Aufbau Vereinigung

Aufbau vice-president cavalry General (ret.) Wassili Wiktorowitsch Biskupski (Vasily Viktorovich Biskupsky) in his Munich office (sitting).

The Wirtschaftliche Aufbau-Vereinigung (German: Economic Reconstruction Organization), often only short "Aufbau ", was a Munich-based post-WWI anti-communist counter-revolutionary organization. Members included White Russian émigrés and early National Socialists. It aimed to overthrow the new governments of Germany and the Soviet Union, newly installed by revolutions. The organization was originally known as Die Brücke (The Bridge). Wirtschaftliche Aufbau-Korrespondenz was the name of a periodical it brought out. After the failed Munich Putsch, the organization rapidly declined. It must not be confused with the Wirtschaftliche Aufbau-Vereinigung (WAV), a political party founded in December 1945 in allied-occupied Bavaria.

History

The founder and managing director was Max-Erwin von Scheubner-Richter. Theodor Freiherr von Cramer-Klett Jr. and General Vasilij Biskupskij (1878–1945) served as president and vice president, respectively. The 150 members consisted of Bavarian monarchists and primarily Baltic Germans, as well as Russian and Ukrainian émigrés. Other members of this multinational association included Vladimir Kleppen and Boris Brazol, who had important American contacts, and Georgi Nemirovič-Dančenko, a former press officer for General Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel in Crimea who was an expert on Ukrainian issues. Ukrainian Colonel Ivan Poltavec-Ostranica, who had collaborated with the Imperial German Army during their occupation of Ukraine, joined the organization in 1921.

The organisation was formed in the aftermath of German occupation of the Ukraine and the liberation of the Baltic in 1918. According to Michael Kellogg, it was a vital influence on the development of National Socialist ideology in the years before the March to the Feldherrnhalle, as well as financing the party. It is said to have given Hitler the idea of a vast Jewish conspiracy, involving a close alliance between international finance and Bolshevism and threatening disaster for mankind. The association was closely linked in terms of personnel and program with the Munich-based "New German-Russian Society for Renewal."

In October 1920, after returning from a trip to Crimea, where, with the support of Bavarian entrepreneurs, von Scheubner-Richter had concluded an agreement on military and economic cooperation with General Pyotr Wrangel, von Scheubner-Richter began organizing the Economic Reconstruction Association. The statutes were deliberately vague to avoid the question of whether the Russian Empire should be restored as a whole or whether Ukraine and the Baltic states should be granted autonomy. This meant that the organization would be of interest to both Russians and minorities. The association conducted its activities in strict secrecy. Membership was closely controlled, and the backgrounds of applicants for membership were thoroughly checked. It targeted staunchly anti-Bolshevik Germans, Russians, Ukrainians, and Baltic Germans as full members, but persons of other nationalities could also join as associate members. Each member had to pay 100,000 marks upon joining and 20,000 marks annually thereafter.

Aufbau aimed to restore the pre-revolutionary order in Europe, especially in Russia, but was also extremely hostile to the Weimar Republic. It also focused on revising the Treaty of Versailles and waging a defensive struggle against the Communist International. Through Rosenberg's mediation, von Scheubner-Richter met Adolf Hitler for the first time in November 1920. That same month, von Scheubner-Richter joined the NSDAP, and in 1923, he became one of Hitler's most important advisors. Several members of Aufbau were also members of the NSDAP: Alfred Rosenberg, Arno Schickedanz, and Otto von Kursell. Max Amann was not only the NSDAP's managing director but also the association's second secretary.

For the heir to the throne and to establish further contacts, Scheubner-Richter and his Aufbau-Gesellschaft organized a monarchist congress at the end of May 1921 in Bad Reichenhall – in retrospect, the most important event for the Russian exiles loyal to the Tsar in Germany. The Baltic German chose the Bavarian health resort in the Alps strategically: the city was easily accessible from Munich by train and car, and at the same time, hardly any disruptive maneuvers from political opponents were to be expected. As a precautionary measure, Scheubner-Richter titled the meeting a "Congress for the Economic Reconstruction of Russia" and requested police protection. His wish was granted: police officers provided security for the congress. After the event, the organizer sent a telegram to the Bavarian Prime Minister, Gustav Ritter von Kahr, asking him to "accept the expression of his deepest gratitude for the opportunity granted to him to gather on Bavarian soil and for the kind cooperation of the Reichenhall authorities." Ostensibly, the meeting of émigrés of all political persuasions serves as an attempt at unification and reorganization of the warring factions. In practice, however, the gathering is intended to prepare Grand Duke Vladimirovic Kirill's claim to the Tsarist throne. Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolayevich, in exile in France, also considers himself the sole rightful heir and demands his recognition. A decision for one of the candidates is pending. The 106 delegates meet at the Hotel "Deutscher Kaiser." The meeting room is decorated in black, yellow, and white, the colors of the Romanovs. "A few classy and elegant Russian ladies" strolled on the gallery, as one newspaper sardonically noted. Scheubner-Richter sponsored a convivial evening with Bavarian beer and Schuhplattler dances at the end. An investment that paid off. In Bad Reichenhall, the Baltic German not only had the opportunity to get to know the elite of the Tsarist Empire better, but also distinguished himself as a supporter of Kirill's ambitions to rule the Russian Empire. He tirelessly advocated for the monarch's rights, published his appeals to his Russian subjects in his magazine "Wirtschaftliche Aufbau-Korrespondenz," and ennobled Kirill in his publications as a "candidate to the imperial throne" – thus opening a floodgate of money.

After the death of von Scheubner-Richter, Aufbau rapidly declined, and notions of Lebensraum and Slavic inferiority, naturally unpopular with the Russians, gained a stronger hold on the National Socialist movement. The long term influence of Aufbau has been traced in Hitler's disastrous decision to divert troops away from Moscow towards the Ukraine in 1941.

Newspaper

Max-Erwin von Scheubner-Richter was first editor, other sources state the Russian exile and von Scheubner-Richter's close confidant Grigorij Nemirovič-Dančenko/Nemirovich-Danchenko (b. 20 July 1889 in St. Petersburg) took over in June 1921. Other sources also have Vasilij Biskupskij as editor. The name of the newspaper changed at least twice:

• Aufbau. Zeitschrift für wirtschafts-politische Fragen Ost-Europas
• Wirtschafts-politische Aufbau-Korrespondenz über Ostfragen und ihre Bedeutung für Deutschland (WPA)
• Wirtschaftliche Aufbau-Korrespondenz für ostpolitische Fragen (WAK)

Members

Prominent members of the organization included:

• Alfred Rosenberg (a Baltic German from the Russian Empire)
• Fyodor Vinberg (Russian officer)
• Piotr Shabelsky-Bork (Russian officer)
• Erich Ludendorff
• Max Amann
• Arno Schickedanz
• Boris Brasol (Russian émigré)

Wikipedia cites various allegations regarding the organization, such as having been financed by Henry Ford, financing the NSDAP, involvement in assassinations, and being very influential on Hitler (despite that Hitler is not listed as a member).