Selma Lohse (; 17 February 1883 – 4 May 1937) was a German politician who served in the Reichstag of the

Weimar Republic The German Reich, commonly referred to as the Weimar Republic,, was a historical period of Germany from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is also r ...

from 1931 until 1932. A member of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Fo ...

, she represented the

Franconia Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch''). The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper F ...

constituency. Lohse was also a member of the

Lower Franconia Lower Franconia (german: Unterfranken) is one of seven districts of Bavaria, Germany. The districts of Lower, Middle and Upper Franconia make up the region of Franconia. History After the founding of the Kingdom of Bavaria the state was total ...

district council and the

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the '' Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzbur ...

city council, serving as one of four women in the latter body.

Biography

Selma Rösel was born on 17 February 1883 in the town of

Görlitz Görlitz (; pl, Zgorzelec, hsb, Zhorjelc, cz, Zhořelec, East Lusatian dialect: ''Gerlz'', ''Gerltz'', ''Gerltsch'') is a town in the German state of Saxony. It is located on the Lusatian Neisse River, and is the largest town in Upper Lusa ...

, then part of the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) constituted the German state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: ...

within the German Empire. Unlike other lower-class children at the time, she did not begin working after completing school, instead becoming an

apprentice Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners to gain a ...

seamstress A dressmaker, also known as a seamstress, is a person who makes custom clothing for women, such as dresses, blouses, and evening gowns. Dressmakers were historically known as mantua-makers, and are also known as a modiste or fabrician. Not ...

. In 1904, she married Max Lohse, a prominent

social democrat Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soc ...

and

union leader The ''New Hampshire Union Leader'' is a daily newspaper from Manchester, the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. On Sundays, it publishes as the ''New Hampshire Sunday News.'' Founded in 1863, the paper was best known for the conse ...

, quitting her apprenticeship to become a

housewife A housewife (also known as a homemaker or a stay-at-home mother/mom/mum) is a woman whose role is running or managing her family's home— housekeeping, which includes caring for her children; cleaning and maintaining the home; making, buyin ...

and caretaker to their three children. The family moved to the

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

n city of

in 1908 after her husband became the regional manager of the German Stone Workers' Association (''Steinarbeiterverband''). Lohse first became politically involved in 1911 when she joined the

. During

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, ...

, she worked as a volunteer in "war welfare", and she was elected to the local "council for the poor and orphans" in 1919. Later that year, she was also elected to the

district council ('). In 1927, she was also elected to the Würzburg city council, becoming one of four women in the body. In March 1931, Lohse was appointed to the Reichstag of the

to complete the term of Hermann Müller following his death, representing the

constituency. She left the Reichstag at the end of her term in July 1932. Following the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

seizure of power An epileptic seizure, informally known as a seizure, is a period of symptoms due to abnormally excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain. Outward effects vary from uncontrolled shaking movements involving much of the body with los ...

in 1933, women were banned from holding public office, as politics was "considered unsuitable for women". As a result, Lohse was removed from her positions in the district and city councils. Lohse died on 4 May 1937. A silent demonstration was held at her funeral.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lohse, Selma 1883 births 1937 deaths 20th-century German women politicians Members of the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic Politicians from Würzburg People from Görlitz Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians German city councillors Place of death missing German women in World War I