The Bremen Soviet Republic (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: Die Bremer Räterepublik) was an unrecognised, short-lived state, existing for 25 days in 1919. It consisted of the state of

Bremen Bremen ( Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state cons ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

. The republic was established amid the

German Revolution German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

(after defeat of the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

History

Eine Regierungsschutztruppe für Bremen - Plakat 1919

Preceding events

After the abdication of the Kaiser on the 9 November 1918, Germany fell into a state of instability. The

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been ...

(SPD)-led government and the

Spartacus League The Spartacus League (German: ''Spartakusbund'') was a Marxist revolutionary movement organized in Germany during World War I. It was founded in August 1914 as the "International Group" by Rosa Luxemburg, Karl Liebknecht, Clara Zetkin, and othe ...

both announced the launch of a German Republic (with the latter aiming for a "Free Socialist Republic"). This led to civil war and the

of 1918-19 with the two opposing sides fighting for power. Before the creation of the Soviet state, radical labour movements already enjoyed significant support in Bremen (due to high employment levels in heavy industry) with the SPD electorally dominating the city (a trait seen to this day). As a result, with the outbreak of the civil war, Bremen was strongly sympathetic to the left-leaning

. The revolt in Bremen began just before the abdication of the Kaiser (6 November 1918) with a

workers' council A workers' council or labor council is a form of political and economic organization in which a workplace or municipality is governed by a council made up of workers or their elected delegates. The workers within each council decide on what thei ...

being established and elected. This council sat in Bremen City Hall and managed the affairs of the small state independent of the newly established, SPD-led,

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a Constitutional republic, constitutional federal republic for the first time in ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

Establishment

On 10 January, the worker's council declared the republic setting up the Soviet of People's Representatives within the city. Teachers, most notably Johann Knief, made up the bulk of the leadership professing support for many

Leninist Leninism is a political ideology developed by Russian Marxist revolutionary Vladimir Lenin that proposes the establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat led by a revolutionary vanguard party as the political prelude to the establishm ...

theories. The Soviet of People's Representatives replaced the worker's council and was also housed within the city hall. After its formation, the council passed much reformist legislation including the requirement to equal pay. The long term aim, though never realised, was also to nationalise the economy of Bremen by establishing a dictatorship of the proletariat.

Defeat

By early 1919, the

held a strong enough position in the civil war to challenge the state. As a result,

Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert (; 4 February 187128 February 1925) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and the first president of Germany from 1919 until his death in office in 1925. Ebert was elected leader of the SPD on t ...

sent the

Freikorps (, "Free Corps" or "Volunteer Corps") were irregular German and other European military volunteer units, or paramilitary, that existed from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. They effectively fought as mercenary or private armies, rega ...

into Bremen to successfully topple the republic. Unlike the Bavarian Soviet Republic the suppression of the worker's council in Bremen cost the lives of over 80 individuals (including the leaders who were executed). The Bremen Soviets fell quickly due to the geographical nature of the state (it was surrounded by Weimar Germany controlled territory so could not source support from the Spartacus League). The city of

fell on 4 February with Bremerhaven holding out until it was defeated on 8/9 February.

Government

The Soviet of People's Representatives held the role of legislature and totaled nine representatives consisting of three members of the Bremen Radical Left, three

USPD The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Unabhängige Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, USPD) was a short-lived political party in Germany during the German Empire and the Weimar Republic. The organization was establis ...

members led by Alfred Henke and three independent soldiers. Johann Knief, a member of the

International Communists of Germany International Communists of Germany (Internationalen Kommunisten Deutschlands; IKD) was a Communist political grouping founded in November 1918 during the German Revolution. The small party was, together with the better known Spartacist League, on ...

, held significant influence within the republic holding the role of People's Commissar. It was formed from the worker's council established in November 1918 with a similar membership makeup.

References

External links

Group Workers' Policy: The Bremen Left Radicals. From the history of the Bremen workers' movement until 1920.
(PDF; 5,1 MB) (In German)
The Bremerhaven Republic from a syndicalist perspective.
(PDF; 894 kB) (In German) {{Authority control 1919 in Germany 1919 in Europe States and territories disestablished in 1919 Communism in Germany Early Soviet republics Former countries in Europe Former socialist republics History of anarchism History of Bremen (state) States and territories established in 1919 German Revolution of 1918–1919