Editing Spiegel affair (section)

== Scandal ==
The quarrel between Strauss and Augstein escalated when the 10 October 1962 issue of ''Der Spiegel'' presented an article by Conrad Ahlers titled ''"Bedingt abwehrbereit"'' ("Conditionally Ready to Defend"), about a [[NATO]] exercise called "Fallex 62", which included details about the performance of the ''Bundeswehr'' and "a NATO commander’s assessment that found the West German forces to be only partially ready to defend the country."<ref name= dw/><ref name=spg/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Bedingt abwehrbereit |trans-title=Conditionally ready to defend |url=https://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-25673830.html |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927184637/https://www.spiegel.de/politik/bedingt-abwehrbereit-a-e79111b5-0002-0001-0000-000025673830?context=issue |archive-date=2021-09-27 |date=October 10, 1962 |access-date=2021-03-10 |language=de |newspaper=Der Spiegel |page=34}}</ref><ref name=EncycloBrit /> The article argued that the ''Bundeswehr''{{'}}s poor performance was due to inadequate equipment, and was therefore critical of Strauss.

''Der Spiegel'' was accused of [[Treason#Germany|treason]] (''Landesverrat'') "by publishing details that a hastily compiled Defense Ministry document claimed were state secrets".<ref name=EncycloBrit/> At 9 p.m. on 26 October, its offices in [[Hamburg]], as well as the homes of several journalists, were raided and searched by 36 policemen, who confiscated thousands of documents.<ref name=spg>{{cite news| last=Gunkel| first=Christoph| title= 50th Anniversary of the 'Spiegel Affair': A Watershed Moment for West German Democracy |journal= Der Spiegel |date= 21 September 2012|url= http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/50th-anniversary-of-the-spiegel-affair-a-857030.html |access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref><ref name=UmAffaere451962>{{cite web |url=https://magazin.spiegel.de/EpubDelivery/spiegel/pdf/45124505| title=Sie kamen in der Nacht| date=7 November 1962| publisher=[[Der Spiegel]] (online) |volume=45/1962 |pages=55–84 |access-date=18 February 2021}}</ref> Augstein and editors-in-chief [[Claus Jacobi]] and Johannes Engel were arrested. The author of the article Conrad Ahlers, who was vacationing in [[Spain]], was arrested in his hotel during the night. Augstein was held in custody for 103 days and the offices of ''Der Spiegel'' remained under police occupation for four weeks, while the magazine continued to appear each week, produced not without some difficulty, elsewhere.<ref name=UmAffaere432002>{{cite web |url=https://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-25498957.html| title=Spiegel-Affäre ... 'Dummheiten des Staates'| work=Vor 40 Jahren marschierte die Staatsmacht in die SPIEGEL-Zentrale ein. Herausgeber Rudolf Augstein und weitere angebliche Vaterlandsverräter wurden inhaftiert. Die Aufklärung des Skandals kostete den damaligen Verteidigungsminister Strauß das Amt – und demokratisierte die Republik. |author1=Georg Bönisch|author2=Hans Halter|author2-link=:de:Hans Halter|author3=Per Hinrichs |author4=Georg Mascolo |author4-link=:de:Georg Mascolo|author5=Dietmar Pieper |author6=Alexander Szandar |author7=Klaus Wiegrefe |author7-link=:de:Klaus Wiegrefe |date=21 October 2002 |publisher=[[Der Spiegel]] (online) |volume=43/2002 |pages=63–68|access-date=18 February 2021}}</ref>

News of the arrests caused protests throughout West Germany, which accused the government of attacking [[freedom of press]]. Adenauer was informed of Strauss' actions, though he initially denied all involvement, even before the ''Bundestag''. Adenauer, in another speech, complained about an "abyss of treason" ''("Abgrund von Landesverrat")''.{{cn|date=October 2020}} [[Wolfgang Stammberger]], the [[Federal Ministry of Justice (Germany)|Minister of Justice]], was deliberately left out of all decisions on the matter. Stammberger belonged to the smaller [[Free Democratic Party (Germany)|Free Democratic Party]] (FDP) in Adenauer's [[Coalition government|coalition]] government, while Adenaur and Strauss belonged to the [[Christian Democratic Union of Germany|Christian Democratic Union]] and [[Christian Social Union in Bavaria|Christian Social Union of Bavaria]] sister parties, respectively. Strauss was finally forced to admit that he had phoned the [[military attaché]] of the West German embassy to Spain in [[Madrid]] and urged the attaché to have Ahlers arrested. This was clearly illegal – as Minister of the Interior [[Hermann Höcherl]] paraphrased, ''"etwas außerhalb der Legalität"'' ("somewhat outside of legality"). Since Strauss had lied to the ''Bundestag'', on 19 November the five FDP ministers of the cabinet resigned, demanding that he be fired. This put Adenauer himself at risk, being publicly accused of backing the suppression of a critical press with the resources of the state.<ref>{{Citation | first1 = Bernd | last1 = Oswald | first2 = Daniela | last2 = Dau | url = http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/die-affaeren-des-strauss-clans-von-gier-und-groessenwahn-1.785934 | title = Von Gier und Größenwahn | newspaper = [[Süddeutsche Zeitung]] | date = 17 May 2010 | language = de}}.</ref>