Nationalist Front
Encyclopedia
Nationalistische Front was a minor German
neo-Nazi group active during the 1980s.
Founded in 1985 by Meinolf Schönborn the group, which had no more than 150 members, was characterized by its support for Strasserism rather than more usual forms of Nazism
. The Nationalist Front - League of Social Revolutionary Nationalists had been formed in 1982 from the ashes of the banned Volkssozialistische Bewegung Deutschlands/Partei der Arbeit
. This organisation was the basis for a merger with a number of smaller groups to from a new NF.
Based primarily in Bielefeld
, the group had a largely Pagan membership, hosting fire rituals
and similar ceremonies. The group also performed cross burning
s and forged links with Dennis Mahon, the head of the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
in Tulsa, Oklahoma
.
The group also became noted for its armed wing, the National Task Force (Nationales Einsatzkommando - NEK) which was set up in 1991 with the help of Otto Ernst Remer
and Herbert Schweiger. This group was blamed on a number of attacks, including burning a man to death in the mistaken belief that he was a Jew and the arson
of an asylum seeker hostel in Dolgenbrodt, near Berlin
. Firmly anti-Semitic
, the NF was also associated with Jürgen Rieger
, the well-known German Holocaust denier
who was a speaker at a number of its events .
Its support for the Nazis led to the group being banned by the Federal Ministry of the Interior in 1992 along with the German Alternative
of Michael Kühnen
and the National Offensive
of Michael Swierczek
. The group was succeeded by a number of organisations including Direct Action Middle Germany and the Social Revolutionary Workers Front, all of which were banned.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
neo-Nazi group active during the 1980s.
Founded in 1985 by Meinolf Schönborn the group, which had no more than 150 members, was characterized by its support for Strasserism rather than more usual forms of Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. The Nationalist Front - League of Social Revolutionary Nationalists had been formed in 1982 from the ashes of the banned Volkssozialistische Bewegung Deutschlands/Partei der Arbeit
Volkssozialistische Bewegung Deutschlands/Partei der Arbeit
Volkssozialistische Bewegung Deutschlands/Partei der Arbeit was a German Neo-Nazi group led by Friedhelm Busse...
. This organisation was the basis for a merger with a number of smaller groups to from a new NF.
Based primarily in Bielefeld
Bielefeld
Bielefeld is an independent city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 323,000, it is also the most populous city in the Regierungsbezirk Detmold...
, the group had a largely Pagan membership, hosting fire rituals
Fire worship
Worship or deification of fire is known from various religions. Fire has been an important part of human culture since the Lower Paleolithic...
and similar ceremonies. The group also performed cross burning
Cross burning
Cross burning or cross lighting is a practice widely associated with the Ku Klux Klan, although the historical practice long predates the Klan's inception...
s and forged links with Dennis Mahon, the head of the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
The White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan was considered the most militant as well as the most violent Ku Klux Klan in history. They originated in Mississippi in the early 1960s under the leadership of Samuel Bowers, its first Grand Wizard. The White Knights of Mississippi was formed in 1964, and it...
in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
.
The group also became noted for its armed wing, the National Task Force (Nationales Einsatzkommando - NEK) which was set up in 1991 with the help of Otto Ernst Remer
Otto Ernst Remer
Otto-Ernst Remer was a German Wehrmacht officer who played a decisive role in stopping the 1944 20 July Plot against Adolf Hitler. During the war he was wounded nine times in combat...
and Herbert Schweiger. This group was blamed on a number of attacks, including burning a man to death in the mistaken belief that he was a Jew and the arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
of an asylum seeker hostel in Dolgenbrodt, near Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. Firmly anti-Semitic
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
, the NF was also associated with Jürgen Rieger
Jürgen Rieger
Jürgen Rieger was a Hamburg lawyer, and deputy chairman of the National Democratic Party of Germany , known for his Holocaust denial....
, the well-known German Holocaust denier
Holocaust denial
Holocaust denial is the act of denying the genocide of Jews in World War II, usually referred to as the Holocaust. The key claims of Holocaust denial are: the German Nazi government had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews, Nazi authorities did not use extermination camps and gas...
who was a speaker at a number of its events .
Its support for the Nazis led to the group being banned by the Federal Ministry of the Interior in 1992 along with the German Alternative
German Alternative
The German Alternative was a minor neo-Nazi group set up in Germany by Michael Kühnen in 1989.Its declared goal was the restoration of the German Reich and rejected the cession of German areas in Eastern Europe following World War II as well as all immigration to Germany claiming that there were...
of Michael Kühnen
Michael Kühnen
Michael Kühnen was a leader in the German neo-Nazi movement. He was one of the first post-World War II Germans to openly embrace Nazism and call for the formation of a Fourth Reich. He enacted a policy of setting up several differently-named groups in an effort to confuse German authorities, who...
and the National Offensive
National Offensive
The National Offensive was a German neo-Nazi party, which existed from July 3, 1990 to December 22, 1992.It was founded by Michael Swierczek, the former chairman of the Free German Workers' Party in Bavaria, who became the chairman of the NO, and Carlo Bauer, the president of the NO, during the...
of Michael Swierczek
Michael Swierczek
Michael Swierczek is a German Neo-Nazi who lives in Munich.Swierczek began his political career as a member of the Young National Democratic Party of Germany . He was one of the leaders of the Freien Nationalisten before taking over the leadership of the Munich Kameradschaft of the Action Front of...
. The group was succeeded by a number of organisations including Direct Action Middle Germany and the Social Revolutionary Workers Front, all of which were banned.