Lexicon of the secret services in the 20th century
The lexicon of the secret services in the 20th century is a German-language reference work . It contains overviews and details of the work of the intelligence services from the First World War through the interwar period , the Second World War , the Cold War to the revolutions of 1989 .
The lexicon was compiled jointly by the authors Helmut Roewer , Stefan Schäfer and Matthias Uhl and was originally announced for October 2002 by the Mitteldeutscher Verlag . It was then published in 2003 by FA Herbig Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH in Munich . In 2006 a Czech edition was published in Prague under the title Encyklopedie tajných služeb ve 20. století by the Euromedia Group , Knižni Klub .
Authors
Helmut Roewer has held various positions in the German security authorities and the Federal Ministry of the Interior since 1980 and was President of the Thuringian State Office for the Protection of the Constitution from 1994 to 2000 .
Stefan Schäfer is a historian and was a long-time section head of the former Thuringian State Office for the Protection of the Constitution .
Matthias Uhl is a philosopher and German historian who has focused on contemporary history research in the intelligence services for many years.
content
In particular, it deals with the priorities of the German intelligence services, such as Department IIIb in the General Staff of the Prussian / German Army, the Security Service of the Reichsführer SS , the Foreign Office / Defense of the Reichswehr or Wehrmacht and the German post-war intelligence services, Military Counter - Intelligence Service (MAD) the Bundeswehr , the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) as the foreign intelligence service of the Federal Republic and the Ministry for State Security (MfS) of the GDR .
It represents the intelligence activities and efforts of the respective states and their intelligence services for which Germany was a focus of their activities.
For this purpose, it contains 2000 key words, over 2000 person descriptions and 1465 illustrations, some of which were published for the first time. Thanks to hundreds of references to literature and sources, these can also be used by scientific users.
criticism
“This lexicon deceives the layman, disappoints the more knowledgeable and has to horrify experts of all specializations. As a reasonably reliable reference work on persons relevant to the intelligence service for scientific or journalistic use, it is completely unsuitable, at most productive for the army of the Oagenten, rudimentary for the area of the German services (excluding the GDR). Because of its numerous rarities and individual data that cannot be found anywhere in the open literature, those interested in the secret service will still have to purchase it and will occasionally appreciate it as a treasure trove that supplements the serious specialist literature. "
“... a highly mixed lexicon, which is more likely aimed at a broader, not primarily scientifically interested group of readers ... A well-illustrated lexicon that offers a lot of interesting information, but on closer inspection - even if you look at that of the editors listed restrictions - has some serious blanks. "
"... the German publication does exhibit certain weaknesses in the international field as well as in the detail, but - and this is of some significance - the German publication also contains a great number of German names in intelligence ..."
public perception
In the ZDF telecast adventure knowledge , on " The Power of intelligence " on 29 November 2006, the book was also recommended to the public.
Scientific use
It is used for scientific processing at the Free University of Berlin and is also used as a basis by the research association SED-Staat in its writings and its biannual journal. The lexicon is also used by the Working Group on Commercial Coordination (AG BKK) founded by the BStU .
Even Eva Kreisky used this reference when researching for their work group "failed states, Para law and gang warfare" at the University of Vienna. The employee of the Federal Ministry of Defense and Deputy Director of the Institute for the Study of Terrorism and Security Policy (IFTUS) in Essen , Kai Hirschmann , used u. a. his information for his book Secret Services in the series Wissen 3000 , which appeared in the European publishing house / Sabine Groenewold Verlage 2004 in Hamburg.
Bibliographical information
- Helmut Roewer, Stefan Schäfer, Matthias Uhl: Lexicon of the secret services in the 20th century . with 1465 illustrations and organizational charts. Herbig, Munich 2003, ISBN 978-3-7766-2317-8 .
Web links
- Full review by Erich Schmidt-Eenboom
- Review (PDF; 69 kB) Bernd Stöver, Chair of Contemporary History at the University of Potsdam
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://naxos.bsz-bw.de/rekla/show.php?mode=source&eid=IFB_04-1_309 .
- ↑ Helmut Roewer: For official use only - As the head of the protection of the constitution in eastern Germany . Ares-Verlag, Graz 2012, ISBN 978-3-902732-09-5 , p. 221.
- ↑ Book recommendation in the ZDF show "Adventure Knowledge" ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Editorial by the Faculty of the Free University of Berlin (PDF; 104 kB)
- ^ Journal of the SED State Research Association ( Memento of the original from October 5, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Bibliography of the AG BKK
- ↑ Tasks of the BKK working group ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ bibliography of the Working Group ( Memento of the original on 17 January 2005 at the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link is automatically inserted and not yet tested. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 116 kB)
- ↑ Message on agentura.ru ( Memento of the original of June 9, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
