Manuel Ochsenreiter

Manuel Ochsenreiter (b. 18 May 1976 in Isny, Allgäu, Baden-Württemberg; d. 18 August 2021 in Moskow, Russia) was a German journalist, author and political activist as well as co-founder and leadership member of the Deutschherrenklub (DHK) under Andreas J. Voigt.

Life

Professor Dugin and Ochsenreiter in May 2015

Raised Catholic, Manuel Ochsenreiter was born in Isny ​​in the Westallgäu region and spent his youth – with his brothers David and Daniel – in Bavaria, primarily in Ellhofen (Weiler-Simmerberg). His father, Reinhold (1942-2022), was a prominent naturopath with patients from all over the world. He deeply admired his mother, Ernestine "Erni," whom he affectionately called "Mama Ochsenreiter." As a teenager, he initially joined the Christian Democrat (CDU) youth organization "Junge Union" (JU), but as a patriot, he found no real home there. He was a follower of the philosophical teachings of Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, and Julius Evola. Later, he became a follower of "Opus Die" and firmly believed in Escrivá de Balaguer's maxim of 733:

"Always trust in your God. – He never loses a battle."

In 1995, he was the youngest author to co-author the book "Wir 89er" (We 89ers), which was understood by its 12 authors (counter-68ers; "Focus," 9 October 1995) as a "confessional statement" of a new generation of patriotic Germans who, after the fall of communism in 1989 (and the subsequent partial reunification of Germany), had set themselves the goal of developing a new German national identity. The book advocated for de-demonizing the political right and turning away from "leveling from the left." Manuel wrote at the time:

"Perhaps someday you'll realize that the life of a young right-winger has nothing to do with attacks on asylum seekers' homes, swastika flags, and Hitler pictures, but rather with the sincere conviction that he has to do things differently than you."

After graduating with Abitur (1996) at Lindenberg Gymnasium and completing his military service, the fraternity member (Berliner Burschenschaft der Märker) studied at the private "Institute for Marketing and Communication" (IMK) in Berlin, among other institutions. Manuel Ochsenreiter in a 2005 interview:

"[...] Of course, it would be more 'contemporary' to somehow 'tear down' one's studies with a purely consumer mentality, without worrying about the rest, without looking left or right. However, membership in a fraternity means much more than 'just' being in a club. We see ourselves as a 'lifelong association,' in which the fraternity's principles allow neither generational conflict nor discrimination based on social background. The principle of the Mensur, student (academic) fencing with so-called Mensurschläger, is not to injure the opponent, as you imply in your question. Above all, you have to overcome yourself – not your opponent. You literally learn to 'stand' here, because unlike in sport fencing, you don't dodge the blows, but rather parry them or – if you make a mistake – receive the blow. That can sometimes lead to a scar. But you learn to to make a real sacrifice for the community and overcome oneself in the process. Therefore, a duel is far more than just a banal test of courage."

From 1994 to 2004, Ochsenreiter was an author for the new right newspaper "Junge Freiheit", as well as the author of the magazine "Sezession", published by the Institute for State Policy (Institut für Staatspolitik; IfS), and an author of "eigentümlich frei" (ef). Between 2004 and 2011, he was editor-in-chief of the German military magazine "Deutsche Militärzeitschrift" (DMZ), for which he wrote until his death. In March 2011, he moved to the same position at the monthly magazine "ZUERST!". Both magazines are published by Dietmar Munier.

Ochsenreiter produced many photo reports for the magazines from crisis and war regions such as Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Hungary, and Ukraine. He was a guest at national and international conferences and organized similar events. Among his influential acquaintances and cooperation partners was Alexander Dugin. He also worked in the Bundestag for the German patriotic party AfD. Ochsenreiter was among the many international guests of the International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust in December 2006 in Tehran, Iran. In October 2008, he traveled to Lebanon, had his photograph taken on a destroyed Israeli tank, and met and interviewed Hezbollah representatives.

Death

Since a heart attack he suffered in 2014 while reporting for a war report in Syria for the magazine "ZUERST!", Ochsenreiter had repeatedly struggled with health problems including a long-standing battle with chronic hepatitis. Since 2019, he had spent most of his time in Moscow as a dissident, where he died after a week in a coma following another heart attack on 18 August 2021.

Family

Manuel Ochsenreiter was married in 2003 and had two sons with his first wife. After their divorce, he married a Lebanese Christian.

Writings (small excerpt)

• Wir ’89er. Wer wir sind – was wir wollen, Ullstein, Frankfurt am Main 1995
• Black Metal – eine Innenansicht, 2004 (in German)
• Staatsmord in Bagdad. Saddam Hussein am Galgen, Bonus, Selent 2007
  • Ochsenreiter edited the anthology "State Murder in Baghdad. Saddam Hussein on the Gallows," which included contributions by Jörg Haider, Jamal Karsli, Richard Lobsien, Heinz Magenheimer, Emil Schlee, Franz W. Seidler, and Michael Wiesberg.

Further reading

In German

• Andreas J. Voigt: Manuel Ochsenreiter ... ein Dissident und Deutschherr inmitten von Ruinen, Lausitz 2021/2025 (PDF)
• Volker Zierke: Journalismus mit eigenen Augen – Nachruf auf Manuel Ochsenreiter, 20 August 2021