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Stasi Decorations and Memorabilia, by Ralph Pickard is a three-volume, in-depth analysis of the socialist political culture of the Ministry for State Security (Stasi) of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It provides information about the organization using artifacts such as medals, certificates, and other objects to document the Stasi's awards and recognition of its members. [1] [2] Altogether, all three volumes contain over 900 pages with over 1700 illustrations. [3]
Volume I, published in 2007, was well received by academics and collectors. A review by the Central Intelligence Agency's Studies in Intelligence in September 2008 stated that, "Ralph Pickard has taken a step in the direction of preserving a piece of the East German heraldic record with his new reference work." [4] David Nickles, Ph.D. observed that, "Given the tremendous growth of interest in cultural history during recent years, I hope and expect that historians will appreciate the extent to which a book like this, with its emphasis on decorations and memorabilia, sheds light on the political culture of the German Democratic Republic." [5]
Additionally, the editor of Military Trader stated in his review (March 2008 Volume 15, Issue 3); "Researchers, historians and collectors with an interest in the Cold War or East Germany's security organization will appreciate the data in the book. A large portion of the book provides detailed information on the different award documents and timelines of when these documents were in use."
Volume II, published in early 2012, has been well received by both the East German collecting and academic communities. Colonel (Ret) Friedrich Jeschonnek, a book reviewer for Hardthöhenkurier magazine stated that there is a lot of literature on the Stasi that has focused on secret operations and structure. However, there has been very little work that has focused on Stasi culture which has been revealed in the photos, certificates and documents that have now been illustrated by both Volume I and II (Issue 3/2012). He further stated, for those who are concerned with the history of the GDR, the inner workings of the Secret Police and Phaleristics of the armed forces, both Volumes I and II are a must. [6]
Hayden Peake, a book reviewer, wrote in the September 2012 Volume 56 issue of Studies in Intelligence that both Volume I and II were invaluable for those concerned in knowing more about Stasi history and culture. [7]
Volume I
Volume II
Volume III
The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the Stasi, an abbreviation of Staatssicherheit, was the state security service of East Germany from 1950 to 1990.
Erich Fritz Emil Mielke was a German communist official who served as head of the East German Ministry for State Security, better known as the Stasi, from 1957 until shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
The Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment was the paramilitary wing of the Ministry for State Security (Stasi), the security service of the German Democratic Republic (GDR).
Werner Teske was an East German Hauptmann (Captain) of the Ministry for State Security (Stasi). Teske was a senior intelligence officer in the Stasi's economic espionage division when he was accused of plotting to defect to West Germany with sensitive information and embezzled money. In the one-day trial, Teske was found guilty of espionage and desertion. He was sentenced to death and subsequently executed in June 1981.
The Distinguished Service Medal of the National People's Army, or "Medal of Merit of the National People's Army", was a medal issued in the German Democratic Republic (GDR).
The Sportvereinigung Dynamo was the sport association of the security agencies of former East Germany.
The Medal For Faithful Service in the National People’s Army was a medal issued in the German Democratic Republic (GDR).
Bruno Beater was an East German intelligence officer and politician. He served as First Deputy Minister of State Security in the administrations of Walter Ulbricht and Erich Honecker.
The Medal for Exemplary Border Service was a national award issued in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was established on 28 May 1954, by the Council of Ministers of the GDR with Order No. 47/54 from the Ministry of Interior on 16 June 1954. The first presentation ceremony took place on 1 July 1954, to members of the German Border Police.
Willy Riedel was a highly decorated Major in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. The Knight's Cross, and its variants were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was severely wounded in early 1943 by a grenade splinter and taken prisoner of war by the Soviet Army. Following World War II, he served in the National People's Army of East Germany.
The Medal Brotherhood in Arms of the National People’s Army was a medal issued in the German Democratic Republic (GDR).
Günter Voigt, is a military scientist and retired major general, whose last assignment was as Deputy Commander in Chief and Chief of Staff of the Air Forces of the National People's Army in the former East Germany.
Zersetzung was a psychological warfare technique used by the Ministry for State Security (Stasi) to repress political opponents in East Germany during the 1970s and 1980s. Zersetzung served to combat alleged and actual dissidents through covert means, using secret methods of abusive control and psychological manipulation to prevent anti-government activities. People were commonly targeted on a pre-emptive and preventive basis, to limit or stop activities of dissent that they may have gone on to perform, and not on the basis of crimes they had actually committed. Zersetzung methods were designed to break down, undermine, and paralyze people behind "a facade of social normality" in a form of "silent repression".
Helmut Müller-Enbergs is a German political scientist who has written extensively on the Stasi and related aspects of the German Democratic Republic's history.
An unofficial collaborator or IM, or euphemistically informal collaborator, was an informant in the German Democratic Republic who delivered private information to the Ministry for State Security. At the end of the East German government, there was a network of around 189,000 informants, working at every level of society.
Jens Gieseke is a German historian. His work is focused on the German Democratic Republic and its Ministry for State Security.
Edgar Braun is a former Major general in the East German Ministry for State Security . He was in charge of the service's Central Department for transport, mail and tele-communications.
Manfred Döring was a former Major general (Generalmajor) with the East German Ministry for State Security (Stasi). He also served, between 1987 and 1990, as a commander of the elite motorised rifles regiment, the Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards.
William Borm was a German politician, of the Free Democratic Party (FDP). He was a member of the Bundestag from 1965 to 1972, and a member of the FDP National Executive Committee from 1960 to 1982. Several years after his death, it was revealed that since the late 1950s he had been an agent of the Stasi, the State Security Service of the German Democratic Republic.
The Minister's Working Group/"S" (AGM/S) was a special forces unit under Stasi control.