Meinhof, Ulrike (1934-1976), was a German terrorist and coleader with Andreas Baader of a 1970’s anarchist guerrilla organization called the Red Army Faction. The organization was popularly known as the Baader-Meinhof Gang.
Ulrike Marie Meinhof was born in Oldenburg, Germany, on Oct. 7, 1934. She was educated at Marburg University. While still a student, she campaigned against nuclear weapons and called for a unified, nuclear-free “Greater Germany.” After graduating, Meinhof worked as a journalist. Following a meeting with Andreas Baader, a convicted arsonist, she became committed to the use of violence to bring about change in society. In 1970, Meinhof helped Baader to escape from prison and collaborated with him in organizing the Red Army Faction.
Over the next few years, the Red Army Faction committed acts of terrorism, including bombings, kidnappings, robberies, and murders. The aim of the group was to overthrow the “materialist” order of the Federal German Republic (West Germany, now part of Germany). Meinhof used her abilities as a journalist to formulate the group’s ideology. By the summer of 1972, the West German authorities had arrested most of the gang, including Meinhof herself. In 1974, she was convicted and sentenced to eight years imprisonment. She committed suicide in her cell on May 9, 1976.
