Adolf Arndt
Encyclopedia
Karl Otto Adolf Arndt was a German
politician
and a member of the SPD
.
as the son of the Law
professor Gustav Adolf Arndt, he moved to Berlin
very early with his family. There, he passed his Abitur
at the Kaiserin-Augusta-Gymnasium. Then, Arndt studied Law
, Economics
and Philosophy
at the University of Berlin
and the University of Marburg. After passing his second examination and promotion
in Marburg
in 1927, he worked as a lawyer in the famous law firm of Prof. Dr. Max Alsberg. Since 1932, he worked as a judge, but retired in 1933, stating he did not want to join the Nazi Party
. Thus, he joined the law firm of Fritz Schönberg in Berlin, helping (among others) Wilhelm Leuschner
and Theodor Leipart. After being classified as half Jewish
, Arndt was forced to compulsory labour in the Organisation Todt
.
In August 1945, Arndt was approved as a lawyer and notary in Marburg
. In November 1945, he became Ministerialrat (Head of Division) of Criminal law
at the Ministry of Justice of Hesse
.
Arndt was married to Ruth Arndt (1901–1989), born Helbing. His son is Claus Arndt, member of the Bundestag
from 1968–72 and 1974–76.
Arndt died in Kassel
. His estate is at the archive of social democracy of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation
.
. In the 1950s, he was member of the management and participated in creating the Godesberg Program
.
In 1948 and 1949, he was a member of the economic council of the Bizone
, chairing the board for law, clerk law and "DM-Eröffnungsbilanz" (statement of the financial conditions for the Deutsche Mark
). From 1949-69, Arndt was a member of the Bundestag
for the SPD
. From 1949-61, he served as corporate attorney and secretary of the SPD faction
. In addition to that, he served in 1951/52 as deputy managing director of the Bundestag board for Law and Constitutional law as well as deputy managing director of the Bundestag board for reviewing the administration of the Bund
(the so-called Platow-Ausschuss). From 1953-61, he chaired the research group "Rechtswesen" of the SPD faction.
Arndt is most famous for his speech in the debate about statute-barred prosecution of Nazi crimes, in which he states to morally feel guilty about taking part in those crimes.
In many cases, Arndt represented the SPD faction before the Bundesverfassungsgericht.
From March 11, 1963 to March 31, 1964, Arndt served as senator for science and arts in Berlin
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and a member of the SPD
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
.
Life
Born in KönigsbergKönigsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
as the son of the Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
professor Gustav Adolf Arndt, he moved to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
very early with his family. There, he passed his Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
at the Kaiserin-Augusta-Gymnasium. Then, Arndt studied Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
and Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
at the University of Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
and the University of Marburg. After passing his second examination and promotion
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
in 1927, he worked as a lawyer in the famous law firm of Prof. Dr. Max Alsberg. Since 1932, he worked as a judge, but retired in 1933, stating he did not want to join the Nazi Party
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. Thus, he joined the law firm of Fritz Schönberg in Berlin, helping (among others) Wilhelm Leuschner
Wilhelm Leuschner
Wilhelm Leuschner was a social-democratic politician who opposed the Third Reich....
and Theodor Leipart. After being classified as half Jewish
Mischling
Mischling was the German term used during the Third Reich to denote persons deemed to have only partial Aryan ancestry. The word has essentially the same origin as mestee in English, mestizo in Spanish and métis in French...
, Arndt was forced to compulsory labour in the Organisation Todt
Organisation Todt
The Todt Organisation, was a Third Reich civil and military engineering group in Germany named after its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior Nazi figure...
.
In August 1945, Arndt was approved as a lawyer and notary in Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
. In November 1945, he became Ministerialrat (Head of Division) of Criminal law
Criminal law
Criminal law, is the body of law that relates to crime. It might be defined as the body of rules that defines conduct that is not allowed because it is held to threaten, harm or endanger the safety and welfare of people, and that sets out the punishment to be imposed on people who do not obey...
at the Ministry of Justice of Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
.
Arndt was married to Ruth Arndt (1901–1989), born Helbing. His son is Claus Arndt, member of the Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
from 1968–72 and 1974–76.
Arndt died in Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
. His estate is at the archive of social democracy of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation
Friedrich Ebert Foundation
The Friedrich Ebert Foundation is a German political foundation associated with the Social Democratic Party of Germany , yet independent of it...
.
Political career
Since 1945, Arndt was a member of the SPDSocial Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
. In the 1950s, he was member of the management and participated in creating the Godesberg Program
Godesberg Program
The Godesberg Program was the party program outline of the political course of Germany's social-democratic party, the SPD. It was ratified on November 15, 1959, at an SPD party convention in the town of Bad Godesberg, which is today part of Bonn....
.
In 1948 and 1949, he was a member of the economic council of the Bizone
Bizone
The Bizone, or Bizonia was the combination of the American and the British occupation zones in 1947 during the occupation of Germany after World War II. With the addition of the French occupation zone in March 1948, the entity became the Trizone...
, chairing the board for law, clerk law and "DM-Eröffnungsbilanz" (statement of the financial conditions for the Deutsche Mark
German mark
The Deutsche Mark |mark]], abbreviated "DM") was the official currency of West Germany and Germany until the adoption of the euro in 2002. It is commonly called the "Deutschmark" in English but not in German. Germans often say "Mark" or "D-Mark"...
). From 1949-69, Arndt was a member of the Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
for the SPD
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
. From 1949-61, he served as corporate attorney and secretary of the SPD faction
Political faction
A political faction is a grouping of individuals, such as a political party, a trade union, or other group with a political purpose. A faction or political party may include fragmented sub-factions, “parties within a party," which may be referred to as power blocs, or voting blocs. The individuals...
. In addition to that, he served in 1951/52 as deputy managing director of the Bundestag board for Law and Constitutional law as well as deputy managing director of the Bundestag board for reviewing the administration of the Bund
Bund
- Organizations :* German American Bund, a pro-Nazi pre-World War II organisation* General Jewish Labour Bund in Lithuania, Poland and Russia, a political party founded in the Russian Empire* General Jewish Labour Bund in Poland, a political party founded in Poland...
(the so-called Platow-Ausschuss). From 1953-61, he chaired the research group "Rechtswesen" of the SPD faction.
Arndt is most famous for his speech in the debate about statute-barred prosecution of Nazi crimes, in which he states to morally feel guilty about taking part in those crimes.
In many cases, Arndt represented the SPD faction before the Bundesverfassungsgericht.
From March 11, 1963 to March 31, 1964, Arndt served as senator for science and arts in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
Writings
- Warum und wozu Wiedergutmachung?, in: "Juristenzeitung" 1956
- Die Persönlichkeit in der parlamentarischen Demokratie, Berlin, 1958
- Die Entmachtung des Bundestages, in: "Die Neue Gesellschaft", 1959
- Die Nichtigkeit verfassungswidriger Gesetze, in: "Die öffentliche Verwaltung"
- Der Jurist im Parlament, in: "Juristen-Jahrbuch 1960"
- Das nicht erfüllte Grundgesetz, Tübingen, 1960
- Das zeitgerechte Parlamentsgebäude, in: "Die Neue Gesellschaft", 1962
- Gesetzesrecht und Richterrecht, in: "Neue Juristische Wochenschrift", 1963
- Reform der Parlamentarischen Untersuchungsausschüsse, in: "Deutsche Richterzeitung", 1964
- Opposition, in: "Die Neue Sammlung", 1968
Literature about Arndt
- Horst EhmkeHorst EhmkeHorst Paul August Ehmke is a German lawyer, law professor and politician of the Social Democratic Party . He served as Federal Minister of Justice , Chief of Staff at the German Chancellery and Federal Minister for Special Affairs and Federal Minister for Research, Technology, and Post...
, Carlo SchmidCarlo Schmid (German politician)Carlo Schmid was a German academic and politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .Schmid is one of the most important authors of both the German Basic Law and the Godesberg Program of the SPD...
, Hans ScharounHans ScharounBernhard Hans Henry Scharoun was a German architect best known for designing the Berlin Philharmonic concert hall and the in Löbau, Saxony. He was an important exponent of Organic architecture....
(Ed.), Festschrift für Adolf Arndt zum 65. Geburtstag, Frankfurt am Main, 1969. - Claus Arndt (Ed.): Adolf Arndt zum 90. Geburtstag - Dokumentation der Festakademie in der Katholischen Akademie Hamburg, Kath. Akademie Hamburg und Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 1995