Richard Huelsenbeck travelled to Zurich and saw the Cabaret Voltaire and helped develop the early days of the Dada Movement.

In January 1917, he then returned to Berlin and started a similar group there. They amplified on the simultaneous poem performances they learned in Zurich.

The political and economic climate of the times was very significant to the development of this group. They remembered the aftermath of WWI which was devastating to the German society. They opposed the creation of the Weimar Republic.

Members of the group include: