Hans Beimler (Communist)
Encyclopedia
Hans Beimler was an active member of the German Communist Party and a deputy
in the Reichstag
.
Beimler was born in Munich
and served in the Kaiserliche Marine
during the First World War. A fervent anti-Nazi, he had been detained in Dachau concentration camp in April 1933, but managed to escape in May 1933 by strangling his SA
guard and escaping in his uniform. He went to Spain
as commissar
of the first contingent of the International Brigades
volunteers who supported the Spanish Republic
during the Spanish Civil War
and helped to defend Madrid
from the Nationalists
in November 1936, during the Battle of Madrid. He was killed during the battle. There were later speculation which accused the NKVD
, the secret service of the USSR, of responsibility for his death.
He wrote an account of his experiences at Dachau which appeared in the Soviet Union in August 1933: Im Mörderlager Dachau: Vier Wochen unter den braunen Banditen, Verlagsgenossenschaft ausländischer Arbeiter in der UdSSR, Moscow and Leningrad, 1933. It was one of the very first published accounts of life inside a Nazi concentration camp and was translated into several languages, including English, Spanish and French.
He is buried at the Montjuïc Cemetery, Barcelona
.
He became well-known because of a song of Ernst Busch
(after a melody by Friedrich Silcher
), which was then recorded by the radio station in Barcelona.
The XI International Brigade
was named in his honour.
His son, Hans Beimler, Jr. was arrested in Moscow in the NKVD Hitler Youth Conspiracy
. He was later released, along with the son of Max Maddalena, another prominent Communist, and two others.
Legislator
A legislator is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and are often elected by the people...
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...
.
Beimler was born in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
and served in the Kaiserliche Marine
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
during the First World War. A fervent anti-Nazi, he had been detained in Dachau concentration camp in April 1933, but managed to escape in May 1933 by strangling his SA
SA
-Organizations:* S.A. , a type of corporation in various countries* Salvation Army, a Christian denomination founded by William Booth* Sewickley Academy, a private school in the United States...
guard and escaping in his uniform. He went to 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...
as commissar
Commissar
Commissar is the English transliteration of an official title used in Russia from the time of Peter the Great.The title was used during the Provisional Government for regional heads of administration, but it is mostly associated with a number of Cheka and military functions in Bolshevik and Soviet...
of the first contingent of 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....
volunteers who supported the Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
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...
and helped to defend Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
from the Nationalists
National Faction (Spanish Civil War)
The National faction also known as Nationalists or Nationals , was a major faction in the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939. It was composed of a variety of political groups opposed to the Second Spanish Republic, including the Falange, the CEDA, and two rival monarchist claimants: the Alfonsists...
in November 1936, during the Battle of Madrid. He was killed during the battle. There were later speculation which accused the NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
, the secret service of the USSR, of responsibility for his death.
He wrote an account of his experiences at Dachau which appeared in the Soviet Union in August 1933: Im Mörderlager Dachau: Vier Wochen unter den braunen Banditen, Verlagsgenossenschaft ausländischer Arbeiter in der UdSSR, Moscow and Leningrad, 1933. It was one of the very first published accounts of life inside a Nazi concentration camp and was translated into several languages, including English, Spanish and French.
He is buried at the Montjuïc Cemetery, Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
.
He became well-known because of a song of Ernst Busch
Ernst Busch (actor)
Ernst Busch was a German singer and actor.Busch first rose to prominence as an interpreter of political songs, particularly those of Kurt Tucholsky, in the Berlin Kabarett scene of the 1920s...
(after a melody by Friedrich Silcher
Friedrich Silcher
Phillipp Friedrich Silcher , was a German composer, mainly known for his lieder , and an important folksong collector.-Life:...
), which was then recorded by the radio station in Barcelona.
The XI International Brigade
XI International Brigade
The XI International Brigade fought for the Spanish Second Republic in the Spanish Civil War.It would become especially renowned for providing desperately needed support in the darkest hours of the Republican defense of Madrid on 8 November 1936, when, with great losses, it helped repulse a major...
was named in his honour.
His son, Hans Beimler, Jr. was arrested in Moscow in the NKVD Hitler Youth Conspiracy
Hitler Youth Conspiracy
The Hitler Youth Conspiracy was a case investigated by the Soviet secret police, during the Great Purge in the late 1930s. Essentially a theory in search of evidence, it nonetheless resulted in the arrest of numerous German teenagers and some in their twenties and beyond, who were accused of having...
. He was later released, along with the son of Max Maddalena, another prominent Communist, and two others.