Carl Windhoff (1882–1940) was a German syndicalist trade unionist. He joined 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) in 1890. He was one of the most important SPD leaders

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

until he left the party in 1901. He then joined the

Free Association of German Trade Unions Free may refer to: Concept * Freedom, the ability to act or change without constraint or restriction * Emancipate, attaining civil and political rights or equality * Free (''gratis''), free of charge * Gratis versus libre, the difference bet ...

(FVdG) and became one of its most prominent members in the

Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...

. In 1913,

Fritz Kater Fritz Kater (1861–1945) was a German trade unionist, publisher, and anarcho-syndicalist. He was active in the Free Association of German Trade Unions (FVdG) and its successor organization, the Free Workers' Union of Germany. He edited the FVdG's ...

, Karl Roche, and he were the FVdG's delegates at the

First International Syndicalist Congress The First International Syndicalist Congress was a meeting of European and Latin American syndicalist organizations at Holborn Town Hall in London from 27 September to 2 October 1913. Upon a proposal by the Dutch National Labour Secretariat (NAS ...

in London. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he was one of the leaders of the FVdG in the

Ruhr region The Ruhr ( ; , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr Area, sometimes Ruhr District, Ruhr Region, or Ruhr Valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 1,160/km2 and a populatio ...

and helped re-build the organization. He became the head of the agitation committee of the

Free Workers' Union of Germany The Free Workers' Union of Germany (; FAUD) was an anarcho-syndicalist trade union in Germany. It stemmed from the Free Association of German Trade Unions (FDVG) which combined with the Ruhr region's Freie Arbeiter Union on September 15, 1919. ...

(FAUD), the follow-up organization of the FVdG, in 1922. After the Nazi ''

Machtergreifung The rise to power of Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919, when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He quickly rose t ...

'' in 1933, he was arrested in 1937 and sentenced to three years in prison. He died three years later.

References

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External links

Helge Döhring: Carl Windhoff (1872-1941)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Windhoff, Carl 1882 births 1940 deaths Members of the Free Association of German Trade Unions Members of the Free Workers' Union of Germany