decided to rebel if the government capitulated to France.  In September the government did indeed call off the passive resistance. 

  4. In October, Fedor von Bock, Army head of the Arbeitskommandos , got wind that Buchrucker was planning something, and issued an arrest warrant … which forced Buchrucker into his rebellion .

 

Events

  • On 30 September, Buchrucker drove to Küstrin fortress (about 50 miles east of Berlin), and told the local Black Reichswehr leader, Major Fritz Hertzer, to move his men inside the fortress. 

  • Next morning he, Hertzer and a number of Black Reichswher sergeants marched into the office of the fortress commander, Colonel Gudowius, who – far from surrendering – told them they were under arrest and phoned for help.  Buchrucker spent an hour wondering what to do, whereupon Hertzer declared him a "limp dishrag" and surrendered to the Colonel. 

  • Buckrucker's captain, Walter Stennes, succeeded in occupying Spandau fortress in Berlin, but was quckly surrounded by Reichswehr forces and surrendered.

  • The only fighting occurred when the Army reinforcements going to Küstrin met a group of Arbeitskommandos also going to Küstrin, and machine-gunned them, killing one and wounding seven. 

 

Results

  1. Seeckt immediately ordered the disbanding of Black Reichswehr, offering them service in the Army; most refused, preferring instead to go into the private armies of estate-owners in Prussia, or to join Hitler’s Stormtroopers. 

  2. Fourteen people were put on trial, seven got light prison sentences.  Buchrucker was sentenced to ten years in prison, but released on amnesty in 1927. 

  3. When news of the Black Reichswehr (especially the judicial murders) hit the press in 1925, it led to a public outcry and the fall of the government. 

  4. A number of Black Reichswehr members became prominent as politicians or army leaders under the Nazis.

 

 

 

Consider:

Study the events of the attempted putsch and analyse them into two columns of 'Messages for the Weimar Government':

   •  Reasons for Hope;

   •  Causes for Concern.

 

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