"Der Stahlhelm" was formed on 25 December 1918 in Magdeburg, Germany, by the factory owner and first World War-disabled reserve officer Franz Seldte. After the 11 November armistice, the Army had been split up and the newly established German "Reichswehr" according to the Treaty of Versailles was to be confined to no more than 100,000 men. Similar to the numerous "Freikorps", which upon the Revolution of 1918–1919 were temporarily backed by the Council of the People's Deputies under Chancellor Friedrich Ebert (Ebert–Groener pact), "Der Stahlhelm" ex-servicemen's organization was meant to form a paramilitary organization.