Read The Red Army Faction, a Documentary History, Volume 1 Online
Authors: J. Smith
Payot, Denis:
Swiss lawyer; 1977, acted as the intermediary between the RAF and the West German government during the German Autumn.
Pieler, Roland:
1957-1977; Schleyer’s bodyguard; 1977, killed by the RAF.
Plambeck, Juliane:
1952-1980; founding member of the 2JM; 1975, arrested; 1976, broke out of prison; 1980, joined the RAF, died in a car accident the same year.
Pohl, Helmut:
b. 1943; 1970, associated with the RAF; 1973, joined the RAF; 1974, arrested; 1979, released from prison and went back underground; 1984, arrested; 1998, pardoned after he suffered a stroke in prison.
Pohle, Rolf:
1942-2004; associated with both the RAF and the 2JM; 1971, arrested; 1975, released from prison as part of an prisoner exchange for CDU politician Peter Lorenz who had been kidnapped by the 2JM; 1976, arrested in Greece and extradited to West Germany; 1982, released from prison; 1984, returned to Greece.
Ponto, Jürgen:
1923-1977; 1977, shot dead by the RAF during a bungled kidnapping attempt.
Prinzing, Theodor:
b. 1923; 1974-1977, main judge in the Stammheim trial of RAF prisoners; 1977, forced to recuse himself when it was discovered he had been leaking classified trial documents.
Proll, Astrid:
b. 1947; founding member of the RAF; 1971, arrested, released to a prison hospital the same year for health reasons, escaped and fled to England where she lived under the name Anna Puttick; 1978, arrested in London and extradited to West Germany; 1979, sentenced to five and a half years, but immediately released on the basis of time served.
Proll, Thorwald:
b. 1941; brother of Astrid Proll; 1968, participated in the Frankfurt department store arsons, went underground when released awaiting the outcome of an appeal, but later turned himself in and served out his sentence.
Rabehl, Bernd:
b. 1938; leading theorist for the SDS and the APO; 2005, began a public association with the neo-nazi NPD.
Raspe, Jan-Carl:
1944-1977; 1967, founding member of Kommune 2; 1970, joined the RAF; 1972, arrested following May Offensive; 1977, killed in prison during the events of the German Autumn.
Rauch, Georg von:
1947-1971; 1968, founding member of the Roaming Hash Rebels; 1970, arrested; 1971, killed in an exchange of fire with the police.
Rebmann, Kurt:
1924-2005; 1977-1990, Attorney General.
Reinders, Ralf:
b. 1948; founding member of the 2JM; 1975, arrested; 1990, released from prison.
Röhl, Klaus Rainer:
b. 1928; 1953, joined KPD; 1957, founded
konkret
; 1961, married Ulrike Meinhof; 1964, left the KPD; 1974, left
konkret
; 1981, took over
Spontan
; 1995, joined the FDP.
Roll, Carmen:
SPK member, 1972, joined the RAF, arrested the same year prior to the May Offensive; 1976, released from prison, moved to Italy.
Rössner, Bernd:
b. 1946; 1974, joined the RAF; part of the Holger Meins Commando that carried out the failed Stockholm embassy hostage taking in 1975; received two life sentences in 1977; 1992, released from prison on health grounds; 1994, pardoned.
Ruhland, Karl-Heinz:
b. 1938; 1970, became close to the RAF, arrested the same year, becoming the first RAF associate to serve as a crown witness.
Scheel Walter:
b. 1919; Chairman of the DP, 1968-1974; Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister during Willy Brandt’s Social-Liberal Coalition (1969-1974); President during the first five years of Helmut Schmidt’s administration (1974-1979).
Schelm, Petra:
1951-1971; 1970, joined RAF; 1971, killed in an exchange of fire with the police.
Schiller, Karl:
1911-1994; SPD politician; 1966-1972, Minister of the Economy; 1971-1972, Minister of Finance.
Schiller, Margrit:
b. 1948; SPK member; 1970, joined the RAF; 1971, arrested; 1973, released from prison and went back underground; 1974, arrested; 1979, released from prison; 1985, went into voluntary exile in Cuba; 1993, moved to Uruguay.
Schily, Otto:
b. 1932; lawyer for RAF prisoners; 1980, founding member of the Green Party; 1989, left the Green party to join the SPD; 1994-1998, Chairman of the SPD Parliamentary Faction; 1998-2005, Federal Minister of the Interior, 2005, joined the boards of two biometric security firms.
Schleyer; Hanns Martin:
1915-1977; former SS member and leading West German industrialist; 1977, kidnapped and executed by the RAF during the German Autumn.
Schmid, Norbert:
1938-1971; police officer; 1971, killed in an exchange of fire with RAF members.
Schmidt, Helmut:
b. 1918; SPD politician; 1967-1969, Chairman of the SPD Parliamentary Faction; 1969-1972, Federal Minister of Defense; 1972, Federal Minister of Economics; 1972-1974, Federal Minister of Finance; 1974-1982, Chancellor.
Schmitz, Sabine:
b. 1956; joined RAF sometime in 1976, arrested that same year and charged under §129.
Schneider, Gerd:
Member of the RAF, 1977, arrested in Amsterdam and extradited to West Germany, sentenced to fifteen years in prison.
Scholze, Uli:
b. 1947; 1970, joined the RAF, but left shortly thereafter.
Schoner, Herbert:
1939-1971; police officer; 1971, shot dead by RAF members robbing a bank.
Schubert, Ingrid:
1944-1977; founding member of the RAF; 1970, arrested; 1977, killed in prison.
Schulz, Adelheid:
b. 1955; 1977, joined the RAF; 1982, arrested; 1998, released from prison on health grounds; 2002, pardoned.
Schumann, Jürgen:
1940-1977; pilot; 1977, killed during the Mogadishu action.
Siepmann, Ingrid:
b. 1944; member of the 2JM; 1974, arrested; 1975, released from prison as part of a prisoner exchange for CDU politician Peter Lorenz who had been kidnapped by the 2JM; 1982, believed killed by Israeli airstrike in Lebanon.
Söhnlein, Horst:
b. 1943; 1968, participated in the Frankfurt department store arsons, released while awaiting an appeal; 1969, turned himself in when the appeal was denied.
Sonnenberg, Günter:
b. 1954; member of the RAF; 1977, arrested; 1992, released from prison.
Speitel, Angelika:
b. 1952; RAF member; 1978, arrested; 1989, pardoned.
Speitel, Volker:
b. 1950; RAF supporter, 1977, arrested, cooperated with police and prosecutors; 1979, released from prison.
Springer, Axel:
1912-1985; media magnate, owner of the Springer Press.
Stachowiak, Ilse “Tinny”:
b. 1954; 1970, joined the RAF; 1971, arrested, released the same year and went back underground; 1974, arrested.
Sternebeck, Sigrid:
b. 1949; 1977, joined the RAF; 1980, left the RAF and received asylum in the GDR; 1990, arrested and cooperated with police and prosecutors.
Stoll, Willi-Peter:
1950-1978; member of the RAF; 1978, shot dead by police.
Strauß, Franz Josef:
1915-1988; CSU politician; 1953-1955, Federal Minister for Special Affairs; 1955-1956, Federal Minister for Atomic Issues; 1956-1962, Federal Minister of Defense; 1966-1969, Federal Minister of Finance; 1978-1988, President of Bavaria.
Ströbele, Hans-Christian:
b. 1939; lawyer for RAF prisoners; 1969, cofounder of the Socialist Lawyers Collective; 1979, co-founder of the
taz
; 1978, founding member of the Alternative List; 1985, joined the Green Party.
Sturm, Beate:
b. 1950; 1970, joined the RAF; 1971, left the RAF, subsequently gave a number of interviews about the organization.
Taufer, Lutz:
b. 1944; member of the SPK; 1971, joined the RAF; part of the Holger Meins Commando that carried out the failed Stockholm embassy hostage taking in 1975; received two life sentences in 1977; 1996, released from prison; 1999, moved to Brazil.
Teufel, Fritz:
b. 1943; founding member of Kommune 1; founding member of the 2JM, 1975, arrested, sentenced to five years in prison.
Thimme, Johannes:
1956-1985; 1976, affiliated himself with the RAF support scene, served several prison sentences; 1985, killed when a bomb he was helping to plant exploded prematurely.
Ulmer, Helmut:
1953-1977; Schleyer’s bodyguard; 1977, killed by the RAF.
Urbach, Peter:
b. 1941; police infiltrator working in the milieu of the SDS and the APO in the late sixties, particularly close to members of Kommune 1, the 2JM, and the RAF; 1970, facilitated the arrest of Andreas Baader, after which he was provided with a new identity and relocated outside of West Germany.
Viett, Inge:
b. 1944; founding member of the 2JM; 1972, arrested; 1973, broke out of prison; 1975, arrested; 1976, broke out of prison; 1980, joined the RAF; 1982, left the RAF and received asylum in the GDR; 1990, arrested, the only refugee in the GDR who would not provide evidence against other guerillas; 1997, released from prison.
Vogel, Andreas:
2JM member; 1976, arrested, sentenced to ten years in prison.
Wackernagel, Christof:
b. 1951; 1977, joined the RAF, arrested the same year; 1983, broke with the RAF; 1987, released from prison.
Wagenbach, Klaus:
b. 1930; founder of influential left press Wagenbach Publishers; 1976, read the eulogy at Ulrike Meinhof’s funeral.
Wagner, Rolf Clemens:
b. 1944; member of the RAF; 1979, arrested in Zurich, Switzerland and extradited to Germany; 2003, pardoned on health grounds; 2007, subject to investigation after stating in a interview that the Schleyer kidnapping was a legitimate action.
Weinrich, Johannes:
b. 1947; founding member of the RZ; by the late seventies part of the Carlos group; 1995, arrested in Aden, Yemen and extradited to Germany, sentenced to life in prison.
Weissbecker, Thomas:
1949-1972; associated with Kommune 1, the Roaming Hash Rebels, the Tupamaros West Berlin, the 2JM, and the RAF; 1971, arrested and acquitted; 1972, shot dead by police during a manhunt for the RAF.
Wessel, Ulrich:
1946-1975; member of the SPK; member of the RAF; 1975, killed during the Stockholm action he was participating in as a member of the Holger Meins Commando.
Wischnewski, Hans-Jürgen:
1922-2005; member of the SPD; 1959-1961, Chairman of the
Jusos
; 1966, Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation; 1970, member of the SPD’s Executive Committee; 1974, Secretary of State; 1974-1976; Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs; 1976-1979, Minister of State at the Federal Chancellery; 1977, government envoy to Third World countries during the German Autumn; 1979-1982, Deputy Chairman of the SPD; 1982, Minister of State at the Federal Chancellery.
Wisniewski, Stefan:
b. 1953; 1975, joined the RAF; 1978, arrested at Orly Airport in Paris; 1999, released from prison.
Witter, Hermann:
b. 1916; Director of the Institute for Forensic Medicine and Psychiatry at University of Homburg/Saar.
Wurster, Georg:
1944-1977; Buback’s bodyguard; 1977, killed by the RAF.
Zeis, Peter:
Federal Prosecutor involved in the Stammheim trial against Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Ulrike Meinhof, Holger Meins, and Jan-Carl Raspe.
Zitzlaff, Inge Wienke:
b. 1931; Ulrike Meinhof’s sister.
1958
Leadership of the
Sozialistischer Deutscher Studentenbund
(Socialist German Students Federation, or SDS) won by activists significantly to the left of the SPD.
1961
The SDS and left-wing Society for the Promotion of Socialism are purged from the SPD.
1964
December 18, 1964
400 demonstrators greet Congolese President Moise Tschombe at the West Berlin airport. 150 protestors clash with the police in the streets of West Berlin. Rudi Dutschke will later claim this demonstration marked the beginning of the APO.
1966
April 9–11, 1966
(Easter Weekend)
Demonstrations against the Vietnam War occur throughout West Germany.
May 22, 1966
The SDS organizes a conference against the Vietnam War.
Participants include Conrad Ahlers, Oskar Negt, Herbert Marcuse, and Jürgen Habermas. As a result of this conference, the SDS emerges as the key organization in the antiwar movement.
May 30, 1966
Student organizations hold a conference in Bonn against the
Notstandsgesetze
(Emergency Laws) being proposed by the government.
October 8, 1966
8,000-9,000 participate in a national congress to oppose the proposed Emergency Laws. 24,000 people participate in the closing demonstration.
December 1, 1966
The CDU/SPD Grand Coalition is formed.
December 10, 1966
In a closing speech at the Vietnam Weeks, SDS leader Rudi Dutschke proposes the formation of an extra-parliamentary opposition, which will become known as the APO. A demonstration at the close of the conference is brutally attacked by police.
1967
January 1, 1967
Kommune 1 founded in West Berlin. The first commune to come out of the student movement, it represents the anarchist tendency.
March 25–27, 1967
(Easter Weekend)
Demostrations occur throughout West Germany against the government’s antidemocratic measures and against the Vietnam War.
April 5, 1967
Kommune 1 carries out a pudding attack on U.S. Vice President, Hubert Humphrey, in West Berlin, which is followed by arrests and an intense media smear campaign.
April 19, 1967
2,000 students participate in a sit-in at the Free University in West Berlin to protest the university’s disciplinary measures against FU students arrested with Kommune 1 members in connection with the pudding attack against Hubert Humphrey on April 5.
April 21, 1967
With support from NATO, a coup establishes a far-right military junta in Greece.