Gesinnungsgemeinschaft der Neuen Front
Encyclopedia
Gesinnungsgemeinschaft der Neuen Front (GdNF) is a German
organisation that was the main group for neo-Nazi activity during the 1990s. It translates into English
as the Community of Like-Minded People of the New Front or the Covenant of the New Front.
The GdNF was formed in 1985 by Michael Kühnen
, Thomas Brehl and Christian Worch
after the banning of the Action Front of National Socialists/National Activists
. Initially a loose group based around the magazine Die Neue Front, the GdNF was soon formalised into an organisation, taking in most of the membership of the ANS/NA. The group placed itself within the more radical Sturmabteilung
tradition of Nazism
rather than simple devotion to Adolf Hitler
. It also placed importance on opposing the influence of the USA, the destruction of the environment and the weakening of German racial purity. The group was also active in Austria
, which it referred to as "Ostmark
", and called for the formation of an Austrian SA in a December 1990 edition of its paper Neuen Front.
When Kühnen came out
in 1986 the GdNF remained loyal to him in the resulting split, although the group lost control of the Free German Workers' Party
. However the group continued to improve its organisational basis despite this set-back, staging marches, paramilitary training and setting up cells in the German Democratic Republic
. It also sought to build up a portfolio of international contacts with which it co-operated on military drilling, propaganda dissemination and arms dispersal.
The death of Kühnen in 1991 saw leadership of the GdNF, which had about 400 fully active members, pass to Worch, Winfried Arnulf Priem and Austria
n neo-Nazi leader Gottfried Küssel. In Austria the GdNF worked in tandem with Küssel's Volkstreue Außerparlamentarische Opposition (VAPO), a like-minded group. However without Kühnen the group went into terminal decline and became lost in a sea of similar groups that were formed in the 1990s due to ever closer government scrutiny of neo-Nazi activities. The group continued to publish Neuen Front although increasingly this became an international magazine of neo-Nazism with close links to the NSDAP/AO
with the GdNF doing little beyond publishing this work. With Worch jailed in 1996 and other important figures such as Thomas Brehl starting up their own groups the GdNF gradually passed out of existence.
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...
organisation that was the main group for neo-Nazi activity during the 1990s. It translates into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as the Community of Like-Minded People of the New Front or the Covenant of the New Front.
The GdNF was formed in 1985 by 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...
, Thomas Brehl and Christian Worch
Christian Worch
Christian Worch is one of the most important figures of the German neo-Nazi scene.In 1974 Worch started a militant group called the Hansabande in Hamburg, along with Michael Kühnen. The group defaced Jewish cemeteries, assaulted leftists and foreigners, and denied the Holocaust...
after the banning of the Action Front of National Socialists/National Activists
Action Front of National Socialists/National Activists
The Action Front of National Socialists/National Activists was a German neo-Nazi organization....
. Initially a loose group based around the magazine Die Neue Front, the GdNF was soon formalised into an organisation, taking in most of the membership of the ANS/NA. The group placed itself within the more radical Sturmabteilung
Sturmabteilung
The Sturmabteilung functioned as a paramilitary organization of the National Socialist German Workers' Party . It played a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s...
tradition 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...
rather than simple devotion to Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
. It also placed importance on opposing the influence of the USA, the destruction of the environment and the weakening of German racial purity. The group was also active in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, which it referred to as "Ostmark
Ostmark (Austria)
Ostmark was the name used by Nazi propaganda to replace that of the formerly independent Austria after the Anschluss annexation of that country by Nazi Germany in 1938....
", and called for the formation of an Austrian SA in a December 1990 edition of its paper Neuen Front.
When Kühnen came out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
in 1986 the GdNF remained loyal to him in the resulting split, although the group lost control of the Free German Workers' Party
Free German Workers' Party
The Free German Workers' Party was a neo-nazi political association in Germany. It was outlawed by the Constitutional Court in 1995.The FAP was founded in 1979 but was largely insignificant until the banning of the Action Front of National Socialists/National Activists in 1983 when Michael Kühnen...
. However the group continued to improve its organisational basis despite this set-back, staging marches, paramilitary training and setting up cells in the German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
. It also sought to build up a portfolio of international contacts with which it co-operated on military drilling, propaganda dissemination and arms dispersal.
The death of Kühnen in 1991 saw leadership of the GdNF, which had about 400 fully active members, pass to Worch, Winfried Arnulf Priem and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n neo-Nazi leader Gottfried Küssel. In Austria the GdNF worked in tandem with Küssel's Volkstreue Außerparlamentarische Opposition (VAPO), a like-minded group. However without Kühnen the group went into terminal decline and became lost in a sea of similar groups that were formed in the 1990s due to ever closer government scrutiny of neo-Nazi activities. The group continued to publish Neuen Front although increasingly this became an international magazine of neo-Nazism with close links to the NSDAP/AO
NSDAP/AO (1972)
The NSDAP/AO is an American neo-Nazi organization. It was founded in 1972 by United States citizen Gary Rex Lauck in Lincoln, Nebraska. The organization stands for "NSDAP Aufbau- und Auslandsorganisation" . Lauck's organization claims to be a continuation of the original NSDAP/AO and supplies...
with the GdNF doing little beyond publishing this work. With Worch jailed in 1996 and other important figures such as Thomas Brehl starting up their own groups the GdNF gradually passed out of existence.