Irene Goergens (born 29 April 1951) is a former member of the

West German West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

terrorist group, the

Red Army Faction The Red Army Faction (RAF, ; , ),See the section "Name" also known as the Baader–Meinhof Group or Baader–Meinhof Gang (, , active 1970–1998), was a West German far-left Marxist-Leninist urban guerrilla group founded in 1970. The ...

(RAF). In March 1971 she was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison for her role in the prison escape of

Andreas Baader Berndt Andreas Baader (6 May 1943 – 18 October 1977) was one of the first leaders of the West German left-wing militant organization Red Army Faction (RAF), also commonly known as ''the Baader-Meinhof Group''. Life Andreas Baader was born in ...

in May 1970.

Life

Irene Goergens was born to an American

G.I. G.I. are initials used to describe the soldiers of the United States Army and airmen of the United States Air Force and general items of their equipment. The term G.I. has been used as an initialism of "Government Issue", "General Issue", or " ...

and a German woman out of wedlock. She grew up in Eichenhof Youth Custody Home in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. At this home she met

Ulrike Meinhof Ulrike Marie Meinhof (7 October 1934 – 9 May 1976) was a German left-wing journalist and founding member of the Red Army Faction (RAF) in West Germany, commonly referred to in the press as the "Baader-Meinhof gang". She is the reputed author ...

, who interviewed her during the production of her film ''Bambule''''''; one of the characters of the film is called Irene''.'' Later, Goergens looked after Meinhof's daughters as a nanny. In 1970 Goergens joined the Baader-Meinhof-Gruppe, which carried out terrorist attacks from 1971 as the Rote Armee Fraktion (known in English as the

). Goergens played a decisive role in

's escape from custody on 14 May 1970. She and

Astrid Proll Astrid Huberta Isolde Marie Luise Hildegard Proll (born 29 May 1947) was an early member of the Red Army Faction (Baader-Meinhof Gang). She is a photo editor and published a book. As a Baader-Meinhof member Proll was the younger sister of Thorwal ...

procured weapons for the escape, and spied on the German Central Institute for Social Issues in order to guarantee that the operation went smoothly. During the escape, Goergens, Meinhof and Schubert entered the library of the prison in which Baader was being housed under the pretense of a false "book deal". Goergens and Schubert entered carrying suitcases, then opened a door to admit a masked gunman into the room. They then drew pistols out of their suitcases, firing shots which wounded a 64-year-old librarian. Baader, the masked gunman and the three women then fled through a window. On 29 September 1970, Goergens took part in a bank robbery in

, which became known as the "Dreierschlag" ("Triple Strike" in English). On 8 October 1970. Goergens was arrested at an apartment in Berlin, along with RAF lawyer

Horst Mahler Horst Mahler (born 23 January 1936) is a German former lawyer and political activist. He once was a far-left militant and a founding member of the Red Army Faction who later became a Maoist, before switching to neo-Nazism. Between 2000 and 2003, ...

and RAF members

Brigitte Asdonk The Red Army Faction (RAF) existed in West Germany from 1970 to 1998, committing numerous crimes, especially in the autumn of 1977, which led to a national crisis that became known as the "German Autumn". The RAF was founded in 1970 by Andreas ...

Monika Berberich Monika Berberich is a convicted West Germany, West German terrorist and a founding member of the Red Army Faction, Red Army Faction (RAF). She was involved in the violent :de:Baader-Befreiung, freeing of Andreas Baader in 1970, and served a prison ...

and Ingrid Schubert. Goergen's trial began on 1 March 1971, and in May 1971 she was sentenced to six-and-a-half years imprisonment for her participation in the escape of Baader. She was released from prison on 13 May 1977, after which she was no longer active in the RAF.

References

1951 births German female criminals Members of the Red Army Faction {{DEFAULTSORT:Goergens, Irene Living people

Life

See also

References