Ulbricht Group
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The Ulbricht Group was a group of exiled members of the
Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (, ; KPD ) was a major Far-left politics, far-left political party in the Weimar Republic during the interwar period, German resistance to Nazism, underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and minor party ...
(''Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands'', or KPD) and the
National Committee for a Free Germany The National Committee for a Free Germany (, or NKFD) was an Anti-fascism, anti-fascist political and military organisation formed in the Soviet Union during World War II, composed mostly of German defectors from the ranks of German prisoners of ...
, led by
Walter Ulbricht Walter Ernst Paul Ulbricht (; ; 30 June 18931 August 1973) was a German communist politician. Ulbricht played a leading role in the creation of the Weimar republic, Weimar-era Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and later in the early development ...
, who flew from the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
back to Germany on April 30, 1945. Composed of functionaries from the KPD and ten anti-fascist
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
, their job was to seek out
anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...
individuals and prepare the groundwork for the re-establishment of communist organizations and unions in postwar
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 ...
. There were two additional regional groups, the Ackermann Group in
Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...
and the Sobottka Group in
Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin, Neubrandenburg, Wismar and Güstrow. ...
. Many of the group's members later became high-level officials in the government of the
German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
(GDR).


Political operation

The tasks for the Ulbricht Group and the other communist cadres who were to return to Germany were defined at a meeting between
Wilhelm Pieck Friedrich Wilhelm Reinhold Pieck (; 3 January 1876 – 7 September 1960) was a German communist politician who served as the Leadership of East Germany, chairman of the Socialist Unity Party from 1946 to 1950 and as the only president of the Ger ...
and
Georgi Dimitrov Georgi Dimitrov Mihaylov (; ) also known as Georgiy Mihaylovich Dimitrov (; 18 June 1882 – 2 July 1949), was a Bulgarian communist politician who served as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party from 1933 t ...
held in Moscow on April 25, 1945. Dimitrov was then a high-level functionary of the
Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the Central committee, highest organ of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) between Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Congresses. Elected by the ...
, working as the assistant division leader of the International Information Division. They were to prepare the region to accept and follow the instructions of the
Soviet Military Administration in Germany The Soviet Military Administration in Germany (; ''Sovyetskaya Voyennaya Administratsiya v Germanii'', SVAG; , SMAD) was the Soviet military government, headquartered in Berlin- Karlshorst, that directly ruled the Soviet occupation zone in German ...
so the Nazi government could be dismantled. The
de-nazification Denazification () was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society, culture, press, economy, judiciary, and politics of the Nazi ideology following the Second World War. It was carried out by removing those who had been Nazi Par ...
process was to convince the people to turn over Nazi
war criminal A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...
s. The Group was to calm the German people and assure them that the
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...
would neither destroy nor enslave them; but the Group was also to convey that the German people had to understand that they bore the responsibility for the Nazis' rise to power, giving force to Hitler's policies and causing the catastrophe. The communists (in this narrative to be promulgated by the Group) had tried to warn the German people of the coming catastrophe, and were now there to help the people out of their distress. While communicating this message, the Group was to establish a basis for the future of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD). They were also to seek out anti-fascist individuals who would be willing to work with the new organizations the Group was setting up. The youngest member of the Group was 24-year-old Wolfgang Leonhard.
Stefan Aust Stefan Aust (; born 1 July 1946) is a German journalist. He was the editor-in-chief of the weekly news magazine from 1994 to February 2008 and has been the publisher of the conservative leading newspaper since 2014 and the paper's editor until ...
and Frank Schirrmacher
''Du gehst in das Institut Nummer 99''
''
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung The (; ''FAZ''; "Frankfurt General Newspaper") is a German newspaper founded in 1949. It is published daily in Frankfurt and is considered a newspaper of record for Germany. Its Sunday edition is the ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung'' ( ...
'' (May 14, 2005). Retrieved November 20, 2011
Hermann Weber
''Hotel Lux - Die deutsche kommunistische Emigration in Moskau''
(PDF)
Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung The Konrad Adenauer Foundation (''German language, German: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Eingetragener Verein, e.V.; Abbreviation: KAS'') is a German political party Foundation (charity), foundation associated with but independent of the centre-righ ...
No. 443 (October 2006), p. 61. Retrieved November 12, 2011
The Ulbricht Group left from the
Hotel Lux The former Hotel Lux in Moscow Hotel Lux (Люксъ) was a hotel in Moscow during the Soviet Union, housing many leading exiled and visiting Communists. During the Nazi era, exiles from all over Europe went there, particularly from Germany. A ...
, where they had been living in exile (some for years), and flew from
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
to
Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...
, then to Calau (near
Międzyrzecz Międzyrzecz (; , , ) is a town in western Poland, on the Obra (river), Obra and Paklica river, with 17,667 inhabitants (2020). The capital of Gmina Międzyrzecz and Międzyrzecz County. Since the Local Government Reorganization Act of 1998, it ha ...
). Some members of the Group did not know what their assignment was, nor how long it would last, until after they landed. They landed in an airfield and were met by a Soviet officer, who drove away with Ulbricht. The rest left by truck for Bruchmühle, about east of Berlin and the offices of Marshal
Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov ( 189618 June 1974) was a Soviet military leader who served as a top commander during World War II and achieved the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union. During World War II, Zhukov served as deputy commander-in-ch ...
, the first commander of the Soviet occupation zone. The Ulbricht Group began working from there on May 2, 1945, though not much could be done with the city in flames after the
Battle of Berlin The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II. After the Vistula–Od ...
. In the evening, Ulbricht met with the Group and explained their assignment. They were to cover all 20 districts in Berlin and begin building local administrations. In each, they were to seek out as many
social democrats Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, s ...
as possible, also a civil servant with a Ph.D. from each local administration who was willing to work with the Soviets and a cleric to lead a religious advisory council. Communists were to be installed in each district as assistant administrator, and to head up the departments for personnel and development. The group worked from Bruchmühle till May 8, after which they moved to the
Friedrichsfelde Friedrichsfelde () is a German locality (''Ortsteil'') within the borough (''Bezirk'') of Lichtenberg, Berlin. History The locality was first mentioned in a document of 1265 with the name of ''Rosenfelde''. In 1699 it was renamed Friedrichsfelde ...
area of Berlin. On May 6, 1945, Ulbricht gave the Soviet commander of Berlin, Nikolai Berzarin, the first list of suggested names to fill important administrative posts in Berlin. On May 12, 1945, the district administrators and city councils were appointed from Ulbricht's list without exception. Paul Markgraf, one of the ten anti-fascist prisoners of war, was appointed the "Berlin Police President", also on Ulbricht's initiative. In the beginning of June 1945, Ulbricht, Ackermann and Sobottka traveled back to Moscow to give the first reports and get their further instructions. On June 4, 1945, they met with Pieck,
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
and
Andrei Zhdanov Andrei Aleksandrovich Zhdanov ( rus, Андрей Александрович Жданов, p=ɐnˈdrʲej ɐlʲɪkˈsandrəvʲɪdʑ ˈʐdanəf, a=Ru-Андрей Жданов.ogg, links=yes; – 31 August 1948) was a Soviet politician. He was ...
. Stalin urged them to found a nationwide working class party that would remain open for the
proletariat The proletariat (; ) is the social class of wage-earners, those members of a society whose possession of significant economic value is their labour power (their capacity to work). A member of such a class is a proletarian or a . Marxist ph ...
, farmers and intellectuals. He wanted the party to work for a unified Germany and said that in his opinion, the
West West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...
wanted to split the country into partitions; so (according to Pieck) their goal was to " ompletethe civil-democratic revolution through a civil-democratic government." The founding manifesto of the KPD was written by Ackermann. In it, the new party spoke openly against a
sovietization Sovietization ( ) is the adoption of a political system based on the model of soviets (workers' councils) or the adoption of a way of life, mentality, and culture modeled after the Soviet Union. A notable wave of Sovietization (in the second me ...
of Germany. It said the goal was to "continue to its conclusion the civil-democratic transformation begun with the
revolutions of 1848 The revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the springtime of the peoples or the springtime of nations, were a series of revolutions throughout Europe over the course of more than one year, from 1848 to 1849. It remains the most widespre ...
" and, through
land reform Land reform (also known as agrarian reform) involves the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership, land use, and land transfers. The reforms may be initiated by governments, by interested groups, or by revolution. Lan ...
, to eliminate the "remnants of
feudalism Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of struc ...
". The goal the Party named was as the "establishment of an anti-fascist, democratic republic with all democratic rights and freedoms for the people". With the re-establishment of the KPD on June 11, 1945, the Ulbricht Group reached its first goal. On July 10, 1945, it moved into the KPD's Central Committee building.


Existence concealed

Until 1955 and the publication of Wolfgang Leonhard's book, ''Die Revolution entläßt ihre Kinder'' (later published in English as ''Child of the Revolution''), knowledge of the Ulbricht Group was kept secret. In Leonhard's opinion, it was kept secret so as not to emphasize the role of communist exiles from Moscow in the establishment of the GDR. After 1955, several versions of the story appeared regarding the composition of the group and the order of events leading to the appointments. There is disagreement among historians as to whether or not Stalin and Ackermann were earnest in their affirmation of parliamentarian democracy and fundamental rights. Leonhard reported the oft-cited comment by Ulbricht made during this period, "It is quite clear. It must look democratic, but we must have everything in hand." Some historians say that by spring 1945, the establishment of a communist-dominated government in the Soviet-occupied zone and the proclaimed democracy was merely a transitional stage but at least one historian believes that Stalin earnestly pursued a western-style democracy for Germany, that it was the only way he could secure the responsibility from the others, which without him, would easily have been able to deny access to the resources of 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 ...
, reparations he desperately needed as resources to rebuild the war-ravaged western regions of the Soviet Union.


Members

*
Walter Ulbricht Walter Ernst Paul Ulbricht (; ; 30 June 18931 August 1973) was a German communist politician. Ulbricht played a leading role in the creation of the Weimar republic, Weimar-era Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and later in the early development ...
(1893–1973), first secretary of the
Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (, ; SED, ) was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from the country's foundation in 1949 until its dissolution after the Peaceful Revolution in 1989. It was a Mar ...
, 1950 to 1971; chairman of the
State Council of the German Democratic Republic The State Council of the German Democratic Republic (German language, German: ''Staatsrat der DDR'') was the standing organ of the Volkskammer, People's Chamber and functioned as the collective head of state of the German Democratic Republic, mo ...
, 1960 to 1973 * Fritz Erpenbeck (1897–1975),
National Committee for a Free Germany The National Committee for a Free Germany (, or NKFD) was an Anti-fascism, anti-fascist political and military organisation formed in the Soviet Union during World War II, composed mostly of German defectors from the ranks of German prisoners of ...
(from 1943) *
Karl Maron Karl Maron (1903–1975) was a German politician, who served as the interior minister of East Germany. He also assumed different posts in East Germany's government. Early life and education Maron was born in Berlin on 27 April 1903 and was educa ...
(1903–1975), co-editor of the newspaper ''Freies Deutschland'' from 1943; later, assistant chief editor of the newspaper, ''
Neues Deutschland (, , abbr. nd) is a left-wing German daily newspaper, headquarters, headquartered in Berlin. For 43 years it was the official party newspaper of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), which governed East Germany (officially known as the ...
'' and Interior Minister of the GDR * Hans Mahle (1911–1999), editor of the German-language Moscow radio broadcasts, later chief editor of the newspaper '' Schweriner Volkszeitung'' * Walter Köppe (1891–1970), administrative director of the
Bauakademie The Bauakademie (Building Academy, also known as the ''Schinkelsche Bauakademie'') in Berlin, Germany, was a higher education institution for the art of building to train master builders. Founded on 18 March 1799 by King Frederick William II ...
Berlin until 1955, employed at the Ministry for Heavy Machinery Construction * Richard Gyptner (1901–1972), secretary to
Comintern The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern and also known as the Third International, was a political international which existed from 1919 to 1943 and advocated world communism. Emerging from the collapse of the Second Internatio ...
General Secretary
Georgi Dimitrov Georgi Dimitrov Mihaylov (; ) also known as Georgiy Mihaylovich Dimitrov (; 18 June 1882 – 2 July 1949), was a Bulgarian communist politician who served as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party from 1933 t ...
, 1933–1935; editor at radio ''Deutscher Volkssender'' in Moscow; head of the Capitalist Foreign Countries division (''Kapitalistisches Ausland'') of the GDR's Foreign Ministry and diplomat * Wolfgang Leonhard (1921–2014; went by the name ''Vladimir Leonhard''), graduate of the
Comintern The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern and also known as the Third International, was a political international which existed from 1919 to 1943 and advocated world communism. Emerging from the collapse of the Second Internatio ...
school and radio announcer at ''Freies Deutschland''; broke with
Stalinism Stalinism (, ) is the Totalitarianism, totalitarian means of governing and Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from History of the Soviet Union (1927–1953), 1927 to 1953 by dictator Jose ...
in 1949, fled to
Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...
, then to the
Federal Republic of Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen constituent states have a total population of over 84 ...
* Otto Winzer (1902–1975), Moscow pseudonym: Otto Lorenz; chief of staff for GDR President
Wilhelm Pieck Friedrich Wilhelm Reinhold Pieck (; 3 January 1876 – 7 September 1960) was a German communist politician who served as the Leadership of East Germany, chairman of the Socialist Unity Party from 1946 to 1950 and as the only president of the Ger ...
until 1956; Foreign Minister of the GDR, 1965 to 1975 * Gustav Gundelach (1888–1962), editor and radio announcer at ''Deutscher Volkssender'' in Moscow; KPD representative of the first German
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...
* Otto Fischer (1901–1974), worked at the ''
Berliner Rundfunk The Berliner Rundfunk (BERU) was a radio station set in East Germany. The station formerly had a political focus and discussed events in East Berlin. Nowadays, it is a commercial radio station with a classic hits music format with the name "Berli ...
'' radio station


Regional groups


Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

*
Anton Ackermann Anton Ackermann (born Eugen Hanisch, 25 November 1905 – 4 May 1973) was an East German politician. In 1953, he briefly served as Minister of Foreign Affairs. Life and career He was born into the family of a weaver and worked as an unskilled la ...
(1905–1973)."Namensliste der drei KPD-Einsatzgruppen vom 27. April 1945"
German Federal Archives. BArch NY 4036/517. Retrieved November 22, 2011
Leader. Went by the name "Peter Ackermann", as he was most often called in Moscow. * Hermann Matern (1893–1971) * Fred Oelßner (1903–1977), known as "Fred Larew" * Kurt Fischer (1900–1950) * Heinrich Greif (1907–1946) * Peter Florin (1921–2014), deputy representative to the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
* * * Artur Hofmann (1907–1987) *


Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin, Neubrandenburg, Wismar and Güstrow. ...

* Gustav Sobottka (1886–1953). Leader. East German politician. * (1899–1985) *
Willi Bredel Willi Bredel (2 May 1901 – 27 October 1964) was a German writer and president of the East Germany, East German Academy of Arts, Berlin. Born in Hamburg, he was a pioneer of socialist realist literature. Life and career Born into the fami ...
(1901–1964) * * Arthur Fiedler * * Rudolf Herrnstadt (1903–1966), replaced
Kurt Bürger Kurt Bürger (27 August 1894 in Karlsruhe, Baden as Karl Wilhelm Ganz – 28 July 1951 in Schwerin) was a German politician. From 1912 to 1918, he was a representative of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party. In 1919, ...
(1894–1951) who was originally supposed to be in the group * (1906–1992)Biographical details, Karl Rabb
Bundesunmittlebare Stiftung des öffentlichen Rechts. Retrieved November 21, 2011
* * * *


Sources

* Wolfgang Leonhard, ''Die Revolution entlässt ihre Kinder''. Kiepenheuer und Witsch, Cologne (1955), Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, Munich (1985) * Wolfgang Leonhard, ''Spurensuche. 40 Jahre nach 'Die Revolution entlässt ihre Kinder'.'' Kiepenheuer und Witsch, Cologne (1992–94)


Footnotes


References


External links



* ttp://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/pdf/deu/Parties%20SZ%201%20GER.pdf Aufruf des Zentralkomitees der Kommunistischen Partei Deutschlands vom 11. Juni 1945(PDF)
German Historical Institute The German Historical Institutes (GHI), , (''DHI'') are six independent academic research institutes of the Max Weber Foundation dedicated to the study of historical relations between Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germ ...
, Washington, D.C. *Wolfgang Zank
"Als Stalin Demokratie befahl"
''Die Zeit'' (June 16, 1995). Retrieved December 6, 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ulbricht Group Communist organisations in Germany Communist Party of Germany Germany–Soviet Union relations History of East Germany Politics of East Germany Politics of World War II