Bauer Cabinet
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The Bauer cabinet, headed by
Gustav Bauer Gustav Adolf Bauer (; 6 January 1870 – 16 September 1944) was a German Social Democratic Party leader and the chancellor of Germany from June 1919 to March 1920. Prior to that, he was minister of labour in the last cabinet of the German Empi ...
of the
Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together w ...
(SPD), was the second democratically elected government during the
Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...
. Bauer's title was minister president until the
Weimar Constitution The Constitution of the German Reich (), usually known as the Weimar Constitution (), was the constitution that governed Germany during the Weimar Republic era. The constitution created a federal semi-presidential republic with a parliament whose ...
came into force on 14 August 1919, after which he became
chancellor of Germany The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, is the head of the federal Cabinet of Germany, government of Germany. The chancellor is the chief executive of the Federal Government of Germany, ...
. The cabinet took office on 21 June 1919 when it replaced the
Scheidemann cabinet The Scheidemann cabinet, headed by Minister President Philipp Scheidemann of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), was Germany's first democratically elected national government. It took office on 13 February 1919, three months after the collapse o ...
, which had resigned the day before in protest against the terms of the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...
. Although the Weimar Constitution was not in force at the time, the Bauer cabinet is generally counted as the second government of the Weimar Republic. The cabinet was initially based on a coalition of the Social Democratic Party and the Centre Party. The
German Democratic Party The German Democratic Party (, DDP) was a liberal political party in the Weimar Republic, considered centrist or centre-left. Along with the right-liberal German People's Party (, DVP), it represented political liberalism in Germany between 19 ...
(DDP), which had been part of Scheidemann's cabinet, had refused to support signing the Treaty of Versailles and did not join the Bauer cabinet until 3 October 1919, at which point the original
Weimar Coalition The Weimar Coalition () is the name given to the coalition government formed by the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the German Democratic Party (DDP) and the Catholic Centre Party (Z), who together had a large majority of the delegates ...
of centre-left parties was restored. During its time in office, the Bauer cabinet worked with the
Weimar National Assembly The Weimar National Assembly (German: ), officially the German National Constitutional Assembly (), was the popularly elected constitutional convention and de facto parliament of Germany from 6 February 1919 to 21 May 1920. As part of it ...
(the interim legislative body of the Republic) to ratify the Treaty of Versailles, adopt the Weimar Constitution and begin a fundamental reform of the German tax system. It also passed a number of social welfare laws covering unemployment relief and health insurance. The Bauer cabinet resigned on 27 March 1920 as a result of its unsatisfactory handling of the
Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch The Kapp Putsch (), also known as the Kapp–Lüttwitz Putsch (), was an abortive coup d'état against the German national government in Berlin on 13 March 1920. Named after its leaders Wolfgang Kapp and Walther von Lüttwitz, its goal was to u ...
. It was followed by the government of Hermann Müller of the SPD.


Election and establishment

The government of Gustav Bauer was created under great time pressure and extraordinary circumstances. Early on 20 June 1919, the government of
Philipp Scheidemann Philipp Heinrich Scheidemann (26 July 1865 – 29 November 1939) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). In the first quarter of the 20th century he played a leading role in both his party and in the young Weimar ...
resigned when it was unable to agree on a common stance towards the Allied ultimatum to either sign the Treaty of Versailles or face a resumption of hostilities. Germany had less than five days to accept. It was widely feared that a refusal to sign would result in the dismemberment of the German state, occupation by foreign troops and a possible plunge into civil war. At a loss over how to proceed, the Scheidemann cabinet had seriously considered handing over supreme authority over Germany to the Allies. It had been unprepared for their complete refusal to negotiate the Treaty's terms. After the cabinet's resignation, it fell to President
Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert (; 4 February 187128 February 1925) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party (SPD) who served as the first President of Germany (1919–1945), president of Germany from 1919 until ...
and the majority parties of the
Weimar National Assembly The Weimar National Assembly (German: ), officially the German National Constitutional Assembly (), was the popularly elected constitutional convention and de facto parliament of Germany from 6 February 1919 to 21 May 1920. As part of it ...
to create a new government and to decide whether to sign the Treaty. Out of this crisis emerged the Bauer cabinet. The parties themselves were split, with ongoing internal debates between those for and against signing. Under the leadership of
Matthias Erzberger Matthias Erzberger (20 September 1875 – 26 August 1921) was a politician of the Catholic Centre Party, member of the Reichstag and minister of finance of Germany from 1919 to 1920. Erzberger was first elected to the Reichstag of the German ...
, the Centre Party was willing to sign provided that some "dishonourable" clauses were struck from the text, and the Social Democrats advocated a separate, parallel note of protest. However, the DDP, which had been most vocal among the coalition parties in opposing the Treaty, insisted on making substantial changes as the condition for its acceptance. It was seen as a tactical move, an attempt to preserve the appearance of a willingness to compromise whilst remaining true to their principles. Threats by Ebert to resign and even the readiness of SPD and Centre Party to accept the DDP's demands failed to bring the Democrats on board. On the morning of 21 June, the DDP forbade its members from taking positions in a new cabinet. This made it impossible for those in the DDP who were in favour of signing (such as Hugo Preuss and
Bernhard Dernburg Bernhard Dernburg (17 July 1865 – 14 October 1937) was a German liberal politician and banker. He served as the secretary for Colonial Affairs and head of the Imperial Colonial Office from May 1907 to 9 June 1910, and as the minister of Finance ...
) to cooperate and also posed a problem for the Centre Party, which previously had refused to entertain the idea of a coalition without the DDP. Ebert, who had promised never to call for a cabinet based only on the SPD and Centre Party, had to give in. The Social Democrats in the Assembly named
Eduard David Eduard Heinrich Rudolph David (11 June 1863 – 24 December 1930) was a German politician. He was an important figure in the history of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and of the German political labour movement. After the German Revo ...
, who next to Erzberger had been the member of the old cabinet most supportive of the Treaty, as candidate for head of government. Hermann Müller, the SPD chairman, was seen as a favourite by the public. On the morning of 21 June, Müller presented the SPD parliamentary group with an almost complete cabinet list (virtually identical with the cabinet eventually appointed). David had declined to become head of government for "health reasons". According to Müller,
Gustav Noske Gustav Noske (9 July 1868 – 30 November 1946) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). He served as the first Minister of Defence (''Reichswehrminister'') of the Weimar Republic between 1919 and 1920. Noske was known for u ...
,
Rudolf Wissell Rudolf Wissell (8 March 1869 – 13 December 1962) was a German politician in the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). During the Weimar Republic, he held office as the Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister for Labour. Early lif ...
and Robert Schmidt, all SPD, were needed in their respective posts as ministers. Former minister of Labour Gustav Bauer was then named as candidate for minister president even though he had been quite vocal in his opposition to the Treaty. The Social Democrats were surprised by the choice. They asked Müller to become head of government, but he refused. Overall, the formation of the cabinet occurred with minimal involvement by the SPD, for which Müller had to justify himself shortly before the initial meeting of the cabinet. President Ebert apparently had exercised a considerable amount of influence on events (to which he was entitled under §8 of the temporary constitution, the Law on Provisional Reich Power). Since Bauer was a friend of Ebert, the President likely did not intend for him to "take a fall" as the head of government who had to sign the hated Treaty. Bauer was not a great leadership personality who could be confidently expected to deal successfully with the huge challenges posed by complying with the Treaty while fending off internal dissent both from the left and the right. Ebert's choice is seen today as a reflection of the fact that Ebert himself had only grudgingly accepted the inevitability of signing the Treaty shortly before the Scheidemann cabinet resigned. In contrast to those like David who had argued in favour of signing from the start, Bauer was – like Ebert – a reluctant convert. The choice of Bauer thus was based on a mutual feeling of party solidarity between two Social Democrats willing to take responsibility for the consequences of the lost war and on Bauer's personal friendship with Ebert. Bauer took on the thankless task, saying, "We are not standing here out of the interest of our parties, and even less – believe me – out of ambition. We are standing here out of a feeling of responsibility, in the awareness that it is our damned duty to save what can be saved." On 22 June he spoke defiantly to the National Assembly about the need to sign the Versailles Treaty:
Let us sign, that is the proposal I have to make to you on behalf of the entire cabinet. The reasons that compel us to make the proposal are the same as yesterday, only now we are separated by a period of barely four hours before the resumption of hostilities. We could not justify a new war even if we had weapons. We are defenceless, but without defence does not mean without honour. Certainly, our enemies want to take away our honour, there is no doubt about that, but that this attempt at stripping away our honour will one day fall back on the originators, that it is not our honour that will perish in this world tragedy, that is my belief until my last breath.
A final attempt to have the so-called "articles of shame" 227 to 231 removed from the Treaty was rejected by the Allies. From the moment of its inception, the Bauer cabinet was thus tainted in the eyes of many in Germany, both for its submissive acceptance and its failure to negotiate an improvement in the Treaty. At that point there were rumours of an impending military coup, and the Centre Party started to reconsider its support for signing. Ministers
Johannes Bell Johannes Bell (23 September 1868 – 21 October 1949) was a German jurist and politician from the Centre Party. During the Weimar Republic era, he briefly served as Minister of Colonial Affairs, Minister of Transport (1919/20), and as Minister o ...
and argued for a rejection of the Treaty. It was only the clear message sent by General
Wilhelm Groener Karl Eduard Wilhelm Groener (; 22 November 1867 – 3 May 1939) was a Würtemberg–German general and politician, who served as the final Chief of the Great General Staff and Reich Ministry of Transport, Reich Minister of Transport, Ministry ...
at the
Supreme Army Command The ''Oberste Heeresleitung'' (, "Supreme Army Command", OHL) was the highest echelon of command of the army (''Heer'') of the German Empire. In the latter part of World War I, the Third OHL assumed dictatorial powers and became the ''de facto'' ...
(OHL) that a resumption of hostilities would be "hopeless" that prevented the speedy collapse of the Bauer cabinet.


Members

The members of the cabinet – known collectively as the Reich Ministry until the Weimar Constitution came into force in August 1919, when the official name became the Reich government – were as follows: Notes:


Actions

After the National Assembly's June vote to accept the Treaty of Versailles by a vote of 237 to 138 with 5 abstentions, it formally ratified the Treaty and the regulations covering the
occupation of the Rhineland The Occupation of the Rhineland placed the region of Germany west of the Rhine river and four bridgeheads to its east under the control of the victorious Allies of World War I from 1December 1918 until 30June 1930. The occupation was imposed a ...
on 9 July. The Assembly continued to work on the new constitution for the Republic during the first few months of the Bauer cabinet. It passed the final draft on 31 July, 262 to 75, with the Independent Social Democratic Party (USPD), German National People's Party (DNVP) and German People's Party (DVP) voting against. The Assembly had its first session in Berlin on 30 September, once the capital was considered to be safe. On 7 July, Finance Minister
Matthias Erzberger Matthias Erzberger (20 September 1875 – 26 August 1921) was a politician of the Catholic Centre Party, member of the Reichstag and minister of finance of Germany from 1919 to 1920. Erzberger was first elected to the Reichstag of the German ...
(Centre Party) presented a package of far-reaching fiscal reforms that fundamentally changed Germany's tax system. Tax legislation and administration were taken from the states and centralised at the Reich level. Income, corporate, inheritance and indirect taxes were standardised and increased, and a one-time property levy was imposed. Various improvements to unemployment relief (a form of welfare not to be confused with unemployment insurance, which was not introduced in Germany until 1927) were also carried out during Bauer's time as chancellor. A winter supplement was provided in October 1919, and the maximum benefit for single males over the age of 21 was increased from three and a half to six marks in February 1920. In order to reduce government expenditures, a decree of October 1919 ordered all unemployment relief funds that went beyond the maximum scales to be withdrawn from the responsible municipal authorities. In the field of health insurance, a decree of 28 June 1919 bestowed on rural funds the same right of self-government that other insurance funds had. An order of 27 October 1919 empowered the minister of labour to use grants and loans to encourage "measures likely to create opportunities for employment". In December 1919, laws were passed that extended compulsory insurance against infirmity and old age to certain new classes of workpeople. The Factory Council Act of February 1920 established
works councils A works council is a shop-floor organization representing workers that functions as a local/firm-level complement to trade unions but is independent of these at least in some countries. Works councils exist with different names in a variety of re ...
at workplaces with 20 or more employees as a means of improving lines of communication between labour and management. In October 1919, a law came into force that entitled insured women to a lump sum of 50 marks from their insurance board to cover the cost of childbirth, together with confinement compensation for 10 weeks. In addition, maternity care was covered by a 25 mark payment and a daily breastfeeding bonus of one mark fifty for 10 weeks. The law entitled the wives and daughters of insured employees (both female and male) to certain types of support in connection with pregnancy. Following a similar decree issued in December 1918, an important law was issued in support of youth welfare in November 1919. The Reich Settlement Law of August 1919 redistributed large estates among smaller farmers, although by 1928 only 3% of small-scale farmers had benefitted from the law. The Allotment Garden and Small-Lease-Holding Ordinance of July 1919 provided legal protection for non-commercially used property such as workers' gardens and "Schreber" gardens (a rented plot of land used for growing fruits and vegetables).


Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch and resignation

After the failure of the
Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch The Kapp Putsch (), also known as the Kapp–Lüttwitz Putsch (), was an abortive coup d'état against the German national government in Berlin on 13 March 1920. Named after its leaders Wolfgang Kapp and Walther von Lüttwitz, its goal was to u ...
on 17 March 1920, union and left-wing leaders such as
Carl Legien Carl Rudolf Legien (1 December 1861 – 26 December 1920) was a German unionist, moderate Social Democratic politician and first President of the International Federation of Trade Unions. Biography Legien was born in Marienburg, K ...
, Arthur Crispien and
Rudolf Hilferding Rudolf Hilferding (; 10 August 1877 – 11 February 1941) was an Austrian-born Marxist economist, Socialism, socialist theorist,International Institute of Social History, ''Rudolf Hilferding Papers'': http://www.iisg.nl/archives/en/files/h/1075 ...
put pressure on the government that had just returned to Berlin after having fled first to
Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
and then to
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...
. On 22 March the unions ended their general strike, which had been central to defeating the putsch, conditional on concessions by the government: withdrawal of troops from Berlin and a decisive influence of organized labour on the makeup of the next cabinet. Ultimately the Bauer cabinet had to resign because it had been unable to prevent the Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch. It was to be replaced by a cabinet of politicians who could not be charged with leading Germany to the brink of class and civil war, precisely where it had been a year earlier. The new government was the SPD-led
first Müller cabinet First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...
, which took office on 27 March 1920.


References

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