during the kapp putsch hoelz helped form a red army in vogtland. however the activities of his mobile detachment consisting of sometimes as many as 200 armed men caused dismay to the kpd leaders, and soon heinrich brandler of the chemnitz kpd ensure he was expelled from the party. as the communist workers party of germany (kapd) was at that time bringing together former kpd activists who were disillusioned with the moderate politics of the kpd leadership, he soon joined them, finding himself more at home amongst their ranks. in the aftermath of the crushing of the ruhr red army, the vogtland was surrounded by 50,000 government troops and hoelz led his army to the border with czechoslovakia where they were surrounded by the reichswehr. the red army split up into detachments to avoid the reichswehr and hoelz was eventually arrested in czechoslovakia and then deported to austria.