The Progressive People's Party (german: Fortschrittliche Volkspartei, FVP) was a social liberal

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featu ...

of the late

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 ...

History

It was formed on 6 March 1910 as a merger of Free-minded People's Party, Free-minded Union and German People's Party in order to unify various fragmented liberal groups represented in parliament. Already during the 1907 federal election, the two Free-minded parties had joined forces supporting

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Bernhard von Bülow Bernhard Heinrich Karl Martin, Prince of Bülow (german: Bernhard Heinrich Karl Martin Fürst von Bülow ; 3 May 1849 – 28 October 1929) was a German statesman who served as the foreign minister for three years and then as the chancellor of t ...

, who had promised to implement structural reforms. This disputed ''Bülow-Block'' led to the split-off of the

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

Democratic Union (DV) under

Rudolf Breitscheid Rudolf Breitscheid (2 November 1874 – 28 August 1944) was a German politician and leading member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) during the Weimar Republic. Once leader of the liberal Democratic Union, he joined the SPD in ...

and

Theodor Barth Theodor Barth (16 July 1849, Duderstadt – 3 June 1909, Baden-Baden) was a German liberal politician and publicist. He was a member of the Reichstag between 1881 and 1884, between 1885 and 1898, and between 1901 and 1903. Career Barth star ...

. Nevertheless, after Bülow's resignation in 1909 the major social liberal parties were able to join in an effective union. The Progressives demanded full equal voting rights for all, the abolition of the Prussian three-class franchise system, a new

local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct v ...

law and amendments to the Imperial Constitution transforming the empire into a

parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

democratic monarchy. They also advocated the

separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular s ...

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...

, a

progressive taxation A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases.Sommerfeld, Ray M., Silvia A. Madeo, Kenneth E. Anderson, Betty R. Jackson (1992), ''Concepts of Taxation'', Dryden Press: Fort Worth, TX The term ''progr ...

as well as safety, health and welfare of people at work. The party thereby distanced itself from Conservatives and the National Liberal Party. Leading members like Friedrich Naumann were still favouring

economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic libera ...

, but gradually turned to the concept of a

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equita ...

. However, a cooperation with the Social Democrats remained disputed. By 1912, the party was represented in 19

states of the German Empire The German Empire consisted of 25 constituent states and an Imperial Territory, the largest of which was Prussia. These states, or ''Staaten'' (or ''Bundesstaaten'', i.e. federal states, a name derived from the previous North German Confederation; ...

, including the Alsatian Progress Party branch in the Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine. Constituents were mainly

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

and

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

s, but also

employee Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any ot ...

s and unionists. The Progressives became a major force in German parliamentarism especially during

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, ...

. Though the circles around Naumann initially defended a German-dominated '' Mitteleuropa'' concept, the moderate forces led by

Ludwig Quidde Ludwig Quidde (; 23 March 1858, Free City of Bremen – 4 March 1941) was a German politician and pacifist who is mainly remembered today for his acerbic criticism of German Emperor Wilhelm II. Quidde's long career spanned four different era ...

demanding peace negotiations prevailed. In July 1917, the party joined with the Social Democratic Party and the Catholic Centre to form the '' Reichstag'' majority that would pass the famous Peace Resolution. However, the initiative was not taken up by the government of Chancellor Georg Michaelis. When the Progressive Friedrich von Payer became

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor ...

in November, all opportunities were missed. The party was disbanded in 1918 after the fall of the empire, with most of its members joining the new

German Democratic Party The German Democratic Party (, or DDP) was a center-left liberal party in the Weimar Republic. Along with the German People's Party (, or DVP), it represented political liberalism in Germany between 1918 and 1933. It was formed in 1918 from the ...

(''Deutsche Demokratische Partei'') of the

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 ...

, merging the Progressives with the

of the old National Liberal Party.

History

See also