Pro-Government Militias
Schwert (Gladio) (Germany)
Basic Group Information
| Name assigned by coder: | no |
| PGM ID Number: | 361 |
| Country: | Germany |
| Date formed: | Jan. 1, 1950 |
| Accuracy of date formed: | decade |
| Details of Formation: | US intelligence had set up a German stay-behind network after the war. It was allegedly disbanded in 1953 amid concerns that members’ neo-Nazi sympathies might be discovered by the press. However, there is substantial evidence that a Gladio operation existed in Germany despite the former disbanding. It is also suggested that Gladio was built up by the German secret service BND. (Wikipedia) |
| Date dissolved: | Nov. 23, 1990 |
| Accuracy of date dissolved: | month |
| Details of Termination: | Schwert continued to exist until revelations in Italy in the 1990s brought the Gladio operation network to public attention. On Nov. 18, 1990, Bonn said that Schwert continued to exist; another news source dated Nov. 23, 1990 says that Germany has disbanded or announced to disband it soon. |
| Termination Type(s): | none |
Former and Successor Group Information
| Predecessor group(s): | none |
| Successor group(s): | none |
| Private Military Company? | no |
| Former Group? | no |
| Former Armed Group? | no information |
| Former Rebel Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
| PGM Becomes Rebel Group? | no |
| Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
Government Relation, Support, and Training
| Government Relation: | unclear (type 1 or 2) |
| Created by the Government?: | yes | Main Creating Government Institution: | person/minister |
| Government Link(s): | state (institution) |
| If link to party, name of party: | None |
| Training and Equipment: | yes |
| Shared Information and Joint Operations: | no information |
| Shared Personnel: | no information |
| Type(s) of Material Support: | no information; Foreign government |
| State Sponsor(s): | United States; United Kingdom |
| Other Connection(s): | NATO |
Group Characteristics
| Membership: | no information |
| Primary Membership: | no information |
| Alternative Primary Membership: | no information |
| Location: | Germany |
| Force Strength: | [unknown, unknown] |
| Target(s): | foreign military |
| Purpose(s): | protect state, national or religious institutions; protect national borders and integrity; self-defense and security |
Ethnic Characteristics
| Ethnic Target(s): | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Membership: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Purpose: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: | not applicable |
Other Information
| Other Information: | Schwert was part of the Galdio network with other countries such as France, Greece and Italy. Gladio specifically refers to the Italian branch of the NATO stay-behind organisation, but “Operation Gladio” is used as an informal name for all of them. In Germany, Gladio was code-named TD BJD. Members included civilian stay-behind partisans and special agents. (Wikipedia) |
New Variables from Meta-Analysis
Purpose
| Purpose: | Schwert’s purpose was to prepare for, and implement, armed resistance in case of a Warsaw Pact invasion and occupation (Wikipedia). Groups were supposed to mount guerilla attacks in that case. . |
| Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use | cheaper mobilization; deniability of violence |
Treatment of Civilians
| Treatment of Civilians: | |
| Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: | unknown |
Reasons for Membership
| PGM Members Coerced? | no information |
| PGM Members Paid? | unclear |
| Reasons for Membership: | Civilians were recruited as stay-behind partisans (Wikipedia). |
| PGM Members Killed? | no information |
PGM Size
| Size: |
Weapons and Training
| Weapons and Training: | Civilian members were equipped with clandestine shortwave radios and had a cache of further equipment for signaling helicopters or submarines to drop special agents (Wikipedia). Training was conducted under US Green Berets as well as British experts. |
Organisation
| Organisation: | Schwert had connections to the German secret service BND. The Allied Clandestine Committee (ACC) coordinated the Gladio networks in Europe (Wikipedia). Only a tiny clique of military intelligence chiefs and right-wing politicians knew about Schwert. In Germany, Schwert was funded by the CIA; several of its leaders were ex-Nazis. Overall government-relation is unclear. The network of groups may have some semi-official status within the intelligence community. But this status is not recognized but instead hidden even from some domestic governments and prime ministers. The groups were ultimately answerable to NATO-CIA rather than domestic governments in event of attack by Warsaw Pact. |
Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis
Evidence
- Examine the evidence for this coding.