The Apparatus

The Antimilitärischer Apparat, also known as the Militärischer Apparat (M-Apparat), Abteilung Militärpolitik, Militärpolitischer Apparat oder Der Apparat, or simply Der Apparat, was the intelligence service of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) from 1920 to 1937. Initially, the intelligence service was controlled and financed by the Communist International (Comintern) and later by the Politburo of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). In the early 1920s, the AM-Apparat was intended to prepare for a communist revolution in Germany, which would be known as German October. When the revolution failed, the KPD decided in 1925 that the AM-Apparat should transform into a secret network that monitored KPD functionaries and members. After the Nazis seized power in 1933, Der Apparat, under Soviet influence, became a spy organization that reported directly to the CPSU and the Soviet Red Army and operated independently of the KPD leadership. The intelligence service failed to establish effective resistance against the Nazis in Germany.