The Rathenau Society, founded in memory of Walter Rathenau, first minister of foreign affairs in the German Republic, resolved to dissolve itself on September 27. The property remaining after the publication of the complete works of Rathenau is to be used for helping the German distressed.
Walter Rathenau, statesman, industrialist, author, banker and naturalist, became after the Revolution of 1918, one of the chief figures in Germany and the first minister of foreign affairs.
He was a descendant of an old established Jewish family and was born in Berlin. After a career in the commercial field that involved international banking and the founding of the Allgemeine Elektrizitat Gesselschaft, one of the largest trusts in the world, he turned to statesmanship. His brilliant efforts to break the ring of enemies around Germany were acclaimed by all thinking Germans but the bullets of a reactionary murder band ended his life on June 24, 1922.
Rathenau was hailed as a martyr of the German Republic and his memory honored. When the Hitlerites attained power they tore down the plaque commemorating the memory of Rathenau and erected statutes to the murderers.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
