Freikorps

In this episode, we explore the Freikorps, irregular volunteer paramilitary units that evolved from 18th- and 19th-century mercenary formations into some of the most violent and politically charged militias of post–World War I Germany. Once associated with conflicts like the Seven Years’ War and the Napoleonic era, the Freikorps became central to the turmoil of the Weimar Republic, where battle-hardened veterans were used to crush communist uprisings and revolutionary movements. We examine their extreme nationalism, militarized culture, brutal actions in Germany and Eastern Europe, and the way many former members later fed into the Nazi Party, helping shape the ideology and tactics that contributed to the rise of the Third Reich.