The Spiegel scandal of 1962 (German: Spiegel-Affäre) was one of the major political scandals in Germany in the era following World War II. Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Nazi Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Harry Truman Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead...

Essentially, the scandal boiled down to a conflict between Franz Josef Strauß, then Federal Minister of Defense, and Rudolf Augstein, owner and editor-in-chief of Der Spiegel magazine, Germany's leading weekly political magazine. The affair would cost Strauß his office and put the young German democracy to its first major test. Dr h. ... Rudolf Karl Augstein (November 5, 1923 - November 7, 2002) was one of the most influential German journalists, founder and part-owner of Der Spiegel magazine. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

The two had clashed already a year earlier, when, in 1961, Spiegel raised accusations of bribery in favor of the FIBAG construction company, which had received a contract for building military facilities. However, a parliamentary enquiry then found no evidence against Strauß. Bribery is a crime implying a sum or gift given alters the behaviour of the person in ways not consistent with the duties of that person. ... The Fibag scandal was in 1961/1962 a German political scandal around minister of defense Franz Josef Strauß, which, together with the Starfighter scandal and the Spiegel scandal led to Straußs demission as defense minister and halted his political career at least temporarily. ...

Der Spiegel No. 41/1962, which triggered the scandal

The quarrel then escalated when Der Spiegel, in its October 8, 1962 issue, published an article called "Bedingt abwehrbereit" ("partly prepared for defense"), about a NATO manoeuver called "Fallex 62". The piece uncovered the sorry state of the Bundeswehr (Germany's army) facing the communist threat from the east. At that time, the army had been given the grade "prepared for defense to only a limited extent", the lowest possible NATO-grade. Cover of Spiegel magazine No. ... October 8 is the 281st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (282nd in leap years). ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation[1] (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949. ... The Bundeswehr ( ) (Federal Defence) is the armed forces of Germany and its administration. ...

The magazine was accused of treason. At 9 p.m. on October 26, 1962, the magazine's offices in Hamburg were seized and (together with the houses of several journalists) searched by 36 policemen, and thousands of documents were confiscated. The offices would remain shut down for weeks. Augstein and the then-editors-in-chief Claus Jacobi and Johannes Engel were arrested. The author of the article, Conrad Ahlers, who was vacationing in Spain, was seized in his hotel during the night. Augstein would be jailed for 103 days. For other uses, see Treason (disambiguation). ... October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... Hamburgs motto: May the posterity endeavour with dignity to conserve the freedom, which the forefathers acquired. ...

Bundeskanzler (Federal Chancellor) Konrad Adenauer was informed of Strauß's actions. However, the Minister of Justice, belonging to the smaller coalition party FDP, was deliberately left out of all decisions. The injustice of the arrest caused riots and protest throughout Germany. Strauß initially denied all involvement, even before the Bundestag: Adenauer, in another speech, famously complained about an "abyss of treason" ("Abgrund von Landesverrat"). The head of government of Germany has been known as the Chancellor (German: Kanzler) ever since the creation of the post. ... Konrad Hermann Josef Adenauer (IPA: ) (January 5, 1876 – April 19, 1967) was a conservative German statesman. ... Categories: Politics stubs | Liberal related stubs | German political parties | Liberal parties ... The Bundestag (Federal Diet) is the parliament of Germany. ...

Strauß was finally forced to admit that he had phoned the German military attaché in Madrid and urged him to arrest Ahlers. This was clearly illegal — as Minister of the Interior Hermann Höcherl famously paraphrased, "etwas außerhalb der Legalität" ("somewhat outside of legality"). Since Strauß had lied to the parliament, on November 19, the five FDP ministers of the cabinet resigned, demanding that Strauß and Höcherl be fired. This put Adenauer himself at risk. He found himself publicly accused of backing the suppression of a critical press with the resources of the state. Location Location of Madrid in Europe Coordinates : 40° 23’N , 3°43′0″W Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Villa de Madrid (Spanish) Spanish name Villa de Madrid Founded 9th century Postal code 28001-28080 Area code 34 (Spain) + 91 (Villa de... Hermann Höcherl (March 31, 1912–May 18, 1989) was a German politician of the Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU). ... November 19 is the 323rd day of the year (324th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

On November 26, the police ended its occupation of the Spiegel offices, while Augstein, Ahlers and three others remained under arrest — Augstein until February 7, 1963. In December 1962 Adenauer formed a new cabinet without Strauß. November 26 is the 330th day (331st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... February 7 is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ...

On May 13, 1965 the Bundesgerichtshof (highest German court of appeals) refused to open trial against Augstein and Ahlers, ruling that during the affair Strauß had violated the boundaries and committed Freiheitsberaubung (deprivation of personal freedom); however, because of his belief of acting lawfully (Verbotsirrtum), he was exempt from punishment. The case also came before the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany, which issued a groundbreaking ruling that laid down the basics of the freedom of the press for decades to come. May 13 is the 133rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (134th in leap years). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... The Bundesgerichtshof or BGH (German for federal court) is the highest Germany for civil and criminal lawsuits. ... Court of Appeals is the title of certain appellate courts in various jurisdictions. ... The Bundesverfassungsgericht The Federal Constitutional Court (in German: Bundesverfassungsgericht, BVerfG) is a special court established by the German constitutional document, the Grundgesetz (Basic Law). ... Freedom of the press (or press freedom) is the guarantee by a government of free public press for its citizens and their associations, extended to members of news gathering organizations, and their published reporting. ...

The scandal temporarily halted Strauß's political career and was remembered by many when Strauß ran for Bundeskanzler in 1980, clearly losing against his SPD opponent (and incumbent) Helmut Schmidt. However, it is mostly remembered for altering the political culture of post-war Germany and — with the first mass demonstrations and public protests — being a turning point from the old Obrigkeitsstaat (authoritarian state) to a modern democracy. The head of government of Germany has been known as the Chancellor (German: Kanzler) ever since the creation of the post. ... SPD redirects here. ... Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt (born December 23, 1918) is a German Social Democratic politician. ...

See also

• Fibag scandal