The Definitive Work on German Terrorism
Journalist Stefan Aust published his 512-page masterpiece "Der Baader Meinhof Komplex" in 1985 with Hamburg publisher Hoffmann und Campe. Since then, the book has served as the standard reference on the Red Army Faction. Aust worked as an editor at Der Spiegel between 1974 and 1994 and later became director of WDR television. His unique access to RAF history stemmed partly from personal connections—he knew Gudrun Ensslin from his university days in Stuttgart during the 1960s and was able to interview her before she went underground.
The book chronologically documents the RAF's emergence and activities from the student uprisings of 1968 through the dramatic German Autumn of 1977. By 2020, approximately 500,000 copies had been sold. An expanded edition appeared in 2005 with new documents and interviews. Germany's Federal Agency for Civic Education continues to recommend the work as the primary source on RAF history.
Exceptional Journalistic Approach
Aust's research drew on unusual sources. As a Spiegel editor, he had access to RAF communications, FBI and BND archives, and police documents from Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Cologne. He interviewed survivors including Peter-Jürgen Boock and used archival material from Hamburg's Institute for Social Research. His personal connection to Ensslin gave him insights that other journalists were denied.
In the foreword to the 2005 edition, Aust describes his methodology: he analyzed court protocols from the Stammheim trial (1975-1977) and official "Texts and Materials on RAF History" from 1977. The combination of primary sources and personal contacts made the book the most comprehensive documentation of the terror group.
From Book to Oscar-Nominated Film
The book's significance became evident in 2008, when director Uli Edel and screenwriter Bernd Eichinger adapted it for film. "Der Baader Meinhof Komplex" premiered on September 27, 2008 at the Venice Film Festival and received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film in 2009. Stefan Aust received the Grimme Prize in 2008 for his contribution to the production.
The film follows the book's chronology: from the shooting of Benno Ohnesorg on June 2, 1967 in West Berlin, through Andreas Baader's liberation from Frankfurt prison on May 14, 1970, to the kidnapping of businessman Hanns Martin Schleyer on September 5, 1977 in Cologne and his murder on October 18, 1977. The hijacking of the "Landshut" airliner on October 13, 1977 and the deaths in Stammheim prison on October 18, 1977 form the dramatic climax.
Between Objectivity and Criticism
The book was predominantly well-received. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung called it a "masterpiece of investigative journalism" in 1985, and Die Welt praised its objective and factual presentation. Critical voices, notably in Stern magazine, accused Aust of being too neutral toward RAF's motives and of displaying "sympathy with left-wing extremism."
The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution used Aust's chronology in its 1986 annual report. Academic works such as "Terrorism in the Federal Republic of Germany" from Heidelberg University in 1990 cited the book as a primary source. The 25th edition appeared in 2020, and a new edition in 2023 is recommended by Germany's Federal Agency for Civic Education.
The Legacy of RAF Documentation
Aust's book documents not only the RAF leadership—Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Ulrike Meinhof, and Horst Mahler—but also the consequences of their actions. Life sentences handed down by Stuttgart's Higher Regional Court in 1977, Meinhof's death on May 9, 1976, and three others' deaths on October 18, 1977 in Stammheim marked the end of the RAF's first generation. The book traces the group's history through to its official dissolution in 1998.
With over 500,000 copies sold, "Der Baader Meinhof Komplex" shaped West Germany's collective memory. It remains the foundation for understanding an era when terrorism shook the nation. Stefan Aust's journalistic achievement lies in balancing personal proximity with analytical distance—a balance that makes the work an indispensable document of modern German history.
