Bodo Uhse
Encyclopedia
Bodo Uhse was a German
writer, journalist and political activist. He was recognised as one of the most prominent authors in East Germany.
n junker
family was a long tradition of miitary service. In his early years Uhse was associated with the agrarian movement and was considered to be on the far-right of this group. This was evidenced by his involvement with the extremist Landvolkbewegung of Schleswig-Holstein
. He took part in the Kapp Putsch
in 1920 and for a time after this served as a member of the Nazi Party. Whilst with the Nazis he edited a newspaper on their behalf.
. He spent much of the 1930s in exile in Prague
where he wrote for Neue Deutsche Blätter, a German language
journal that was sympathetic to communism
as well as in Paris
with his party colleague Bruno von Salomon. During this time he was involved in the establishment of the Free German University, a Paris-based body that involved both the Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party of Germany
. In 1936 Uhse was one of a number of exiled dissidents to be declared ausgebürgert or deprived of German citizenship by the Nazi regime.
During the Spanish Civil War
he served as an officer in the International Brigades
and also wrote regularly about the conflict, with some of his work even smuggled into Nazi Germany
. His experiences in Spain
and as a member of the Nazi Party saw him write the 1944 novel Leutnant Bertram which dealt with a Condor Legion
pilot switching sides to the Republicans. The novel was a success and was translated into several languages.
to join some other German dissidents in the United States
but, despite settling there briefly, Uhse and other communist writers soon left, feeling uncomfortable in the USA due to the prevalence of anti-communist attitudes. Uhse finally settled in Mexico
in 1940, becoming part of a large group of emigrant German writers and thinkers who made their home in the capital Mexico City
.
Within Mexico City Uhse found a number of like-minded exiles including Alexander Abusch
, Ludwig Renn
and Egon Erwin Kisch
. Here he co-founded the influential exile journal Freies Deutschland along with Renn, Kisch and André Simone and served as co-editor of this review from its 1942 foundation. His time in Mexico was chronicled in his diary, Mexicanische Erzahlungen, published in 1957.
. He became the editor in chief of the cultural journal Aufbrau in 1948, holding the position until 1958 when he was sacked as part of a wider purge of East German cultural life.
In 1954 he joined the Literature Section of the German Academy of Arts, the most influential cultural body in the east. In 1963 he was appointed editor-in-chief of the influential literary magazine Sinn und Form. Uhse, who was suffering from severe ill health due to a life time of alcohol abuse, died after only a few months in the post.
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...
writer, journalist and political activist. He was recognised as one of the most prominent authors in East Germany.
Early years
Uhse came form a PrussiaPrussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n junker
Junker
A Junker was a member of the landed nobility of Prussia and eastern Germany. These families were mostly part of the German Uradel and carried on the colonization and Christianization of the northeastern European territories during the medieval Ostsiedlung. The abbreviation of Junker is Jkr...
family was a long tradition of miitary service. In his early years Uhse was associated with the agrarian movement and was considered to be on the far-right of this group. This was evidenced by his involvement with the extremist Landvolkbewegung of Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
. He took part in the Kapp Putsch
Kapp Putsch
The Kapp Putsch — or more accurately the Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch — was a 1920 coup attempt during the German Revolution of 1918–1919 aimed at overthrowing the Weimar Republic...
in 1920 and for a time after this served as a member of the Nazi Party. Whilst with the Nazis he edited a newspaper on their behalf.
Communism
By the early 1930s he had defected from the far right and instead became a member of the Communist Party of GermanyCommunist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956...
. He spent much of the 1930s in exile in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
where he wrote for Neue Deutsche Blätter, a German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
journal that was sympathetic to communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
as well as in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
with his party colleague Bruno von Salomon. During this time he was involved in the establishment of the Free German University, a Paris-based body that involved both the Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party of Germany
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
. In 1936 Uhse was one of a number of exiled dissidents to be declared ausgebürgert or deprived of German citizenship by the Nazi regime.
During the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
he served as an officer in the International Brigades
International Brigades
The International Brigades were military units made up of volunteers from different countries, who traveled to Spain to defend the Second Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War between 1936 and 1939....
and also wrote regularly about the conflict, with some of his work even smuggled into Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. His experiences in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and as a member of the Nazi Party saw him write the 1944 novel Leutnant Bertram which dealt with a Condor Legion
Condor Legion
The Condor Legion was a unit composed of volunteers from the German Air Force and from the German Army which served with the Nationalists during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legion developed methods of terror bombing which were used widely in the Second World War...
pilot switching sides to the Republicans. The novel was a success and was translated into several languages.
Mexico
In 1939 he accepted an invitation from the League of American WritersLeague of American Writers
The League of American Writers was an association of American novelists, playwrights, poets, journalists, and literary critics launched by the Communist Party USA in 1935...
to join some other German dissidents in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
but, despite settling there briefly, Uhse and other communist writers soon left, feeling uncomfortable in the USA due to the prevalence of anti-communist attitudes. Uhse finally settled in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
in 1940, becoming part of a large group of emigrant German writers and thinkers who made their home in the capital Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
.
Within Mexico City Uhse found a number of like-minded exiles including Alexander Abusch
Alexander Abusch
Alexander Abusch was a German journalist, writer and politician. Abusch joined the Communist Party of Germany in 1918. He would serve as editor of some KPD publications. In 1937, he became part of the exiled KPD leadership in Paris, later in Toulouse. In 1941 he shifted to Mexico, were he became...
, Ludwig Renn
Ludwig Renn
Ludwig Renn was a German writer. His real name was Arnold Friedrich Vieth von Golßenau.Born in Dresden into a Saxon noble family, he fought in World War I on the Western Front. He wrote the book Krieg on his experiences...
and Egon Erwin Kisch
Egon Erwin Kisch
Egon Erwin Kisch was a Czechoslovak writer and journalist, who wrote in German. Known as the The raging reporter from Prague, Kisch was noted for his development of literary reportage and his opposition to Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime.- Biography :Kisch was born into a wealthy, German-speaking...
. Here he co-founded the influential exile journal Freies Deutschland along with Renn, Kisch and André Simone and served as co-editor of this review from its 1942 foundation. His time in Mexico was chronicled in his diary, Mexicanische Erzahlungen, published in 1957.
East Germany
He left Mexico in 1948 to settle in East Germany where he immediately joined the Socialist Unity Party of GermanySocialist Unity Party of Germany
The Socialist Unity Party of Germany was the governing party of the German Democratic Republic from its formation on 7 October 1949 until the elections of March 1990. The SED was a communist political party with a Marxist-Leninist ideology...
. He became the editor in chief of the cultural journal Aufbrau in 1948, holding the position until 1958 when he was sacked as part of a wider purge of East German cultural life.
In 1954 he joined the Literature Section of the German Academy of Arts, the most influential cultural body in the east. In 1963 he was appointed editor-in-chief of the influential literary magazine Sinn und Form. Uhse, who was suffering from severe ill health due to a life time of alcohol abuse, died after only a few months in the post.