Papers of Weltdienst and the Bern trial re the Protocols of the Elders of Zion
Extent and Medium
575 frames
Creator(s)
- Welt-Dienst
Biographical History
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The fortnightly anti-Semitic periodical, Weltdienst, was founded by Ulrich Fleischauer, a retired German lieutenant, in Erfurt on 1 December 1933. August Schirmer, who, having already been employed at Weltdienst in the 'American Section', took over publication of the periodical in July 1939. Shortly afterwards he announced the relocation of the offices to Frankfurt am Main, where all anti Jewish 'research establishments' under Alfred Rosenberg's direction were concentrated. Schirmer resigned in August 1943, at which time Weltdienst was published in 18 languages.
Weltdienst continued well into 1944. Kurt Richter, the new publisher, was also director of an 'International Institute for the Enlightenment of the Jewish Question', also called Weltdienst. This institute organised gatherings of European antisemites "with a view to securing an exchange of ideas and experiences designed to steadily strengthen the common European defence action against Jewry".
In 1934 Weltdienst was given the task of rounding up Russian émigré experts to defend the veracity of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, at Bern. This anti-Semitic forgery came under public scrutiny in June 1933, when a right wing Swiss nationalist organisation known as the National Front began distributing it during a demonstration in Bern. A group of leading Swiss Jews filed a suit against the distributors, contending that the document, which described a Jewish plot to take over the world, fell under the ban on 'indecent writings'.
Archival History
According to a letter at the beginning of the collection, the first part of the collection came via a Jewish lawyer involved in the prosecution of Boris Toedtli, one of the most important Weltdienst men in Switzerland, who was tried for espionage. It is believed that one of the prosecuting lawyers obtained the documentation and subsequently handed it to JUNA, the Jewish press agency of the Swiss Jewish Community. The provenance of the second part is unknown.
Acquisition
Donated 1972
Donor: P. Schwed
Scope and Content
This microfilm collection of documents of the anti-Semitic organisation Weltdienst comprises 2 groups of papers: material relating to the infamous Bern trial of the 'Protocols of the Elders of Zion', c1937; and correspondence and papers relating to the activities of Weltdienst, the periodical and the 'institute', 1942-1943.
Weltdienst I
Papers relating to the Bern trial of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, including:
Frames 5-11: Alphabetical list of Weltdienst subscribers
Frames 13-18: Letter dated 28 Jan 1937 from the Jewish Central Information Office, containing a list of propagandists of international antisemitism
Frames 20-78: correspondence and affidavits etc re confirmation of the identity of defendants' witnesses, in particular Sergei Sergiejewitsch Nilus, son of Sergei Alexandrowitsch Nilus, responsible for the original publication of the Protocols, 1930-1937
Frames 79-103: Verdict and judgement in case against the distributors of the Protocols, Bern, high court, 1 November 1937
Weltdienst II
Frames 107-155: Correspondence with Kanzlei, Rosenberg etc, 1942-1943, including a handwritten (English) itemised contents description some of which is arranged under the following headings: Weltanschauliche Information; NS Monatshefte/ Dr Achterberg; Volkskunde/ Dr Strobel
Conditions Governing Access
Open
Conditions Governing Reproduction
Use Use R:\Document collections\MF54\Working Images\20\Wiener Docs frames 1-575
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Microfilm
People
- Nilus, Sergei Aleksandrovich
- Tödtli, Boris
Subjects
- Protocols of the Elders of Zion
- Documents
Places
- Switzerland