Who are Prince Heinrich and the 'reichsbürger' who were planning a coup in Germany?

His name is Heinrich XIII, he is 71 years old and is part of an old German aristocratic family, the house of Reuss, which has the tradition of calling all male children Enrique (Heinrich) and distinguishing them with a numeral.

He is quite a well-known character in his city, Frankfurt, due to his lineage and for having been a businessman.

But since this Wednesday, a very serious accusation has weighed on him: being the leader of the group of 25 people arrested in Germany for planning a coup.

The organization, which German authorities describe as terrorist, is made up of members of a far-right movement called the Reichsbürger (Citizens of the Reich) that does not recognize democratic Germany.

The

are one of the main concerns of the security forces, which consider them very radical and, in some cases, ready to take up arms.

It is not an organized group as such.

They are small groups or individuals nostalgic for the German empire who question the very existence of the Federal Republic of Germany and its legal system.

They do not recognize the Constitution or borders and deny the legitimacy of democratically elected political representatives.

They live in a kind of parallel reality where they refuse to use official identification documents and instead issue fictitious cards such as their own driving licences, the equivalent of the DNI or “German Reich” license plates.

Many refuse to pay taxes.

The aristocrat Heinrich XIII, after being arrested on Wednesday at his home in Frankfurt. BORIS ROESSLER (AFP)

This movement has been in the crosshairs of the authorities for some time.

According to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the German internal secret service, the environment of the

has "a high potential for violence."

In the last report on extremist threats to national security, from 2021, the office estimated that there are some 21,000 people associated with this ideology and that, of these, 2,100 are violent or there is a clear risk of being so.

His ideas overlap with those of far-right neo-Nazi groups.

They agree on historical revisionism and National Socialist principles.

Among the 25 arrested this Wednesday for planning an assault on the German Parliament there are very different profiles: the self-styled Prince Reuss, who was going to be the head of state of the new order they wanted to impose;

a former deputy from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party;

former commanders of the German Army;

ex-cops;

but also a chef, a pilot, a lawyer and a classical music tenor.

A wealthy doctor donated 20,000 euros to the group with which, according to

, "spiritual matters" were attended to and contacted alleged fortune tellers who had to verify if possible comrades-in-arms were trustworthy.

The group, a widespread network with suspects in 11 of the 16 German Länder, Austria and Italy, is also made up of a movement called Querdenker (lateral thinkers, according to their self-description), and supporters of the conspiracy ideology of QAnon from the US, according to the German Prosecutor's Office.

Under the name of Querdenker, known for leading the protests against the German government during the coronavirus pandemic, hides a very heterogeneous movement of deniers, conspiracists, far-right and ordinary citizens angry about the restrictions.

The detainees, the federal prosecutor, Peter Frank, explained on Wednesday, fit both in the environment of the so-called citizens of the Reich and in that environment of radicalization fueled by conspiracy theories.

Not being a party or a national-level organization, nor having a defined ideology, they are difficult groups to monitor, although the police have been watching the dismantled coup network since at least the summer.

They had their phones tapped and controlled their chat groups.

This is how they found out that Prince Reuss was calling for violent action: “Now let's smash them, the fun is over!” he exclaims in one of the intercepted calls.

Investigators have been surprised by the age of the terrorists: almost all of them are over 40 years of age and their two leaders – Heinrich XIII, from the political wing, and Rüdiger P., a former Army colonel, from the military – are around 70 years old.

The atypical aristocratic leader of the plot was already registered as a sympathizer of the Reichsbürger movement.

Years ago, at a conference in Zurich, Switzerland, he denied the legitimacy of the Federal Republic, spread anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, and spoke of Germany as "an occupied country."

He also defended the monarchy as the most perfect system.

Investigators believe that he wanted to be the next German

(emperor).

The 'kaiser', a "bitter old man"

His family broke up with him a long time ago.

In August, Heinrich XIV, spokesman for the Reuss house, which ruled Thuringia for 800 years until the collapse of the German monarchy, told a regional newspaper that Heinrich XIII had distanced himself from them "of his own free will."

He called him a "sour old man," said he was fond of "conspiracy theories" and that he was confused.

The Reuss family, he stressed, had nothing to do with the political statements of his relative.

Despite the fact that there are no longer princes in Germany, Heinrich XIII continued to use that name.

The

consider themselves the continuation of the German Empire (1871-1918) and spread their vision of the world through the internet, where they have their own web pages, social media channels and discussion forums.

Some also make cash by offering false identification documents "DNI del Reich".

According to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, one such group, called the Bismarck Heirs, tried to create its own news website last year.

In their heads, they are the patriots, and that is why they want to free Germany from the current government.

The detainees were convinced that the country is ruled by members of a "Deep State" (from English

) and that a secret society called The Alliance was preparing to intervene to free the Germans.

Members of the network's military arm were to help them depose the current powers.

They were aware that deaths would occur, says the Prosecutor's Office, but they considered them an intermediate step to achieve the alleged "system change at all levels."

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