Felix Fechenbach (28 January 1894 – 7 August 1933) was a German journalist, author and political activist. He served as State-Secretary in the government of Kurt Eisner that overthrew the Bavarian Wittelsbach Monarchy. After its overthrow, he worked as a newspaper editor 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 ...

. After the Nazi seizure of power, he was arrested and later shot extrajudicially.

Early life

He was born in Mergentheim, the son of a lower-middle-class Jewish family. Felix Fechenbach was the son of Noe Fechenbach and Rosalie Fechenbach. He grew up in poverty. He had four brothers called Max, Siegbert, Mortiz, Abraham, and Jackob Fechenbach. His first job was delivering bread with his older brother Abraham in the town of Würzburg. His first best friend was called Stoffele, the girl next door. Unfortunately, she died at age 7; every time her name was mentioned, he would burst into tears. He started his very first apprenticeship at age 13 at a shoe store. He took vocational education in

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...

until 1910. Later, he worked in a shoe store. In 1911 he secured work in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

but was later fired for union-activity and because of a strike he led.

Political career

From 1912 until 1914, he was a party secretary of the SPD in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, he served in World War I was wounded, became a pacifist, later becoming state secretary (1918–1919). During

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 a pacifist and served as Private Secretary for Kurt Eisner, the prime minister of Bavaria, shortly after the war. Felix Fechenbach later married Martha Fechenbach on 27 April 1894, and to Irma Epstein on 16 October 1895, and he had a total of three children. After he was killed by an approaching SA commando, on his way to the Dachau concentration camp, his late wife Irma Epstein was able to escape with their children. He was jailed in 1922 for publishing secret diplomatic telegrams while Staats Secretary under Eisner, before the

Bavarian Soviet Republic The Bavarian Soviet Republic (or Bavarian Council Republic), also known as the Munich Soviet Republic (), was a short-lived unrecognised socialist state in Bavaria during the German revolution of 1918–1919. A group of communists and anarchist ...

. The decision was a scandal because the court at that time had no standing under the Weimar Constitution. He was pardoned in 1924. He thereafter travelled to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and worked for ''Kinderfreunde'' (Friends of Children) and criticised the SPD in his children's stories while still a member of the party. In 1929, he became the editor in chief of the SPD newspaper ''Volksblatt'' in Detmold. On 11 March 1933 he was jailed by the new Nazi government for his anti-fascist activities, and was shot extrajudicially on 7 August by members of the SS and SA in a forest between Detmold and Warburg while being transported to the Dachau concentration camp. There are two schools named after Fechenbach: the Felix-Fechenbach Gesamtschule in Leopoldshoehe and the Felix-Fechenbach Berufskolleg in Detmold.Felix-Fechenbach-Gesamtschule Leopoldshöhe
/ref> A street in Detmold and in Oerlinghausen was also named after him.

Works

*Fechenbach, Felix, Frank Meier, ed. (2009)
Felix Fechenbach Lesebuch
Köln: Nyland-Stiftung *Fechenbach, Felix (1925)

J. H. W. Nachfolger, Berlin. Revised edition edited by Roland Flade, Koenigshausen & Neumann, Wuerzburg *Fechenbach, Felix (1929)

J.H.W. Diez, Berlin *Fechenbach, Felix (1936). ''Mein Herz schlaegt weiter: Briefe aus der Schutzhaft'', Kulturverlag, St.Gallen. Revised edition with a foreword by Heinrich Mann, a contribution by Robert M.W. Kempner and a postscript by Peter Steinbach, Andreas-Haller-Verlag, Passau 1987. *Fechenbach, Felix (1937). ''Der Puppenspieler'', Verlag E. & K. Scheuch, Zuerich. Revised edition edited by Roland Flade and Barbara Rott, Koenigshausen & Neuman, Wuerzburg 1988.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fechenbach, Felix 1894 births 1933 deaths German male journalists People from the Kingdom of Württemberg People from Baden-Württemberg executed by Nazi Germany Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians Recipients of German pardons People from Bad Mergentheim People executed by Nazi Germany by firearm German male poets 20th-century German poets 20th-century German male writers 20th-century German journalists Extrajudicial killings by the Nazi regime Executed journalists Members of the Landtag of Bavaria People of the German Revolution of 1918–1919

Early life

Political career

Works

References

Further reading

External links