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Johann Franz Adolph Hoffmann (23 March 1858 – 1 December 1930) was a
Johann Franz Adolph Hoffmann (23 March 1858 – 1 December 1930) was a German
German(s) may refer to:
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socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...
politician and Prussian Minister for Science, Culture and Education.
Born in Berlin
Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...
, Hoffmann worked as an engraver, and then as a gilder. He joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany, and from 1890 was the editor of local socialist newspapers, then in 1893 became a book dealer and publisher. He was known for his opposition to the ways in which Christianity was practiced by the wealthy and his advocacy for a radial separation of church and state, for this he was nicknamed "Ten Commandments Hoffmann" as a result.
In 1900, Hoffmann was elected to Berlin City Council, in 1904 to the Reichstag, and in 1908 to the Prussian Diet. In 1915, Hoffmann represented together with Georg Ledebour
Georg Ledebour (7 March 1850, Hanover – 31 March 1947) was a German socialist journalist and politician.
He served as a stretcher bearer in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. He worked as a journalist on several newspapers after 1875. He joined ...
the German pacifist socialists at the Zimmerwald conference
The Zimmerwald Conference was held in Zimmerwald, Switzerland, from September 5 to 8, 1915. It was the first of three international socialist conferences convened by anti-militarist socialist parties from countries that were originally neutra ...
. In 1916, he was elected as chair of the Berlin SPD, but he opposed 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, ...
and so joined the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
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 ...
(USPD) split, becoming its chair, until 1918.
During the November Revolution, Hoffmann together with Konrad Haenisch
Konrad Haenisch (13 March 1876 – 28 April 1925) was a German Social Democratic Party politician and part of "the radical Marxist Left" of German politics. He was a friend and follower (''Parvulus'' in his own words) of Alexander Parvus.
Life ...
became Prussian Minister of Science, Art and Popular Education for a few months. During this time he tried to abolish school inspection in Prussia by the Churches and agitated for the separation of Church, school and state. His strongly anticlerical remarks he made in office helped mobilize the Catholic electorate, who feared a new Kulturkampf
(, 'culture struggle') was the conflict that took place from 1872 to 1878 between the Catholic Church led by Pope Pius IX and the government of Prussia led by Otto von Bismarck. The main issues were clerical control of education and ecclesiasti ...
. After the events of the Spartacus Uprising
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 o ...
, Hoffmann left his post as education minister.
In 1920, he was re-elected to the Reichstag, and he became co-chair of its left-wing faction, which he led into the Communist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany (german: Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, , KPD ) was a major political party in the Weimar Republic between 1918 and 1933, an underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and a minor party in West German ...
(KPD). He was elected to the KPD's central committee, but resigned in 1921 in sympathy with Paul Levi
Paul Levi (11 March 1883 – 9 February 1930) was a German communist and social democratic political leader. He was the head of the Communist Party of Germany following the assassination of Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht in 1919. After being ...
. He followed Levi into the Communist Working Group, the USPD, and then the SPD. Hoffman continued his work with the KPD-backed Workers International Relief
The Workers International Relief (WIR) — also known as Internationale Arbeiter-Hilfe (IAH) in German and as Международная рабочая помощь (Mezhdunarodny Rabochy Komitet Pomoshchi Golodayushchim Rossii − Mezhrabpom) in R ...
. In 1926 he spoke out in favor of the expropriation of the princes
Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to ...
. He lost his seat in the Reichstag in 1924, and stood down from the city council in 1928.
From 1928 until his death, he was a member of the Prussian state parliament.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffmann, Adolph 1858 births 1930 deaths Communist Party of Germany politicians German trade unionists Independent Social Democratic Party politicians Members of the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians Education ministers of Prussia