History of the Social Democratic Party of Germany
Encyclopedia
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
had its beginnings in the 1860s, and became the biggest party of the world around 1900. In the 1920s it delivered for the first time the head of state and heads of government, but was prohibited in Germany from 1933 to 1945. The party did not exist in East Germany from 1946 to 1989, because it merged with the KPD
Communist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956...
. In the modern Federal Republic of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the SPD is one of two major parties.
Pre-republic 1863–1918
The party considers itself to have been founded on May 23, 1863, by Ferdinand LassalleFerdinand Lassalle
Ferdinand Lassalle was a German-Jewish jurist and socialist political activist.-Early life:Ferdinand Lassalle was born on 11 April 1825 in Breslau , Silesia to a prosperous Jewish family descending from Upper Silesian Loslau...
under the name Allgemeiner Deutscher Arbeiterverein (ADAV, General German Workers' Association
General German Workers' Association
The General German Workers' Association, in German Allgemeiner Deutscher Arbeiterverein, ADAV) was founded on 23 May 1863 in Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony by Ferdinand Lassalle and existed under this name until 1875, when it combined with August Bebel and Wilhelm Liebknecht's SDAP to form the...
). In 1869, August Bebel
August Bebel
Ferdinand August Bebel was a German Marxist politician, writer, and orator. He is best remembered as one of the founders of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.-Early years:...
and Wilhelm Liebknecht
Wilhelm Liebknecht
Wilhelm Martin Philipp Christian Ludwig Liebknecht was a German social democrat and a principal founder of the SPD. His political career was a pioneering project combining Marxist revolutionary theory with practical, legal political activity...
founded the Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei (SDAP, Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany
Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany, in German Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands, SDAP, was a German left-wing political party founded on August 7/August 9, 1869 in Eisenach, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach by, among others, Wilhelm Liebknecht and August Bebel...
), which merged with the ADAV at a conference held in Gotha in 1875, taking the name Socialist Workers' Party of Germany (SAPD). At this conference, the party developed the Gotha Program which Karl Marx
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
would come to criticize in his Critique of the Gotha Program
Critique of the Gotha Program
The Critique of the Gotha Program is a document based on a letter by Karl Marx written in early May 1875 to the Eisenach faction of the German social democratic movement, with whom Marx and Friedrich Engels were in close association...
. Through the Anti-Socialist Laws
Anti-Socialist Laws
The Anti-Socialist Laws or Socialist Laws were a series of acts, the first of which was passed on October 19, 1878 by the German Reichstag lasting till March 31, 1881, and extended 4 times...
, Otto von Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
had the party outlawed for its pro-revolution, anti-monarchy sentiments in 1878; but in 1890 it was legalized again. That same year - on its Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
convention - it changed its name to Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (SPD), as it is known to this day.
Anti socialist campaigns were counterproductive. 1878-90 was the SPD's 'heroic period'. The SPD's new program drawn up in 1891 at Halle was more radical than the Gotha program, 1875. From 1881-90 the party's support increased faster than any other period. In 1896, the National Liberls and Conservatives in Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
replaced the democratic vote with a Prussian style three tiered suffrage, upper class votes counting the most. They did this to drive out the local SPD which lost its last seat in 1901. However, in the 1903 election the number of socialist deputies increased from 11-22 out of 23.
Reichstag
Reichstag may refer to:*Reichstag – the diets or parliaments of the Holy Roman Empire, of the Austrian-Hungarian monarchy, and of Germany from 1871 to 1945** Reichstag ** Reichstag...
were able to win some improvements in working and living conditions for working-class Germans, thereby advancing the cause of its policies in a general way and securing material benefits for its supporters.
In the Land Parliament, the SPD was able to extract some concessions from time to time in areas for which the land Parliament was responsible, such as education and social policy. In Hesse, the Fraktion was successful in demanding that church tax be listed separately in the assessment, and it was also able to secure improvements in the judicial procedure. The SPD also had occasional successes in raising wages and improving the working conditions of municipal labourers.
SPD pressure in the Reichstag in the late nineteenth century secured an undertaking to expand the system of factory inspection, together with the acceptance of a minor reform measure in the system of military service under which the families of reservists, called up for training or manoeuvres, could receive an allowance. In the 1880s, SPD deputies in Saxony successfully agitated in support of improved safety for miners and better control of mines.
Despite the passage of anti-socialist legislation, the SPD continued to grow in strength, ascharacterised by the steady rise in membership, from 384,327 in the period 1905/06 to 1,085,905 in 1913/14. As a mass party, people from every quarter of German society sought help and advice from the SPD. With its advice service (provided free of charge by the mostly trade union maintained workers’ secretarial offices), the German social democratic movement assisted large numbers of Germans to secure their legal rights, primarily in the field of social security. There also existed a dynamic educational movement, with hundreds of courses and individual lectures, its own theatre performances, libraries, peripatetic teachers, a central school for workers’ education, and a famous Party School. As noted by the historians Susamnne Miller and Heinrich Potthoff,
“With all of this, the SPD and the Free Trade Unions were not only delivering the necessary tools for the political and social struggle, but were also a cultural movement in the widest sense of the term.”
In the Reichstag, the SPD resorted to a policy of tactical comprise in order to exercise direct influence on legislation. In 1894, the parliamentary SPD voted for a government bill for the first time ever. This provided for a reduction in the import duty on wheat, which led to a subsequent reduction in the price of food. In 1913, the votes of SPD parliamentarians helped to bring in new tax laws which finally affected the wealthy, which were necessary due to the increase in military spending.
The Social Democrats also gave particular attention to carrying out reforms at local level, founding a tradition of community politics which intensified after 1945. The establishment of local labour exchanges and the introduction of unemployment benefits were due not least to the efforts of the SPD. In 1913, the number of Social Democrats on municipal and district councils approached 13,000. As noted by Heinrich Potthoff and Susanne Miller,
“Here, and in their work in the administration of industrial insurance, in community employment offices and courts of arbitration, lay one of the roots of the gradual penetration by the Social Democrats of the imperial German state.”
As a reaction to the prosecution, the Erfurt Program
Erfurt Program
The Erfurt Program was adopted by the Social Democratic Party of Germany during the SPD congress at Erfurt in 1891. Formulated under the political guidance of Eduard Bernstein, August Bebel, and Karl Kautsky, it superseded the earlier Gotha Program....
of 1891 was more radical than the Gotha Program of 1875, demanding nationalization
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
of Germany's major industries; still, the revisionism of Bernstein
Eduard Bernstein
Eduard Bernstein was a German social democratic theoretician and politician, a member of the SPD, and the founder of evolutionary socialism and revisionism.- Life :...
and the increasing loyalty of the party establishment towards Emperor and Reich, coupled with its antipathy toward Tsarist Russia, made it possible that the party under Bebel's successor Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
supported granting war credits to fund the German effort in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Interestingly, Bernstein
Eduard Bernstein
Eduard Bernstein was a German social democratic theoretician and politician, a member of the SPD, and the founder of evolutionary socialism and revisionism.- Life :...
left the party during the first world war, as did Karl Kautsky
Karl Kautsky
Karl Johann Kautsky was a Czech-German philosopher, journalist, and Marxist theoretician. Kautsky was recognized as among the most authoritative promulgators of Orthodox Marxism after the death of Friedrich Engels in 1895 until the coming of World War I in 1914 and was called by some the "Pope of...
, who had played an important role as the leading Marxist
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
theoretician and editor of the theoretical journal of SPD, “Die Neue Zeit
Die Neue Zeit
Die Neue Zeit was a German socialist theoretical journal of the Social Democratic Party of Germany that was published from 1883 to 1923. Founded by leading socialist politicians and theorists, it became the most important organ of the SPD competing with Sozialistische Monatshefte...
”. Neither joined the Communist party after the war, but came back to the SPD in the early Twenties. From 1915 onwards the theoretical discussions within the SPD were instead dominated by a group of former anti-revisionist Marxists, who tried to legitimize the support of the First World War by the German SPD group in the Reichstag with Marxist arguments. Instead of the class struggle they proclaimed the struggle of peoples and developed much of the rhetoric later used by Nazi propaganda (“Volksgemeinschaft” etc.). The group was led by Heinrich Cunow
Heinrich Cunow
Heinrich Cunow was a German Social Democratic Party politician and a Marxist theorist. Cunow was originally against the First World War in 1914 but later supported it. He edited the Social Democratic theoretical journal Die Neue Zeit from 1917 to 1923, after Karl Kautsky...
, Paul Lensch
Paul Lensch
Paul Lensch was a German Social Democratic Party politician. He voted for the war credits in 1914 and supported the First World War...
and Konrad Haenisch
Konrad Haenisch
Konrad Haenisch was a German Social Democratic Party politician and part of "the radical Marxist Left" of German politics. Friend and follower of Alexander Parvus. Haenisch was initially against World War I in 1914, but subsequently supported it...
(“Lensch-Cunow-Haenisch-Gruppe”) and was close to the Russian-German revolutionary and social scientist Parvus, who gave a public forum to the group with his journal “Die Glocke”. Via the academic teacher of Kurt Schumacher
Kurt Schumacher
Dr. Kurt Schumacher , was chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1946 and first Leader of the Opposition in the West German Bundestag parliament from 1949 until his death...
, Professor Johann Plenge
Johann Plenge
Johann Plenge was a German sociologist. He was professor of political economy at the University of Münster. In his book 1789 and 1914 he contrasted the 'Ideas of 1789' and the 'Ideas of 1914'...
, and Schumacher himself there is a group to the current right-wing “Seeheimer Kreis
Seeheimer Kreis
The Seeheimer Kreis is an official, internal grouping in the Social Democratic Party of Germany . Known for being right-wing within its party, the group promotes comparatively value–conservative politics with relatively liberal economic positions. The group was founded in September 1974...
” within the SPD, which was founded by Annemarie Renger
Annemarie Renger
Annemarie Renger , , was a German politician for the “Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands” ....
, Schumacher's former secretary.
Those who were against the war were expelled from the SPD in January 1917 (including Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg was a Marxist theorist, philosopher, economist and activist of Polish Jewish descent who became a naturalized German citizen...
, Karl Liebknecht
Karl Liebknecht
was a German socialist and a co-founder with Rosa Luxemburg of the Spartacist League and the Communist Party of Germany. He is best known for his opposition to World War I in the Reichstag and his role in the Spartacist uprising of 1919...
and Hugo Haase
Hugo Haase
Hugo Haase was a German politician, jurist and pacifist.-Biography:Haase was born in Allenstein , Province of Prussia, the son of Jewish shoemaker and small businessman, Nathan Haase, and Pauline née Anker. He studied law in Königsberg and established himself as a lawyer...
) - the expelees went on to found the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany was a short-lived political party in Germany during the Second Reich and the Weimar Republic. The organization was established in 1917 as the result of a split of left wing members of the Social Democratic Party of Germany...
, in which the Spartacist League
Spartacist League
The Spartacus League was a left-wing Marxist revolutionary movement organized in Germany during World War I. The League was named after Spartacus, leader of the largest slave rebellion of the Roman Republic...
was a current.
In the 1918 revolution, Ebert controversially sided with the Imperial Army command
Reichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
against communists, while the Reichstag
Reichstag (German Empire)
The Reichstag was the parliament of the North German Confederation , and of the German Reich ....
elected him as head of the new government.
A revolutionary government met for the first time in November 1918. Known as the Council of People’s Commissioners, it consisted of three Majority Social Democrats (Friedrich Ebert, Philipp Scheidemann, and Otto Landsberg) and three United Social Democrats (Emil Barth, Wilhelm Dittman, and Hugo Haase). The revolutionary government coped admirably in the face of the social crisis in the German Reich following the end of the Fist World War, with Germany threatened by hunger and chaos and on edge of the abyss. The needs of the moment, together with the worst consequences of the war, were dealt with by the new government. There was, for the most part, an orderly return of soldiers back into civilian life, while the threat of starvation was combated. Wage levels were raised, Universal proportional representation for all parliaments was introduced, and a series of regulations on unemployment benefits, job-creation and protection measures, health insurance, and pensions saw the institution of important political and social reforms. In February 1918, workers made an agreement with employers which secured them total freedom of association, the legal guarantee of an eight-hour workday, and the extension of wage agreements to all branches of trade and industry. The People’s Commissioners made these changes legally binding.
Weimar Republic (1918–1933)
Communist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956...
(KPD), which consisted mostly of former members of the SPD, became bitter rivals, not least because of the legacy of the German Revolution
German Revolution
The German Revolution was the politically-driven civil conflict in Germany at the end of World War I, which resulted in the replacement of Germany's imperial government with a republic...
. Under Defense Minister of Germany Gustav Noske
Gustav Noske
Gustav Noske was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany . He served as the first Minister of Defence of Germany between 1919 and 1920.-Biography:...
, the party aided in putting down the Communist and left wing Spartacist uprising
Spartacist uprising
The Spartacist Uprising , also known as the January uprising , was a general strike in Germany from January 5 to January 15, 1919. Its suppression marked the end of the German Revolution...
throughout Germany in early 1919 with the use of the Freikorps
Freikorps
Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...
, a morally questionable decision that has remained the source of much controversy amongst historians to this day. While the KPD remained in staunch opposition to the newly established parliamentary system, the SPD became a part of the so-called Weimar Coalition
Weimar Coalition
The Weimar Coalition is the name given to the coalition of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , the German Democratic Party , and the Catholic Centre Party, who together had a large majority of the delegates to the Constituent Assembly that met at Weimar in 1919, and were the principal groups...
, one of the pillars of the struggling republic, leading several of the short-lived interwar cabinets. The threat of the Communists put the SPD in a difficult position. The party had the choice between becoming more radical (which could weaken the Communists but lose its base among the middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
) or stay moderate, which would damage its base among the working class. In 1928, a small group calling itself Neu Beginnen
Neu Beginnen
Neu Beginnen was a fringe opposition group on the socialist wing of SPD, which was greatly influenced by the ideas of Lenin. It was formed in 1929. After the Machtübernahme in 1933, the members of the small group discussed what the future of Germany should be after the National Socialist movement...
was formed. In 1931, the Socialist Workers' Party of Germany
Socialist Workers' Party of Germany
The Socialist Workers' Party of Germany was a political party in Germany. It was formed by a left-wing party with around 20,000 members which split off from the SPD in the autumn of 1931. In 1931 the remnants of USPD merged into the party, and in 1932 some Communist Party dissenters joined the...
was formed.
Under Weimar, the SPD was able put its ideas of social justice into practice by influencing a number of progressive social changes while both in and out of government. In February 1920, an industrial relations law was passed, giving workers in industry legally guaranteed representation, together with the right to co-determination in cases of hiring and firing, holiday arrangements, the fixing of working hours and regulations, and the introduction of new methods of payment. A Socialisation Law was also passed, while the government adopted guidelines on the workers' councils. In addition to workers' councils at national, regional, and factory level, the government made provision for economic councils in which employers and employees would work together on matters affecting the economy as a whole (such as nationalisation) and lend support to the Weimar parliament.
SPD governments also introduced unemployment insurance benefits for all workers (in 1918), trade union recognition and an eight-hour workday, while municipalities that came under SPD control or influence expanded educational and job-training opportunities and set up health clinics. Off the shop floor, Social Democratic workers took advantage of the adult education halls, public libraries, swimming pools, schools, and low-income apartments built by municipalities during the Weimar years, while considerable wage increases won for the majority of workers by the Free Trade Unions
Free Trade Unions (Germany)
The Free Trade Unions comprised the socialist trade union movement in Germany from 1890 to 1933. The term distinguished them from the liberal and Christian labor unions in Germany...
between 1924 and 1928 helped to narrow the gap between unskilled and skilled workers. A number of reforms were also made in education, as characterised by the introduction of the four-year common primary school. Educational opportunities were further widened by the promotion of adult education and culture. The SPD also played an active and exemplary role in the development of local politics in thousands of towns and communities during this period.
Protective measures for workers were vastly improved, under the influence or direction of the SPD, and members of the SPD pointed to positive changes that they had sponsored, such as improvements in public health, unemployment insurance, maternity benefits, and the building of municipal housing. During its time in opposition throughout the Twenties, the SPD was able to help push through a series of reforms beneficial to workers, including increased investment in public housing, expanded disability, health, and social insurance programmes, the restoration of an eight-hour workday in large firms, and the implementation of binding arbitration by the Labour Ministry.
In Prussia, (which became an SPD stronghold following the introduction of universal suffrage) an important housing law was passed in 1918 which empowered local authorities to erect small dwellings and buildings of public utility, provide open spaces, and enact planning measures. The law further directed that all districts with more than 100,000 inhabitants had to issue police ordinances regarding housing hygiene. Similar measures were introduced in other areas subjected to the influence of the SPD, which the Reich (also under the influence of the SPD) controlled rents and subsidised the construction of housing.
During the Weimar era, the SPD held the chancellorship on two occasions, first from 1919 to 1920, and then again from 1928 to 1930. The SPD’s last period in office was to prove itself a failure, due to both its lack of a parliamentary majority (which forced it to make compromises to right-wing parties) and its inability to confront the Great Depression.
In 1927, the defence ministry had prevailed on the government of Wilhelm Marx to provide funds in its draft budget of 1928 for the construction of the first of six small battleships allowed for under the treaty of Versailles, although the Federal Council (largely for financial reasons) stopped this action. This issue played a major role during the 1928 election campaign, with supporters of the proposal arguing that all the possibilities left for German armaments should be fully used, while the SPD and the KPD saw this as a wasteful expenditure, arguing that such money should instead be spent on providing free meals for schoolchildren. The SPD’s lack of a parliamentary majority (which prevented it from undertaking any major domestic reform) meant that, in order to hold the coalition together, Muller and the other SPD ministers were forced to make concessions on issues such as taxation, unemployment insurance, and the construction of pocket battleships.
Against the votes and wishes of the majority of SPD deputies (including Otto Wels, the effective party leader, who demanded that the funds be spent on free school meals as had been promised during the election campaign), the SPD ministers in Muller’s cabinet (including Muller himself) voted in favour of the first battleship being built, a decision that destroyed the party’s credibility.
Muller’s SPD government eventually fell as a result of the catastrophic effects of the Great Depression. Muller’s government, an ideologically diverse “Grand Coalition” representing five parties ranging from the left to the right, was unable to develop effective counter-measures to tackle the catastrophic effects of the economic crisis, as characterised by the massive rise in the numbers of registered unemployed. In 1928-29, 2.5 million were estimated to be unemployed, a figure that reached over 3 million by the following winter. A major problem facing Muller’s government was a deficit in the Reich budget, which the government spending more than it was receiving. This situation was made worse by the inadequacy of the unemployment scheme which was unable to pay out enough benefits to the rising numbers of unemployed, forcing the government to make contributions to the scheme (which in turn worsened the budget deficit). The coalition was badly divided on this issue, with the SPD wishing to raise the level of contributions to the scheme while safeguarding both those in work and those out of work as much as possible. The right-wing parties, by contrast, wished to reduce unemployment benefits while lightening the tax burden. Unable to garner enough support in the Reichstag to pass laws, Muller turned to Hindenburg for support, wishing him to grant him the use of the emergency powers under Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution so that he did not have to rely on support from the Reichstag.
Muller refused to agree to reductions in unemployment benefit which the Centre Party
Centre Party
There are several self-described centrist political parties with the name Centre Party.Nordic Agrarian parties most typically use this name.-Active parties:: Åland Centre: Estonian Centre Party: Centre Party: Centre Party: German Centre Party: Centre Party: Center Party: Lithuanian Centre Party:...
under Heinrich Bruning
Heinrich Brüning
Heinrich Brüning was Chancellor of Germany from 1930 to 1932, during the Weimar Republic. He was the longest serving Chancellor of the Weimar Republic, and remains a controversial figure in German politics....
saw as necessary.
The government finally collapsed in March 1930 when Muller (lacking support from Hindenburg) resigned, a fall from office that according to the historian William Smaldone
William Smaldone
William "Bill" Smaldone is a Professor of European history at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. -Education and career:...
marked “the effective end of parliamentary government under Weimar.”
On July 20, 1932, the SPD-led Prussian government in Berlin, headed by Otto Braun
Otto Braun
This article is about the Prime Minister of Prussia. For the German Communist and once the Comintern military adviser to the Chinese Communist revolution see Otto Braun ....
, was ousted by Franz von Papen
Franz von Papen
Lieutenant-Colonel Franz Joseph Hermann Michael Maria von Papen zu Köningen was a German nobleman, Roman Catholic monarchist politician, General Staff officer, and diplomat, who served as Chancellor of Germany in 1932 and as Vice-Chancellor under Adolf Hitler in 1933–1934...
, the new Chancellor, by means of a Presidential decree. This development proved to be a significant factor contributing to the ultimate downfall of the Weimar Republic. Following the appointment of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
as chancellor on January 30, 1933 by president Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
, the SPD received 18.25% of the votes during the last (at least partially) free elections on March 5, gaining 120 seats. These were not enough seats to prevent the ratification of the Enabling Act, which granted extra constitutional powers to the government, by two-thirds majority, as the SPD was the only party to vote against the act (the KPD being already outlawed and its parliamentary representatives under arrest, dead, or in exile). It still holds to this day a certain pride in being the only party that voted against it. After the passing of the Enabling Act, the party was finally banned by the Nazis on July 14, 1933.
The party was a member of the Labour and Socialist International
Labour and Socialist International
The Labour and Socialist International was an international organization of socialist and labour parties, active between 1923 and 1940. The LSI was a forerunner of the present-day Socialist International....
between 1923 and 1940.
Era of national socialism / SoPaDe (1933–1945)
Reichstag (Weimar Republic)
The Reichstag was the parliament of Weimar Republic .German constitution commentators consider only the Reichstag and now the Bundestag the German parliament. Another organ deals with legislation too: in 1867-1918 the Bundesrat, in 1919–1933 the Reichsrat and from 1949 on the Bundesrat...
to have voted against the Enabling Act (with the Communist Party of Germany prevented from voting), the SPD was banned in the summer of 1933 by the new Nazi government. Many of its members were jailed or sent to Nazi concentration camps
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
. An exile organization, known as Sopade
Sopade
Sopade was the name of the exile organization of the Social Democratic Party of Germany . It operated in Prague from 1933 to 1938, from 1938 to 1940 in Paris and until 1945 in London....
, was established, initially in Prague. Others left the areas where they had been politically active and moved to other towns where they were not known.
Between 1936 and 1939 some SPD members fought in Spain
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
for the Republic against Franco and the German Condor Legion
Condor Legion
The Condor Legion was a unit composed of volunteers from the German Air Force and from the German Army which served with the Nationalists during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legion developed methods of terror bombing which were used widely in the Second World War...
.
After the annexation of Czechoslovakia in 1938 the exile party resettled in Paris and after the defeat of France in 1940 in London. Only a few days after the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 the exiled SPD in Paris declared its support for the Allies and for the military removal from power of the Nazi government.
From occupation to the Federal Republic
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1946 and admitted in all 4 occupation zones
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative purposes during 1945–49. In the closing weeks of fighting in Europe, US forces had pushed beyond the previously agreed boundaries for the...
. In West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, it was initially in opposition from the first election of the newly founded Federal Republic in 1949 until 1966. The party had a leftist period and opposed the republic's integration into Western structures, believing that this might diminish the chances for German reunification.
In the Soviet occupation sector, which later became East Germany, the Social Democratic Party was forced to merge with the Communist Party of Germany
Communist Party of Germany
The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956...
to form the Socialist Unity Party of Germany
Socialist Unity Party of Germany
The Socialist Unity Party of Germany was the governing party of the German Democratic Republic from its formation on 7 October 1949 until the elections of March 1990. The SED was a communist political party with a Marxist-Leninist ideology...
(SED) in 1946. During the fall of Communist rule in 1989, the SPD (first called SDP) was re-established as a separate party in East Germany (Social Democratic Party in the GDR
Social Democratic Party in the GDR
The Social Democratic Party in the GDR was a Social Democratic Party existing during the last phase of the East German state...
), independent of the rump SED, and then merged with its West German counterpart upon reunification.
Despite remaining out of office for much of the postwar period, the SPD were able to gain control of a number of local governments and implement progressive social reforms. As noted by Manfred Schmidt
Manfred Schmidt
Manfred Schmidt may refer to:* Manfred Schmid , Austrian luger* Manfred G. Schmidt , German professor of political science* Manfred Schmidt , German author and cartoonist...
, SPD-controlled Lander governments were more active in the social sphere and transferred more funds to public employment and education than CDU/CSU-controlled Lander. During the mid-sixties, mainly SPD-governed Lander such as Hesse and the three city -states launched the first experiments with comprehensive schools as expanding educational opportunities. SDP local governments were also active in encouraging the post-war housing boom in West Germany, with some of the best results in housing construction during this period achieved by SPD-controlled Lander authorities such as West Berlin, Hamburg, and Bremen. In the Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
, the SPD opposition were partly responsible for the establishment of the postwar welfare state
Welfare state
A welfare state is a "concept of government in which the state plays a key role in the protection and promotion of the economic and social well-being of its citizens. It is based on the principles of equality of opportunity, equitable distribution of wealth, and public responsibility for those...
under the Adenauer Administration, having put parliamentary pressure on the CDU to carry out more progressive social policies during its time in office.
In the Bundestag, The SPD aspired to be a “constructive opposition,” which expressed itself not only in the role it played in framing the significant amount of new legislation introduced in the first parliamentary terms of the Bundestag, but also in the fact that by far the biggest proportion of all laws were passed with the votes of SDP members. The SPD played a notable part in legislation on reforms to the national pensions scheme, the integration of refugees, and the building of public-sector housing. The SPD also had a high profile “in judicial policy with the Public Prosecutor Adolf Arndt, in the parliamentary decision on the Federal Constitutional Court, and reparations for the victims of National Socialism.” In 1951, the law on the right of “co-determination” for employees in the steel, iron, and mining industries was passed with the combined votes of the SPD and CDU, and against those of the FDP.
Governing party from 1966 to 1982
In 1966 the coalition of the Christian Democratic UnionChristian Democratic Union (Germany)
The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
(CDU) and the liberal Free Democratic Party
Free Democratic Party (Germany)
The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government...
(FDP) fell and a grand coalition
Grand coalition
A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government...
between CDU/CSU and SPD was formed under the leadership of CDU Chancellor Kiesinger. Changes were made to income maintenance schemes which met some of the SPD’s long-standing demands, while many other social reforms were introduced, including the equalising of wages and salaries between white-collar and blue-collar employees, the continuation of wage and salary payments, a law to promote employment, and a vocational training law. Although these measures were largely due to the efforts of the CDU minister Hans Katzer, it is arguable that he would never have been able to push his programme through the cabinet (let alone envisage it) without the SPD.
The 1969 Employment Promotion Act, which was based largely on a proposal prepared by the SPD in 1966, established active labour market intervention measures such as employment research, and offered “substantial state assistance to employees with educational aspirations.” Under the direction of the SPD Minister of Economics Karl Schiller
Karl Schiller
Karl August Fritz Schiller was a German scientist and politician of the Social Democratic Party . From 1966 to 1972, he was Federal Minister of Economic Affairs and from 1971 to 1972 Federal Minister of Finance...
, the federal governemnt adopted Keynesian demand management for the first time ever. Schiller called for legislation that would provide both his ministry and the federal government with greater authority to guide economic policy. In 1967, Schiller introduced the Law for Promoting Stability and Growth, which was subsequently passed by the Bundestag. Regarded as the Magna Carta of medium-term economic management, the legislation provided for coordination of federal, ander, and local budget plans in order to give fiscal policy a stronger impact. It also set a number of optimistic targets for four basic standards by which West German economic success would henceforth be measured, which included trade balance, employment levels, economic growth, and currency stability.
One of the rare German Keynesians of that era, Schiller believed that government had both “the obligation and the capacity to shape economic trends and to smooth out and even eliminate the business cycle,” and his adopted policy of Keynesian demand management helped West Germany to overcome the economic recession of 1966/67. Unemployment was quickly reduced (standing at just under 1% by Autumn 1968), while industrial output rose by almost 12% in 1968. The successful economic and financial policies pursued by the Grand Coalition under the direction of Schiller was also helped by the persuasion of entrepreneurs and trade unions to accept a programme of “concerted action.” According to Lisanne Radice and Giles Radice, “concerted action” was not a formal incomes policy, but it did nevertheless ensure that collective bargaining took place “within a broadly agreed view of the direction of the economy and the relationships between full employment, output and inflation.” In addition, Schiller's economic policies were not only successful in restoring West Germany's economic growth, but they also demonsteated the SPD's economic competence, and this undoubtedly played a major role in the victory of the SPD in the federal election of 1969.
Social-liberal coalition
Social-liberal coalition in Germany refers to a governmental coalition formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Free Democratic Party .The term stems from social democracy of the SPD and the liberalism of the FDP...
with the FDP and led the federal government under Chancellors Willy Brandt
Willy Brandt
Willy Brandt, born Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm , was a German politician, Mayor of West Berlin 1957–1966, Chancellor of West Germany 1969–1974, and leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany 1964–1987....
and Helmut Schmidt
Helmut Schmidt
Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt is a German Social Democratic politician who served as Chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982. Prior to becoming chancellor, he had served as Minister of Defence and Minister of Finance. He had also served briefly as Minister of Economics and as acting...
from 1969 until 1982. In its 1959 Godesberg Program
Godesberg Program
The Godesberg Program was the party program outline of the political course of Germany's social-democratic party, the SPD. It was ratified on November 15, 1959, at an SPD party convention in the town of Bad Godesberg, which is today part of Bonn....
, the SPD officially abandoned the concept of a workers' party and Marxist principles, while continuing to stress social welfare provision. Although the SPD originally opposed West Germany's 1955 rearmament and entry into NATO while it favoured neutrality and reunification with East Germany, it now strongly supports German ties with the alliance.
Under the SDP-FDP coalition, social policies in West Germany took on a more egalitarian character and a number of important reforms were carried out to improve the prospects of previously neglected and underprivileged groups. Social welfare provision was greatly extended, with pensions and health care opened up to large sections of the population. This in turn substantially increased the size and cost of the social budget, as social program costs grew by over 10% a year during much of the Seventies. Government spending as a percentage of GDP rose significantly under the SPD-FDP coalition, from 39% in 1969 to around 50% by 1982. Children’s allowances for students up to the age of twenty-seven were introduced, together with a flexible retirement age, new married couples’ and families’ legislation, an extension of co-determination, rehabilitation and special employment rights for the severely handicapped, adjustments and increases in the pensions of war victims, a revision of child benefit, a new youth employment protection law, health insurance for farmers, pension schemes for the self-employed, and guaranteed works’ pensions. Although the principle of the social welfare state was enshrined in the constitution of West Germany, and laws and measures taken (often jointly by the CDU/CSU coalition partners and the SPD) to meet this commitment, it was only when the SPD came to power in Bonn that the provisions of the social welfare system “reached a level which few other countries could equal.”
A number of liberal social reforms in areas like censorship, homosexuality, divorce, education, and worker participation in company management were introduced, whilst social security benefits were significantly increased. Between 1970 and 1975, substantial improvements in benefits were made for farmers, students, war invalids, the sick, families with many children, women, and pensioners, which led to a doubling of benefit and social security payments during that period. By 1979, old age and survivors’ benefits were 53% higher in real terms than in 1970, while family benefits were 95% higher.
A more active regional and industrial policy was pursued, tighter rules against dismissal were introduced, day care was introduced for children between the ages of three and six, spending on dental services, drugs, and appliances was increased, environmental protection legislation was passed, expenditure on education at all levels was increased, a tax reform bill was passed, lowering the tax burden for low-income and middle-income groups, the average age of entry into the workforce was increased, working time was reduced, social assistance and unemployment compensation were made more generous, early-retirement options were introduced, and municipalities received more generous federal grants to expand social infrastructure such as conference halls, sports facilities and public swimming pools.
The Federal Emission Control Law established the basis for taking of legal action against those responsible for excessive noise and air pollution, the Works’ Constitution Act and Personnel Representation Act strengthened the position of individual employees in offices and factories, and the Works’ Safety Law required firms to employ safety specialists and doctors. A new federal scale of charges for hospital treatment and a law on hospital financing were introduced to improve hospital treatment, the Hire Purchase Act entitled purchasers to withdraw from their contracts within a certain time limit, compensation for victims of violent acts became guaranteed by law, the Federal Criminal Investigation Office became a modern crime-fighting organisation, and the Federal Education Promotion Act was extended to include large groups of pupils attending vocational schools. A Federal Education Grants Act was also introduced, which opened up better chances of higher education for low-income children.
During the mid-Seventies recession, eligibility for short-term unemployment benefits was extended from 6 to 12 months, and to 24 months in some cases. Active Labour Market Policies were substantially expanded, with the number of people benefiting from such schemes increasing from 1,600 in 1970 to 648,000 by 1975.
Wage rates also rose significantly under the coalition, as characterised by a 60% real increase in the hourly wages of manufacturing sector employees between 1970 and 1980. In addition, educational opportunities were significantly widened as a result of policies such as the introduction of free higher education, the raising of the school-leaving age to 16, increased expenditure on education at all levels, and the introduction of a generous student stipend system. Although the coalition failed to restructure the education system along comprehensive lines, the cumulative impact of its educational reforms was such that according to Helmut Becker (an authoritative commentator on German education), there was greater achievement at all levels and the chances of a twenty-year old working-class child born in 1958 going to college or university was approximately six times greater than a similar child born ten years earlier.
In summarising the domestic reforms introduced by the SPD-FDP coalition, historian Reiner Pommerin noted that
“There were few difficulties with the wave of domestic reforms, which the SPD-led coalitions initiated. In fact, the SPD’s domestic reform program was often compared with contemporary American developments, like such as civil rights movement
Civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
and the Great Society
Great Society
The Great Society was a set of domestic programs in the United States promoted by President Lyndon B. Johnson and fellow Democrats in Congress in the 1960s. Two main goals of the Great Society social reforms were the elimination of poverty and racial injustice...
”
.
As noted further by Henrich Potthoff and Susanne Miller, in their evaluation of the record of the SPD-FDP coalition,
“Ostpolitik and detente, the extension of the welfare safety net, and a greater degree of social liberality were the fruits of Social Democratic government during this period which served as a pointer to the future and increased the respect in which the federal republic was held, both in Europe and throughout the world.”
In 1982 the SPD lost power to the new CDU/CSU-FDP coalition under CDU Chancellor Helmut Kohl
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl is a German conservative politician and statesman. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and the chairman of the Christian Democratic Union from 1973 to 1998...
who subsequently won four terms as chancellor. The Social Democrats were unanimous about the armament and environmental questions of that time, and the new party The Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir...
was not ready for a coalition government then.
Kohl lost his last re-election bid in 1998 to his SPD challenger Gerhard Schröder
Gerhard Schröder
Gerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...
, as the SPD formed a red-green coalition
Red-green alliance
In politics, a red-green alliance is an alliance of "red" social-democratic or democratic socialist parties with "green" environmentalist parties. The alliance is often based on common left political views, especially a shared distrust of corporate or capitalist institutions...
with The Greens to take control of the German federal government for the first time in 16 years.
Schröder government 1998-2005
Led by Gerhard SchröderGerhard Schröder
Gerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...
on a moderate platform emphasizing the need to reduce unemployment, the SPD emerged as the strongest party in the September 1998 elections
German federal election, 1998
A German federal election was conducted on September 27, 1998, to elect members to the 14th Bundestag, the parliament of the Federal Republic of Germany.- Issues and campaign :...
with 40.9% of the votes cast. Crucial for this success was the SPD's strong base in big cities and Bundesländer with traditional industries. Forming a coalition government
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
with the Green Party
Alliance '90/The Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir...
, the SPD thus returned to power for the first time since 1982.
Oskar Lafontaine
Oskar Lafontaine is a German politician, former German finance minister, former chairman of the Social Democratic Party and former Minister-President of the state of Saarland. Since 2007 he was co-chairman of The Left...
, elected SPD chairman in November 1996 had in the run-up to the election forgone a bid for the SPD nomination for the chancellor candidacy, after Gerhard Schröder won a sweeping re-election victory as prime minister of his state of Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
and was widely believed to be the best chance for Social Democrats to regain the Chancellorship after 16 years in opposition. From the beginning of this teaming up between Party chair Lafontaine and chancellor candidate Schröder during the election campaign 1998, rumors in the media about their internal rivalry persisted, albeit always being disputed by the two. After the election victory Lafontaine joined the government as finance minister. The rivalry between the two party leaders escalated in March 1999 leading to the overnight resignation of Lafontaine from all his party and government positions. After staying initially mum about the reasons for his resignation, Lafontaine later cited strong disagreement with the alleged neoliberal
Neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is a market-driven approach to economic and social policy based on neoclassical theories of economics that emphasizes the efficiency of private enterprise, liberalized trade and relatively open markets, and therefore seeks to maximize the role of the private sector in determining the...
and anti-social course Schröder had taken the government on. Schröder himself has never commented on the row with Lafontaine. It is known however, that they haven't spoken to each other ever since. Schröder succeeded Lafontaine as party chairman.
A number of progressive measures were introduced by the Schröder Administration during its first term in office. The parental leave scheme was improved, with full-time working parents legally entitled to reduce their working hours from 2001 onwards, while the child allowance was considerably increased, from 112 euros per month in 1998 to 154 euros in 2002. Housing allowances were also increased, while a number of decisions by the Kohl Government concerning social policy and the labour market were overturned, as characterised by the reversal of retrenchments in health policy and pension policy.
Changes introduced by the Kohl government on pensions, the continued payment of wages in the case of sickness, and wrongful dismissal were all rescinded. In 1999, for instance, the wage replacement rate for sick pay (which was reduced from 100% to 80% of earnings under the previous Kohl Government) was restored to 100%. A programme on combating youth unemployment was introduced, together new measures designed to out a stop to those designating themselves as “self-employed” for tax purposes, and new regulations on 630-DM jobs, which were subject for the first time to national insurance contributions. Tax reforms brought relief to people on low-incomes and benefited families, while a second pillar was added to the pension system which relied on self-provision for retirement.
In the September 2002 elections
German federal election, 2002
The 15th German federal election, 2002 was conducted on 22 September 2002, to elect members to the Bundestag of Germany.-Issues and campaign:...
, the SPD reached 38.5% of the national vote, barely ahead of the CDU
Christian Democratic Union (Germany)
The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
/CSU
Christian Social Union of Bavaria
The Christian Social Union in Bavaria is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It operates only in the state of Bavaria, while its sister party, the Christian Democratic Union , operates in the other 15 states of Germany...
, and was again able to form a government with the help of The Greens. The European elections of 2004 were a disaster for the SPD, marking its worst result in a nationwide election after World War II with only 21.5% of the vote. Earlier the same year, leadership of the SPD had changed from chancellor Gerhard Schröder to Franz Müntefering
Franz Müntefering
Franz Müntefering is a German politician and industrial manager. He was Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from 18 October 2008 to 13 November 2009, a position he already held from 2004 to 2005...
, in what was widely regarded as an attempt to deal with internal party opposition to the economic reform programs set in motion by the federal government.
While the SPD was founded in the 19th century to defend the interests of the working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
, its commitment to these goals has been disputed by some since 1918, when its leaders supported the suppression of more radical socialist and communist factions during the Spartacist Uprising
Spartacist uprising
The Spartacist Uprising , also known as the January uprising , was a general strike in Germany from January 5 to January 15, 1919. Its suppression marked the end of the German Revolution...
. But never before has the party moved so far away from its traditional socialist
Democratic socialism
Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
stance as it did under the Schröder government. Its ever increasing tendency towards liberal economic policies and cutbacks in government spending on social welfare programs led to a dramatic decline in voter support. The Schroeder Administration presided over a significant rise in poverty and inequality, with the percentage of Germans living in poverty, according to one measure, rising from 12% in 2000 to 16.5% in 2006.
Welfare cuts, which affected mainly the SPD’s clientele, led to disillusionment amongst supporters and precipitated a fall in party membership. For many years, membership in the SPD had been declining. Down from a high of over 1 million in 1976, there were about 775,000 members at the time of the 1998 election victory, and by February 2008, the figure had dropped to 537,995. By early 2009, membership figures had fallen behind the ones of the CDU for the first time ever.
The Left (Germany)
The Left , also commonly referred to as the Left Party , is a democratic socialist political party in Germany. The Left is the most left-wing party of the five represented in the Bundestag....
, (Die Linke.) These developments put pressure on the SPD to do something about its social image.
In April 2005, party chairman Franz Müntefering
Franz Müntefering
Franz Müntefering is a German politician and industrial manager. He was Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from 18 October 2008 to 13 November 2009, a position he already held from 2004 to 2005...
publicly criticized excessive profiteering in Germany's market economy
Market economy
A market economy is an economy in which the prices of goods and services are determined in a free price system. This is often contrasted with a state-directed or planned economy. Market economies can range from hypothetically pure laissez-faire variants to an assortment of real-world mixed...
and proposed stronger involvement of the federal state in order to promote economic justice. This triggered a debate that dominated the national news for several weeks. Müntefering's suggestions have been met with popular support, but there has also been harsh criticism not only by the industrial lobby. Political opponents claimed that Müntefering's choice of words, especially his reference to private equity
Private equity
Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....
funds as “locusts”, were bordering on Nazi language.
In the German federal election, 2005
German federal election, 2005
German federal elections took place on 18 September 2005 to elect the members of the 16th German Bundestag, the federal parliament of Germany. They became necessary after a motion of confidence in Chancellor Gerhard Schröder failed on 1 July...
, the SPD ended up trailing its rivals by less than 1%, a much closer margin than had been expected. Although the party had presented a program that included some more traditional left themes, such as an additional 3% tax on the highest tax bracket, this did not prevent the Left Party from making a strong showing, largely at the SPD's expense. Nevertheless, the overall result was sufficient to deny the opposition camp a majority.
The Merkel-led grand coalition
In the current German government, the SPD is now the junior partner in a grand coalitionGrand coalition
A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government...
with the CDU
Christian Democratic Union (Germany)
The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
/CSU under the leadership of Chancellor Angela Merkel
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel is the current Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000, and chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary coalition from 2002 to 2005.From 2005 to 2009 she led a...
, with Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Frank-Walter Steinmeier is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , and currently the leader of the opposition in the Bundestag. Steinmeier was a close aide of Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, serving as Chief of Staff in the German Chancellery from 1999 to 2005...
as Vice-Chancellor
Vice-Chancellor of Germany
The Vice-Chancellor of Germany is, according to protocol, the second highest position in the Cabinet of GermanyIn case of the Chancellor's absence, the vice-chancellor acts in his or her place, for instance by heading cabinet meetings...
.
However, Müntefering resigned as party chairman and was succeeded as chairman by Matthias Platzeck
Matthias Platzeck
Matthias Platzeck is a German politician. He has been Minister-President of Brandenburg since 2002 and party chairman of the SPD from November 2005 to April 2006.-Private life:...
, minister-president
Minister-President
A minister-president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments, in which a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government prevails, who presides over the council of ministers...
of Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
. Müntefering's decision came after the party's steering committee chose a woman from the left wing of the party, Andrea Nahles
Andrea Nahles
Andrea Maria Nahles is a German politician, a Bundestag representative for the Social Democratic Party of Germany and former SPD Youth leader...
, as secretary general over Müntefering's choice, his long-time aide Kajo Wasserhövel. However, after Müntefering said her election indicated that he had lost the confidence of the party and he would therefore resign, Nahles turned down the post of secretary general to prevent the party splitting. Hubertus Heil
Hubertus Heil
Hubertus Heil is a German politician. In 2005 he became general secretary of the Social Democratic Party of Germany . In September 2009, after immense losses for the SPD during the German federal election, Heil announced his resignation from this position for November...
was elected in her place.
On April 10, 2006 Matthias Platzeck announced his resignation of the Chair because he suffered a major hearing loss in March 2006. The interim Chairman from April 10 to May 14 was Kurt Beck
Kurt Beck
Kurt Beck is a German politician , serving as the Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate since 1994 and as President of the Bundesrat in 2000/01. On May 14, 2006, he succeeded Matthias Platzeck as Chairman of the German Social Democratic Party...
. He won the full leadership on a small party convention on May 14. He resigned on September 7, 2008; on September 8, 2008 the party's executive committee nominated Franz Müntefering
Franz Müntefering
Franz Müntefering is a German politician and industrial manager. He was Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from 18 October 2008 to 13 November 2009, a position he already held from 2004 to 2005...
to be elected as chairman at an extraordinary party conference on October 18, 2008. In the meantime Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Frank-Walter Steinmeier is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , and currently the leader of the opposition in the Bundestag. Steinmeier was a close aide of Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, serving as Chief of Staff in the German Chancellery from 1999 to 2005...
serves as provisional chairman.
During the Schröder administration, Schröder and Lafontaine disliked each other, because Lafontaine quit as Finance Minister in 1999. After his resignation there was a huge distrust of Lafontaine in the SPD which lasts to today. However due to the rise of Angela Merkel and Guido Westerwelle on the national stage of politics in 2005 and a belief in the German public of the failed social policies of the SPD on labour issues (Hartz IV), the SPD lost heavily in opinion polls and lost a couple of state-wide elections. So there was the urgency to form new coalitions with the Left who have a similar political agenda than the weakened Green Party or the other conservative parties in Germany. However the leader of the Left was the lost child of the SPD - Oskar Lafontaine - who had fallen out with the SPD. There is a common oath in the SPD not to form coalitions with the Left, because of Lafontaine.
Andrea Ypsilanti
Andrea Ypsilanti is a German politician.-Political career:Ypsilanti is a member of the Hessian Landtag and was chairperson of the Social Democratic Party of Hesse from March 2003 to January 2009.In the Hesse state elections of 2008, held on 27 January 2008, she was the SPD's candidate for the...
- choose to form a minority coalition with the Left in Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
after a lost state election in January 2008. This decision was heavily criticized by national leaders of the SPD. But the leader at that time - Kurt Beck - was for the coalition in Hesse and supported Ypsilanti. Beck who is a popular minister-president has lost a lot reputation on a national level because of the support. At an emergency session of leaders of the SPD, Kurt Beck resigned the chairmanship of the SPD, because after 8 months there was no coalition and Beck was criticized for supporting Ypsilanti. In November 2008, the Landtag in Hesse was dissolved and there will be new elections in January 2009.
But several other state leaders of SPD have started flirting with the "Left" and today there is a huge struggle in the SPD on how to treat the Left in order to gain Bundesrat seats to be once again a true national party. In November 2008, the SPD was at 25% in national opinion polls, one of the lowest values in recent memory. Furthermore today in the SPD there is rift between two internal factions of the party. One side of the party - the right-wing Seeheimer Kreis
Seeheimer Kreis
The Seeheimer Kreis is an official, internal grouping in the Social Democratic Party of Germany . Known for being right-wing within its party, the group promotes comparatively value–conservative politics with relatively liberal economic positions. The group was founded in September 1974...
refuses to do coalitions with the Left Party. Members of the right-wing include Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Gerhard Schröder. The other side of the party - the political left of the SPD - embraces coalitions with the radical Left. Members include Andrea Ypsilanti and Andrea Nahles.
Also a reason for today's struggle with the Left is that the SPD is currently itself in a national coalition with the conservative coalition. So the SPD is in a dual struggle. At first the struggle for not endangering the national coalition with Merkel and therefore endangering a national political crisis that maybe result in further losses for the SPD. And secondly the struggle for not forgetting the roots where the SPD came from, because the SPD itself is left party, whose political positions have been eaten by the Left party. So the SPD has to position itself again.
Chairmen
| Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Socialist Workers' Party of Germany (SAP) | ||
| Wilhelm Hasenclever Wilhelm Hasenclever Wilhelm Hasenclever was a German politician. He was an originally a tanner by trade, and later became a journalist and author... Georg Wilhelm Hartmann |
1875–1876 | |
| Wilhelm Liebknecht Wilhelm Liebknecht Wilhelm Martin Philipp Christian Ludwig Liebknecht was a German social democrat and a principal founder of the SPD. His political career was a pioneering project combining Marxist revolutionary theory with practical, legal political activity... August Bebel August Bebel Ferdinand August Bebel was a German Marxist politician, writer, and orator. He is best remembered as one of the founders of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.-Early years:... Wilhelm Hasenclever Wilhelm Hasenclever Wilhelm Hasenclever was a German politician. He was an originally a tanner by trade, and later became a journalist and author... Georg Wilhelm Hartmann |
1876–1878 | Central Committee |
| banned by the Anti-Socialist Laws Anti-Socialist Laws The Anti-Socialist Laws or Socialist Laws were a series of acts, the first of which was passed on October 19, 1878 by the German Reichstag lasting till March 31, 1881, and extended 4 times... 1878-1890 |
||
| Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) | ||
| Paul Singer Paul Singer (politician) Paul Singer was a leading supporter and representative of the Social Democratic Party of Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.- Literature :... Alwin Gerisch |
1890–1892 | |
| August Bebel August Bebel Ferdinand August Bebel was a German Marxist politician, writer, and orator. He is best remembered as one of the founders of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.-Early years:... Paul Singer Paul Singer (politician) Paul Singer was a leading supporter and representative of the Social Democratic Party of Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.- Literature :... |
1892–1911 | |
| August Bebel August Bebel Ferdinand August Bebel was a German Marxist politician, writer, and orator. He is best remembered as one of the founders of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.-Early years:... Hugo Haase Hugo Haase Hugo Haase was a German politician, jurist and pacifist.-Biography:Haase was born in Allenstein , Province of Prussia, the son of Jewish shoemaker and small businessman, Nathan Haase, and Pauline née Anker. He studied law in Königsberg and established himself as a lawyer... |
1911–1913 | |
| Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and... Hugo Haase Hugo Haase Hugo Haase was a German politician, jurist and pacifist.-Biography:Haase was born in Allenstein , Province of Prussia, the son of Jewish shoemaker and small businessman, Nathan Haase, and Pauline née Anker. He studied law in Königsberg and established himself as a lawyer... |
1913–1917 | Haase broke away in 1916 to form the USPD Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany was a short-lived political party in Germany during the Second Reich and the Weimar Republic. The organization was established in 1917 as the result of a split of left wing members of the Social Democratic Party of Germany... |
| Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and... Philipp Scheidemann Philipp Scheidemann Philipp Scheidemann was a German Social Democratic politician, who proclaimed the Republic on 9 November 1918, and who became the second Chancellor of the Weimar Republic.... |
1917–1919 | |
| Hermann Müller Hermann Müller (politician) ' , born in Mannheim, was a German Social Democratic politician who served as Foreign Minister , and twice as Chancellor of Germany under the Weimar Republic... Otto Wels Otto Wels Otto Wels was the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1919 and a member of parliament from 1920 to 1933.... |
1919–1922 | |
| Hermann Müller Hermann Müller (politician) ' , born in Mannheim, was a German Social Democratic politician who served as Foreign Minister , and twice as Chancellor of Germany under the Weimar Republic... Otto Wels Otto Wels Otto Wels was the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1919 and a member of parliament from 1920 to 1933.... Arthur Crispien Arthur Crispien Arthur Crispien was a German Social Democratic politician.- Biography :Crispien was born in Königsberg to August and Franziska Crispien. He worked as a house and stage painter in Königsberg and joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany in 1894... |
1922–1928 | Crispien co-opted in September as a representative of the returning USPD Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany was a short-lived political party in Germany during the Second Reich and the Weimar Republic. The organization was established in 1917 as the result of a split of left wing members of the Social Democratic Party of Germany... |
| Otto Wels Otto Wels Otto Wels was the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1919 and a member of parliament from 1920 to 1933.... Arthur Crispien Arthur Crispien Arthur Crispien was a German Social Democratic politician.- Biography :Crispien was born in Königsberg to August and Franziska Crispien. He worked as a house and stage painter in Königsberg and joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany in 1894... |
1928–1931 | |
| Otto Wels Otto Wels Otto Wels was the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1919 and a member of parliament from 1920 to 1933.... Arthur Crispien Arthur Crispien Arthur Crispien was a German Social Democratic politician.- Biography :Crispien was born in Königsberg to August and Franziska Crispien. He worked as a house and stage painter in Königsberg and joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany in 1894... Hans Vogel Hans Vogel Hans Vogel was a German politician and chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany along with Arthur Crispien and Otto Wels from 1931 to 1933... |
1931–1933 | |
| Chairmen of the party in exile 1933-1945 | ||
| Otto Wels Otto Wels Otto Wels was the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1919 and a member of parliament from 1920 to 1933.... Hans Vogel Hans Vogel Hans Vogel was a German politician and chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany along with Arthur Crispien and Otto Wels from 1931 to 1933... |
1933–1939 | |
| Hans Vogel Hans Vogel Hans Vogel was a German politician and chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany along with Arthur Crispien and Otto Wels from 1931 to 1933... |
1939–1945 | |
| After World War II | ||
| Otto Grotewohl Otto Grotewohl Otto Grotewohl was a German politician and prime minister of the German Democratic Republic from 1949 until his death. According to Roth , "He was a figurehead who led various economic commissions, lobbied the Soviets for increased aid, and conducted foreign policy tours in the attempt to break... |
1945–1946 | Chairman of a Central Committee Central Committee Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the... claiming national authority, chairman of the SPD in the Soviet zone, merged with the Eastern KPD Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany was a major political party in Germany between 1918 and 1933, and a minor party in West Germany in the postwar period until it was banned in 1956... to form the SED Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany was the governing party of the German Democratic Republic from its formation on 7 October 1949 until the elections of March 1990. The SED was a communist political party with a Marxist-Leninist ideology... in 1946. |
| Kurt Schumacher Kurt Schumacher Dr. Kurt Schumacher , was chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1946 and first Leader of the Opposition in the West German Bundestag parliament from 1949 until his death... |
1945–1946 | chairman of the SPD in the British zone, resisting Grotewohl's claims and implementing the formation of the SPD in West Germany. |
| Chairmen in West Germany 1946-1990 | ||
| Kurt Schumacher Kurt Schumacher Dr. Kurt Schumacher , was chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany from 1946 and first Leader of the Opposition in the West German Bundestag parliament from 1949 until his death... |
11 May 1946 - 20 August 1952 |
died in office |
| Erich Ollenhauer Erich Ollenhauer Erich Ollenhauer was the leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany 1952-1963.- Early political career and exile :... |
27 September 1952 - 14 Dezember 1963 |
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| Willy Brandt Willy Brandt Willy Brandt, born Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm , was a German politician, Mayor of West Berlin 1957–1966, Chancellor of West Germany 1969–1974, and leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany 1964–1987.... |
16 February 1964 - 14 June 1987 |
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| Hans-Jochen Vogel Hans-Jochen Vogel Hans-Jochen Vogel is a politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.- Early years and professional career :... |
14 June 1987 - 29 May 1991 |
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| Chairmen of the refounded Social Democratic Party Social Democratic Party in the GDR The Social Democratic Party in the GDR was a Social Democratic Party existing during the last phase of the East German state... in East Germany 1989-1990 |
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| Ibrahim Böhme Ibrahim Böhme Ibrahim Böhme was a politician for a short period of time after the collapse of the communist regime in the German Democratic Republic, also known as East Germany. Before becoming involved in politics, Böhme had worked numerous different jobs as a cook, waiter, bricklayer, teacher, and historian... |
7 October 1989 - 1 April 1990 |
resigned after allegations about Stasi Stasi The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered... collaboration |
| Markus Meckel Markus Meckel Markus Meckel is a German theologian and politician. He was the penultimate foreign minister of the GDR and is a member of the German Bundestag.-Early life:... |
8 April - 9 June 1990 |
acting chairman |
| Wolfgang Thierse Wolfgang Thierse Wolfgang Thierse is a German politician .- Early years in the GDR :Thierse was born in Breslau . He is a Roman Catholic and grew up in East Germany. After his A-levels he first worked as a typesetter in Weimar... |
9 June - 26 September 1990 |
until the Eastern party merged with the Western SPD on 26 September 1990 |
| Chairmen after reunification | ||
| Hans-Jochen Vogel Hans-Jochen Vogel Hans-Jochen Vogel is a politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.- Early years and professional career :... |
26 September 1990 - 29 May 1991 |
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| Björn Engholm Björn Engholm Björn Engholm is a Lübeck born German SPD politician. He was Minister-President of Schleswig-Holstein from 1988 to 1993 and leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany between 1991 and 1993.... |
29 May 1991 - 3 May 1993 |
resigned after political scandal |
| Johannes Rau Johannes Rau Johannes Rau was a German politician of the SPD. He was President of Germany from 1 July 1999 until 30 June 2004, and Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia from 1978 to 1998.-Education and work:... |
3 May - 25 June 1993 |
acting chairman |
| Rudolf Scharping Rudolf Scharping Rudolf Scharping is a German politician .Scharping studied politics, sociology and law at the University of Bonn. He joined the Social Democratic Party in 1966. He was Member of the Rhineland-Palatine Parliament from 1975 to 1994. From 21 May 1991 to 15 October 1994 he was prime minister of the... |
25 June 1993 - 16 November 1995 |
elected by a members' vote; the experiment was never repeated |
| Oskar Lafontaine Oskar Lafontaine Oskar Lafontaine is a German politician, former German finance minister, former chairman of the Social Democratic Party and former Minister-President of the state of Saarland. Since 2007 he was co-chairman of The Left... |
16 November 1995 - 12 March 1999 |
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| Gerhard Schröder Gerhard Schröder Gerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor... |
12 March 1999 - 21 March 2004 |
took over after sudden resignation of Lafontaine |
| Franz Müntefering Franz Müntefering Franz Müntefering is a German politician and industrial manager. He was Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from 18 October 2008 to 13 November 2009, a position he already held from 2004 to 2005... |
21 March 2004 - 15 November 2005 |
resigned after his candidate for party secretary was not chosen |
| Matthias Platzeck Matthias Platzeck Matthias Platzeck is a German politician. He has been Minister-President of Brandenburg since 2002 and party chairman of the SPD from November 2005 to April 2006.-Private life:... |
15 November 2005 - 10 April 2006 |
resigned because of health reasons |
| Kurt Beck Kurt Beck Kurt Beck is a German politician , serving as the Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate since 1994 and as President of the Bundesrat in 2000/01. On May 14, 2006, he succeeded Matthias Platzeck as Chairman of the German Social Democratic Party... |
10 April 2006 - 7 September 2008 |
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| Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , and currently the leader of the opposition in the Bundestag. Steinmeier was a close aide of Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, serving as Chief of Staff in the German Chancellery from 1999 to 2005... |
7 September 2008 - 18 October 2008 |
acting chairman |
| Franz Müntefering Franz Müntefering Franz Müntefering is a German politician and industrial manager. He was Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from 18 October 2008 to 13 November 2009, a position he already held from 2004 to 2005... |
18 October 2008 - 13 November 2009 |
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| Sigmar Gabriel Sigmar Gabriel Sigmar Gabriel is a German politician currently chairing the Social Democratic Party of Germany .On 15 December 1999, after the resignation of Gerhard Glogowski, who had succeeded Gerhard Schröder in office, Gabriel became Minister-President of Lower Saxony and served until 4 March 2003... |
since 13 November 2009 | elected chairman |
Leading members before World War I
- August BebelAugust BebelFerdinand August Bebel was a German Marxist politician, writer, and orator. He is best remembered as one of the founders of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.-Early years:...
- Eduard BernsteinEduard BernsteinEduard Bernstein was a German social democratic theoretician and politician, a member of the SPD, and the founder of evolutionary socialism and revisionism.- Life :...
- Karl KautskyKarl KautskyKarl Johann Kautsky was a Czech-German philosopher, journalist, and Marxist theoretician. Kautsky was recognized as among the most authoritative promulgators of Orthodox Marxism after the death of Friedrich Engels in 1895 until the coming of World War I in 1914 and was called by some the "Pope of...
- Wilhelm LiebknechtWilhelm LiebknechtWilhelm Martin Philipp Christian Ludwig Liebknecht was a German social democrat and a principal founder of the SPD. His political career was a pioneering project combining Marxist revolutionary theory with practical, legal political activity...
- Rosa LuxemburgRosa LuxemburgRosa Luxemburg was a Marxist theorist, philosopher, economist and activist of Polish Jewish descent who became a naturalized German citizen...
- Friedrich EbertFriedrich EbertFriedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
German Presidents from the SPD
- Friedrich EbertFriedrich EbertFriedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
1919–1925 - Gustav HeinemannGustav HeinemannGustav Walter Heinemann, GCB was a German politician. He was Mayor of the city of Essen from 1946 to 1949, West German Minister of the Interior from 1949 to 1950, Minister of Justice from 1966 to 1969 and President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1969 to 1974.-Early years and professional...
1969–1974 - Johannes RauJohannes RauJohannes Rau was a German politician of the SPD. He was President of Germany from 1 July 1999 until 30 June 2004, and Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia from 1978 to 1998.-Education and work:...
1999–2004
German Chancellors from the SPD
- Friedrich EbertFriedrich EbertFriedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
1918 - Philipp ScheidemannPhilipp ScheidemannPhilipp Scheidemann was a German Social Democratic politician, who proclaimed the Republic on 9 November 1918, and who became the second Chancellor of the Weimar Republic....
1919 - Gustav BauerGustav Bauer' was a German Social Democratic Party leader and Chancellor of Germany from 1919 to 1920.Born in Darkehmen near Königsberg in East Prussia, Bauer, who rose to notice through his leadership of a white-collar trade union, served from 1908 to 1918 as chairman of the General Commission of Trade...
1919–1920 - Hermann MüllerHermann Müller (politician)' , born in Mannheim, was a German Social Democratic politician who served as Foreign Minister , and twice as Chancellor of Germany under the Weimar Republic...
1920 and 1928–1930 - Willy BrandtWilly BrandtWilly Brandt, born Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm , was a German politician, Mayor of West Berlin 1957–1966, Chancellor of West Germany 1969–1974, and leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany 1964–1987....
1969–1974 - Helmut SchmidtHelmut SchmidtHelmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt is a German Social Democratic politician who served as Chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982. Prior to becoming chancellor, he had served as Minister of Defence and Minister of Finance. He had also served briefly as Minister of Economics and as acting...
1974–1982 - Gerhard SchröderGerhard SchröderGerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...
1998–2005