By invitation of German Federal Minister of Defense Rudolf Scharping, President Heinz Fischer attended the barracks naming ceremony as President of the National Council of Austria in Rendsburg. Scharping praised Schmid's "bravery and courage" and stated that he is a new example for the German soldier of today. In an indication of how disobedience to Nazi authorities was still a sensitive subject in Germany, he added that: "We are not free to choose our history, but we can choose the examples we take from that history." The commanding officer protested the removal of Rüdel's name and refused to attend. American historian Fritz Stern wrote that honoring Schmid "strengthens our democratic spirit" and is a repudiation of postwar attitudes in which German resistance was taboo. The barracks was closed down in 2010. On 22 June 2016 the Bundeswehr barracks in Blankenburg (Harz) were named after Schmid.