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CULTURE

Archive amassed by Germany’s Nazis sheds light on Masonic history

Curators combing through a vast historic archive of Freemasonry in Europe amassed by the Nazis in their wartime anti-Masonic purge say they believe there are still secrets to be unearthed.

A book bearing a stamp (bottom R) of the National Socialist regime
A book bearing a stamp (bottom R) of the National Socialist regime on display during an exhibition of a historic archive of Freemasonry in Europe amassed by the Nazis at the Poznan University Library in Poznan. (Photo by JANEK SKARZYNSKI / AFP)

From insight into women’s Masonic lodges to the musical scores used in closed ceremonies, the trove — housed in an old university library in western Poland — has already shed light on a little known history.

But more work remains to be done to fully examine all the 80,000 items that date from the 17th century to the pre-World War II period.

“It is one of the biggest Masonic archives in Europe,” said curator Iuliana Grazynska, who has just started working on dozens of boxes of papers within it that have not yet been properly categorised.

“It still holds mysteries,” she told AFP, of the collection which curators began going through decades ago and is held at the UAM library in the city of Poznan.

Initially tolerated by the Nazis, Freemasons became the subject of regime conspiracy theories in the 1930s, seen as liberal intellectuals whose secretive circles could become centres of opposition.

A square (bottom) and a compass, symbols of Freemasonry, are displayed on a book

A square (bottom) and a compass, symbols of Freemasonry, are displayed on a book during the exhibition, which brings together around 80,000 items ranging from the 17th century to the first years of the 20th centuries. (Photo by JANEK SKARZYNSKI / AFP)

Lodges were broken up and their members imprisoned and killed both in Germany and elsewhere as Nazi troops advanced during WWII.

The collection was put together under the orders of top Nazi henchman and SS chief Heinrich Himmler and is composed of many smaller archives from European Masonic lodges that were seized by the Nazis.

It is seen by researchers as a precious repository of the history of the day-to-day activities of lodges across Europe, ranging from the menus for celebrations to educational texts.

‘Mine of information’
Fine prints, copies of speeches and membership lists of Masonic lodges in Germany and beyond feature in the archive. Some documents still bear Nazi stamps.

“The Nazis hated the Freemasons,” Andrzej Karpowicz, who managed the collection for three decades, told AFP.

Swords of the Freemasons on display at the exhibition. (Photo by JANEK SKARZYNSKI / AFP)

Nazi ideology, he said, was inherently “anti-Masonic” because of its anti-intellectual, anti-elite tendencies.

The library puts some select items on show, including the first edition of the earliest Masonic constitution written in 1723, six years after the first lodge was created in England.

“It’s one of our proudest possessions,” Grazynska said.

The oldest documents in the collection are prints from the 17th century relating to the Rosicrucians — an esoteric spiritual movement seen as a precursor to the Freemasons whose symbol was a crucifix with a rose at its centre.

During the war, as Allied bombing intensified, the collection was moved from Germany for safekeeping and broken up into three parts — two were taken to what is now Poland and one to the Czech Republic.

Masonic collars are seen next to book shelves at the Poznan University Library in western Poland.

Masonic collars are seen next to book shelves at the Poznan University Library in western Poland. (Photo by JANEK SKARZYNSKI / AFP)

The section left in the town of Slawa Slaska in Poland was seized by Polish authorities in 1945, while the others were taken by the Red Army.

In 1959, the Polish Masonic collection was formally established as an archive and curators began studying it — at that time, Freemasonry was banned in the country under Communism.

The collection is open to researchers and other visitors, who have included representatives of German Masonic lodges wanting to recover their pre-war history.

It is “a mine of information in which you can dig at will,” said Karpowicz.

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RACISM

FACT CHECK: Are people punished for using Nazi slogans in Germany?

After a video clip of people chanting Nazi slogans on the German island of Sylt went viral, many are waiting to see what consequences the perpetrators will face. The Local takes a look at how German law handles cases of hate speech.

FACT CHECK: Are people punished for using Nazi slogans in Germany?

Last week, a video clip showing people chanting “foreigners out” and “Germany for Germans” to the tune of “L’Amour Toujours” by Gigi D’Agostino spread rapidly online, and sparked calls for consequences for those involved.

Since then a series of similar incidents have been reported at various events across Germany, including: men seen singing the racist lyrics at ‘Schlagermove’ in Hamburg, two men arrested at Erlangen’s ‘Bergkirchweih’ festival for the same action, and in Stuttgart supporters of the Turkish football club Galatasaray Istanbul erupted in bouts of the chant celebrating their team’s victory.

In all of these incidents police reports were made. 

Regarding the Sylt incident, public prosecutors have already opened investigations on the suspicion of incitement to hatred for several of the people involved.

READ ALSO: Outrage after partygoers filmed shouting racist chants on German island of Sylt

Many of them have reportedly lost their jobs over the incident, and public protests have popped up against far-right and racist behaviour. But it could be a while before prosecutors officially decide if charges should be brought in this case. 

For foreigners living in Germany, the incident brings an interesting question to mind: in which cases exactly is racist or xenophobic speech illegal in Germany?

The Local takes a look at the German laws around hate speech, and what actions are punishable by law.

What is considered hate speech according to German law?

In general, Germany places high importance on the freedom of speech. This is why all kinds of groups, regardless of where they stand on the political spectrum, can speak, rally and protest freely in this country.

However, given Germany’s history, when current laws were written, some rules were put in place that were meant to prevent people from targeting minorities with hateful speech. Additionally, glorifying the Holocaust, or denying the fact that it happened, is a punishable offence.

Specifically, incitement to hatred (Volksverhetzung) is illegal, according to section 130 of Germany’s penal code.

Here it is written that, “Whoever, in a manner that is likely to disturb the public peace, incites hatred against a national, racial, religious or ethnic group…”, can be imprisoned for up to five years.

Additionally, a person can face up to three years in prison for either creating or disseminating content that incites hatred along the same lines.

Further sub-sections of the law clarify that either approving of crimes committed by the Nazis, or denying or trivialising them, in a manner that disturbs the public peace can also be punished with jail time up to five years or a fine. The same goes for creating or sharing content that delivers a message along those lines.

One well-known case against a Holocaust denier was held in 2007 when Germar Rudolf was sentenced to two and half years in prison for publishing “research” meant to disprove the Nazi’s use of gas chambers in concentration camps, among other things.

How is the law applied in practice?

While Germany’s hate speech ban sounds like an obvious and simple rule in theory, things quickly get a bit more complicated when it comes to enforcing it.

Whereas it is quite easy to identify racism or xenophobia as soon as you see or hear it, whether it qualifies as criminal conduct, according to the law, can be tricky to determine.

“This is the case if a statement violates a specific prohibition under criminal law,” Sonja Eichwede, legal policy spokeswoman of the SPD parliamentary group, told The Local. “For example, anyone who uses slogans of anti-constitutional organisations, calls for or condones criminal acts or incites hatred against certain groups of people will be prosecuted.”

Such was the case in the recent trial of Björn Höcke, a far-right AfD politician in Thuringia, who was fined €13,000 for closing a political speech with the rallying cry, “Everything for Germany”, which is a slogan known to have been used by the Nazi party.

READ ALSO: Hitler or Höcke? Regional AfD boss cuts short German TV interview

German law books in front of prosecutor

The German Criminal Code (StGB) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (StPO) stand next to a federal prosecutor in the courtroom. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Oliver Berg

What consequences could those seen at Sylt face?

The slogan heard at the incident at Sylt – “Germany for Germans, foreigners out” – is a chant that was used by Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, and has also been used by the far-right National Democratic party.

So it is possible that the people who disturbed the peace by saying these phrases on camera could be charged, and face hefty fines or even a prison sentence. But whether or not the law has been broken will need to be determined by prosecutors.

According to Eichwede, whether or not charges can be brought is reviewed on a case by case basis: “When this limit is exceeded can only be determined according to the specific circumstances of each individual case.”

She added: “Racist motives are given special consideration by the courts when determining the sentence and lead to a higher penalty.”

Short of using language known specifically to have been used by the Nazi party, or a terrorist organisation, incitement to hatred becomes trickier to establish.

But use of any language which targets a minority group, or which assaults someone’s human dignity based on their belonging to a certain religious or racial group, can be charged.

Other laws that have been applied against hate speech

Beyond the basic protections established in Section 130, there are a few other German codes that have been used to prosecute Holocaust deniers and fascist propagandists.

Similar to slander or libel laws, Germany’s Chapter 14 prohibits malicious gossip against citizens or defamation against politicians. It also includes a ban on defiling the memory of the dead.

In 2007, Holocaust denier and publisher of neo-Nazi propaganda, Ernst Zündel, was convicted of violating the memory of the dead. This charge was included in a broader incitement to hatred case, and he was sentenced to five years in prison.

Crucially, these kinds of insult-law cases can only be brought with the consent of the victim or the victim’s family.

Sections 86 and 86a ban online or offline distribution of “flags, insignia, uniforms, slogans and forms of greeting” that are known to belong to political parties and organisations that are considered unconstitutional by the Federal Constitutional Court, including Nazis and neo-Nazis.

Finally, the most recent addition to Germany’s legal protections against hate speech came in 2017 in the form of the Network Enforcement Act.

According to this law, social media companies are responsible for deleting hate speech on their platforms in Germany, and face up to €50 million in fines if they don’t.

Following a series of far-right terror attacks carried out by perpetrators who had been radicalised on the internet, the act was tightened in 2020.

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