Alois Neuman (12 March 1901 – 27 July 1977) was a

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak Repu ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and resistance fighter against

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

. He was arrested and held in the

Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; 'beech forest') was a German Nazi concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Nazi Germany, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within the Altreich (pre-1938 ...

due to resisting the Nazi efforts.

Education and early career

Neuman studied law at

Charles University Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest universities in the world in conti ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

from 1920 to 1924 and received his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in law in 1925. He then worked for a health insurance company in

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 97,000 inhabitants. The city is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is the largest ...

Political career

He became a member of the Czechoslovak (People's) Socialist Party (ČSS or ČSNS) and later served as the Vice President of its Central Committee. From 1935 to 1939, he was a member of the Czechoslovak National Assembly and from 1937 to 1939, he served as mayor of

. In late 1938, after the

Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement was reached in Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, the United Kingdom, the French Third Republic, French Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy. The agreement provided for the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–194 ...

and the dissolution of the ČSNS, he joined the recently formed

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

Party of National Unity. In 1945, Neuman became a member of the constituent national assembly and was re-appointed mayor of

, serving from 1946 to 1948. He rejoined the People's Socialist Party, which became the

bloc party Bloc Party are an English Rock music, rock band that was formed in London, England, London in 1999 by co-founders Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano, sampler) and Russell Lissack (lead guitar). Their first four albums all featur ...

after the February 1948 coup d'état by the

Communist Party of Czechoslovakia The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia ( Czech and Slovak: ''Komunistická strana Československa'', KSČ) was a communist and Marxist–Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992. It was a member of the Com ...

(KSČ). Neuman advocated for cooperation with the

communists Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...

within his party. From 1948 to 1960, he was deputy chairman of the party, which had reverted to its former name, ČSS, and was a member of the National Front Action Committee. Under

Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman f ...

's government, he became Minister of Post and Communications in 1948, a position he held until 1960. In 1957, he published a memorial report on the resistance of the Czechoslovak prisoners in

Buchenwald Buchenwald (; 'beech forest') was a German Nazi concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within the Altreich (Old Reich) territori ...

. From July 1960 to April 1968, Neuman served as Minister of Justice in the government of the

Czechoslovak Socialist Republic The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, (Czech language, Czech and Slovak language, Slovak: ''Československá socialistická republika'', ČSSR) known from 1948 to 1960 as the Czechoslovak Republic (''Československá republika)'', Fourth Czecho ...

(CSR) and simultaneously as the chairman of the ČSS. The party later named him honorary chairman. Neuman was a member of the National Assembly until 1969, and then served in the People's Chamber in the Federal Assembly of the CSR until 1976.

Buchenwald concentration camp

Neuman was arrested by the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

in September 1939 during

Operation Alberich Operation Alberich () was the code name of a German military operation in France during the First World War. Two salients had been formed during the Battle of the Somme in 1916 between Arras and Saint-Quentin and from Saint-Quentin to Noyon. ...

and was taken to Buchenwald

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

where he joined the camp's international concentration camp committee in resistance to the

Nazi regime Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

. Following the defeat of the Nazis, he was one of the four signatories of a greeting from the Czechoslovak National Committee addressed to the International Camp Committee.

References

Bibliography

* * ''German people on new roads.'' Orbis, Prague 1953. * ''German ep epublic new state, new people, new life.'' Orbis, Prague 1956. * ''How I lived.'' Melantrich, Prague 1971.

Literature

* Emil Carlebach, Willy Schmidt, Ulrich Schneider (eds.): ''Buchenwald, a concentration camp. Reports - pictures - documents''. Bonn 2000, ISBN 3-89144-271-8, p. 120. * Alois Neumann, in: Internationales Biographisches Archiv 42/1977 of 10 October 1977 in the

Munzinger archive Munzinger is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Ernst Munzinger (1887–1945), German businessman, army officer and National Socialist * Josef Munzinger (1791–1855), Member of the Swiss Federal Council * Louis Munzinger (born ...

(beginning of article freely available). {{DEFAULTSORT:Neuman, Alois 1901 births 1977 deaths People from Hradec Králové District Czechoslovak politicians Buchenwald concentration camp survivors Charles University alumni Mayors of places in Czechoslovakia