North Rhine-Westphalia: He should be the new head of state: Who is Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuss?

A right-wing extremist group made up of “Reich citizens” and conspiracy ideologues is said to have planned a putsch in Germany. Henry XIII is considered one of the ringleaders. Prince Reuss. Who is the man?

25 people were arrested on Wednesday in a large-scale raid in Germany, Austria and Italy. According to the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office, they wanted to overthrow the political system in Germany, install a new government by force of arms and accept the risk of death in the process.

According to the authorities, the group consists of so-called Reich citizens and right-wing extremists. At the center of the investigation is Henry XIII. Prince Reuss, who is now in custody. What is known about the man so far.

Who is Henry XIII. Prince Reuss?

He is one of six children of Heinrich I. Prince Reuss (1910-1982) and Woizlawa-Feodora Duchess of Mecklenburg (1918-2019). Henry XIII was born in Büdingen on December 4, 1951 and works as a real estate entrepreneur. The qualified engineer lives in Frankfurt am Main and is the owner of the Waidmannsheil hunting lodge in Bad Lobenstein in East Thuringia. He was arrested at his home in Frankfurt.

What is he accused of?

The 71-year-old is one of the main suspects and is the investigators as a “ringleader”. According to the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office, he is involved in the formation of a “terrorist organization that has set itself the goal of overcoming the existing state order in Germany and replacing it with its own form of government that has already been worked out in outline”.

The members of the association were aware that this project could only have been realized through the use of military means and violence against state representatives. This includes “the commission of homicides”.

What role would the businessman have played in a coup?

According to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, he was considered “the association’s future head of state”. A (military) transitional government was to be formed in negotiations with the allied victorious powers of the Second World War. The central point of contact for this was currently the Russian Federation.

He had made corresponding contacts with Russian representatives. According to previous investigations, however, there are no indications that the contact persons had reacted positively to his request.

Which political theses does he represent?

Henry XIII Prince Reuss has already attracted attention in the past with crude theses. In 2019 he spoke as a speaker at a “Worldwebforum” and claimed, among other things, that Germany has not been a sovereign state since the Second World War, but is administered by the Allies. Thuringia’s state secret service president Stephan Kramer said the 71-year-old was “extremely active” in Thuringia.

What’s up with his hunting lodge?

The property is listed in the Bad Lobenstein business directory as the seat of Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuss & Anderson & Peters Ltd. Residents told the news channel “ntv” that the prince bought the hunting lodge in the early 1990s. Investigators suspected a weapons depot there, but this has not been confirmed.

According to information from the “Ostthüringer Zeitung”, the hunting lodge has been fenced in more and more over the years, which could be an indication of criminal activities. After personal encounters, local residents described the prince as an “arrogant bird” who always wanted to be greeted first.

What role does his Russian partner play?

Reuss’s partner, the Russian Vitalia B., was also arrested during the raid. According to the Attorney General, she is strongly suspected of “supporting the association in particular by helping the accused Henry XIII PR to contact representatives of the Russian Federation”.

Is the accused a right-wing extremist “Reich citizen”?

Thuringia’s Interior Minister Georg Maier (SPD) sees him as part of a “Reichsbürger” network: “You can say that he plays a role here.” The incumbent mayor of Bad Lobenstein, Klaus Möller (left), also wants to know “that he is included in this scene”.

Möller himself took office after a bizarre incident. The previous mayor, Thomas Weigelt, was removed from office after allegedly attacking a newspaper reporter in mid-August. A video shows Henry XIII. Prince Reuss standing at a nearby table during the incident. According to media reports, the Reuss family then distanced themselves from the relative.

How does the family feel about the prince?

Henry XIII According to Prince Heinrich XIV, the spokesman for the House of Reuss, he is a “partially confused” man who is caught up in “conspiracy theory misconceptions”. He told the MDR. Accordingly, Heinrich left the family network 14 years ago, and there has been no personal contact for a long time.

For an opinion was Henry XIII. Prince Reuss could not be reached by WDR on Wednesday.

We will report on this topic on Wednesday, December 7th, 2022, continuously in our television and radio programs.

Source: wdr.de