Murder of Rathenau

© WRG Memorial stone for Walther Rathenau at the place of his assassination in Berlin-Grunewald

On 24 June 1922, Reich Foreign Minister Walther Rathenau is shot to death by two members of „Organisation Consul“, which was responsible for the murder of the former Finance Minister Matthias Erzberger. Rathenau was already hated by the radical right wing because of his Jewish faith and – from the point of view of the extreme right – his „policy of compliance“ towards the allies. Reich Chancellor Joseph Wirth condemns the deed in his memorial address before the Reichstag on 25 June as a renewed attack against the Weimar Republic and declares: „The enemy can be found on the right!“