Bismarckjugend
Encyclopedia
Bismarckjugend, 'Bismarck Youth', was an anti-Marxist youth movement in Weimar Germany
. Bismarckjugend was the youth wing of the monarchist German National People's Party
(DNVP).
in 1922, through the unification of various local youth groups close to DNVP. DNVP was the last of the established parties in the Reichstag
to have a national youth wing of its own. The organization was politically completely dependent on the DNVP. The youth movement was initially led by Wilhelm Kube. Bismarckjugend branches were at first centred in the industrial areas of Germany. Later the movement spread its wings to the rural eastern regions of the country.
Soon after the founding of the national youth organization (in 1922), Hermann Otto Sieveking became its chairman. Under Sievekings' leaderhip, the organization developed a paramilitary character. It also began to organize annual national youth meetings.
By mid-1923 Bismarckjugend entered a period of continuous decay. Generally DNVP was associated with the old order and was unpopular amongst the younger generation.
In July 1928 the seventh national youth meeting of Bismarcksjugend has held in Friedrichsruh
to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Otto von Bismarck's death. Friedrichsruh is the site of Bismarck's mausoleum. The meeting had particular importance to the mother party, as it was an important event to show strength after the meagre electoral result
for DNVP in May the same year. By the end of the 1920s Bismarckjugend had been revitalized and had expanded its membership.
In the 1933 National Socialist take-over
, parties other than the NSDAP either dissolved themselves or were banned. On June 27, 1933 a 'Friendly Agreement' was signed between the DNVP and the NSDAP, following which the DNVP dissolved itself. In 1935, the wearing of the Bismarckjugend uniform was banned by law.
, and sought to link the organization with Bismarck's historical legacy. Bismarck's grandson Otto gave his permission to the organization to use his grandfather's name.
Socialist Worker Youth, Sozialistische Arbeiter-Jugend). Generally the movement had a stronger appeal in Protestant areas. Strongholds included Berlin, Magdeburg
, Hesse
, Thuringia
, Lower Saxony
, Pomerania
, Württemberg
and Hamburg
.
Most of the members came from bourgeois or noble families. However the single largest affiliate body of the movement, the Bismarck League Berlin, had an overwhelmingly working class membership. As of 1922 the Bismarck League Berlin had around 6,000 affiliates, approximately 80% from working class families. The Berlin affiliate had been founded in 1920.
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
. Bismarckjugend was the youth wing of the monarchist German National People's Party
German National People's Party
The German National People's Party was a national conservative party in Germany during the time of the Weimar Republic. Before the rise of the NSDAP it was the main nationalist party in Weimar Germany composed of nationalists, reactionary monarchists, völkisch, and antisemitic elements, and...
(DNVP).
History
The organization was founded in HanoverHanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
in 1922, through the unification of various local youth groups close to DNVP. DNVP was the last of the established parties in the Reichstag
Reichstag (Weimar Republic)
The Reichstag was the parliament of Weimar Republic .German constitution commentators consider only the Reichstag and now the Bundestag the German parliament. Another organ deals with legislation too: in 1867-1918 the Bundesrat, in 1919–1933 the Reichsrat and from 1949 on the Bundesrat...
to have a national youth wing of its own. The organization was politically completely dependent on the DNVP. The youth movement was initially led by Wilhelm Kube. Bismarckjugend branches were at first centred in the industrial areas of Germany. Later the movement spread its wings to the rural eastern regions of the country.
Soon after the founding of the national youth organization (in 1922), Hermann Otto Sieveking became its chairman. Under Sievekings' leaderhip, the organization developed a paramilitary character. It also began to organize annual national youth meetings.
By mid-1923 Bismarckjugend entered a period of continuous decay. Generally DNVP was associated with the old order and was unpopular amongst the younger generation.
In July 1928 the seventh national youth meeting of Bismarcksjugend has held in Friedrichsruh
Friedrichsruh
Friedrichsruh is a district in the municipality of Aumühle, Herzogtum Lauenburg district, Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany.- History :After the victory over France and the establishment, in 1871, of the German Empire, Otto von Bismarck received the Sachsenwald as a present from Emperor William I...
to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Otto von Bismarck's death. Friedrichsruh is the site of Bismarck's mausoleum. The meeting had particular importance to the mother party, as it was an important event to show strength after the meagre electoral result
German election, 1928
The 1928, or 5th, federal election in Germany, which occurred on May 20, came one year after the ban on Adolf Hitler participating in political activities was officially lifted. As a result, the recently reformed Nazi Party was present in the elections. However, as the table below shows, the NSDAP...
for DNVP in May the same year. By the end of the 1920s Bismarckjugend had been revitalized and had expanded its membership.
In the 1933 National Socialist take-over
Gleichschaltung
Gleichschaltung , meaning "coordination", "making the same", "bringing into line", is a Nazi term for the process by which the Nazi regime successively established a system of totalitarian control and tight coordination over all aspects of society. The historian Richard J...
, parties other than the NSDAP either dissolved themselves or were banned. On June 27, 1933 a 'Friendly Agreement' was signed between the DNVP and the NSDAP, following which the DNVP dissolved itself. In 1935, the wearing of the Bismarckjugend uniform was banned by law.
Name
At the time of the founding of the organization, its name was National League of Youth Groups of the German National People's Party (Reichsverband der Jugendgruppen der Deutschnationalen Volkspartei). In the autumn of 1922 the name Bismarck Youth of the German National People's Party (Bismarckjugend der Deutschnationalen Volkspartei) was adopted, in short Bismarckjugend. The name referred to Otto von BismarckOtto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
, and sought to link the organization with Bismarck's historical legacy. Bismarck's grandson Otto gave his permission to the organization to use his grandfather's name.
Membership
Bismarckjugend organized men and women between the ages of 14 and 25. By 1928, the organization had 800 local organizations around Germany. Its total membership had reached 42,000, making it the second largest youth movement in the country at the time (after the SPDSocial Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
Socialist Worker Youth, Sozialistische Arbeiter-Jugend). Generally the movement had a stronger appeal in Protestant areas. Strongholds included Berlin, Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
, 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...
, Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
, Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Pomerania
Pomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
, Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
and Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
.
Most of the members came from bourgeois or noble families. However the single largest affiliate body of the movement, the Bismarck League Berlin, had an overwhelmingly working class membership. As of 1922 the Bismarck League Berlin had around 6,000 affiliates, approximately 80% from working class families. The Berlin affiliate had been founded in 1920.