Germany's far-right Reichsbürger movement

A defendant in the Reichsburger trial arrives in court with his face covered with a magazine

A defendant arrives with his face covered on the first day of the Reichsbürger trial in Stuttgart, Germany, which began this week

(Image credit: Getty Images)

By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK

published 1 May 2024

The first of three trials linked to a far-right plot to overthrow the German government began in Germany this week, as the country grapples with the growing threat of far-right violence.

The suspects, part of the so-called "Reichsbürger" movement – which translates as "Citizens of the Reich" – were arrested in December 2022 after police uncovered a suspected plot to overthrow the German government.

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Who was involved in the plot and what did they plan to do?

The alleged ringleader of the far-right plot is Heinrich XIII Prince Reuss, a 72-year-old estate agent supposedly descended from minor aristocracy. Had the coup been successful, he would allegedly have been made Germany's chancellor .

Other high-profile conspirators include Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, a judge and former representative of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the Bundestag, who was allegedly to become the Justice minister.

The group is accused of planning to violently storm the German parliament and detain prominent politicians, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz.

According to investigators, Reuss's group believed Germany was run by members of a "deep state" and that the country "could be liberated with the help of a secret international alliance", said France 24.

What is the 'Reichsbürger' movement?

The Reichsbürger are a movement of German conspiracy theorists and neo-Nazis who reject the legitimacy of Germany's post-Second World War Federal Republic.

First arising in the 1980s, it is a relatively "disparate" movement made up of organised groups and individuals across Germany, who hold varying degrees of resistance to the state, said Deutsche Welle (DW).

Although they are associated with the far-right, with many idolising Nazi Germany, Reichsbürger are known for subscribing to four conspiracy theories in particular: the belief that the pre-war German Reich is still a legitimate state; that the post-war Federal Republic of Germany does not have a valid constitution; that the Federal Republic is not a state at all but a private company; and that Germany is still under occupation by the Allies.

Reichsbürger are notorious for refusing to pay fines and taxes, ignoring court orders and declaring their own mini-states or territories. Examples include the "Exile Government of the German Reich" or the "Free State of Prussia", with members issuing their own passports, driving licences and currency.

Most members of the movement are men over 40, although some observers believe that there is a bigger female proportion of Reichsbürger than in the far-right extremist scene at large.

How many are there?

The movement was long estimated to be only in the hundreds for decades, but it has grown exponentially along with the rise of the internet, said France24, particularly in the last few years.

The movement was "increasingly radicalised" during the Covid-19 pandemic, with their beliefs gaining support from the so-called "Querdenker" movement, which refused to adhere to pandemic restrictions imposed by the government, added DW.

German intelligence agencies believe the movement could comprise as many as 20,000 people, of which it describes some 2,300 as "prepared to use violence", said DW.

How much of a threat do they pose?

Although long dismissed as "harmless cranks", in recent years they have been viewed as a growing security threat, said DW.

The group was officially placed under observation by Germany's domestic intelligence agency in 2016 after a Reichsbürger named Wolfgang P. shot and killed a Bavarian state police officer and shot at three others during an attempted confiscation of his cache of more than 30 firearms.

Authorities tracking extremist groups in Germany say they have recorded "a steady increase in crimes" from Reichsbürger since 2019, and revoked several thousand firearm permits.

But the potential threat the group posed "became most spectacularly apparent" in December 2022, when police raids uncovered the plot by Reuss and his co-conspirators to violently overthrow the German government and install an interim government to negotiate a new state order in Germany with the Allied powers of the Second World War.

Prosecutors say that Reuss's group had amassed up to €500,000 in cash, 380 guns, 350 bladed weapons, and around 148,000 rounds of ammunition.

The trial is expected to continue until January 2025, but due to the case's complexity, it could run for several years.

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Sorcha Bradley is a writer at The Week and a regular on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast. She worked at The Week magazine for a year and a half before taking up her current role with the digital team, where she mostly covers UK current affairs and politics. Before joining The Week, Sorcha worked at slow-news start-up Tortoise Media. She has also written for Sky News, The Sunday Times, the London Evening Standard and Grazia magazine, among other publications. She has a master’s in newspaper journalism from City, University of London, where she specialised in political journalism.