Wilhelm Hasenclever
Encyclopedia
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...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. He was an originally a tanner
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
by trade, and later became a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. However, he is most well known for his political work in the predecessors of the Social Democratic Party of Germany
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
(SPD
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
).
In 1869 and 1870, Hasenclever was a representative for the 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...
(Allgemeiner Deutscher Arbeiterverein, ADAV) in the Reichstag
Reichstag (German Empire)
The Reichstag was the parliament of the North German Confederation , and of the German Reich ....
(parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
) of the North German Confederation
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...
. From 1871 on, he was the last president of the ADAV, until it merged with the Social Democratic Workers' Party
Social Democratic Workers' Party
Social Democratic Workers' Party may refer to one of the following parties:*Social Democratic Workers' Party *Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria*Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany*Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party...
(Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei, SDAP) to form 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...
(Sozialistische Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands, SAP). From 1874 to 1888 he was again a social democrat representative in the Reichstag of the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
that had been formed in 1871: Originally for the ADAV, later for the SAP. Hasenclever was member of the party board there as well.
Together with 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...
, he also founded the party paper Vorwärts
Vorwärts
Vorwärts was the central organ of the Social Democratic Party of Germany published daily in Berlin from 1891 to 1933 by decision of the party's Halle Congress, as the successor of Berliner Volksblatt, founded in 1884....
, the official newspaper of the SPD until the 1990s.
Biography
Wilhelm Hasenclever was the son of a self-employed tannerTanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
. The family had protestant roots and had migrated to the catholic
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
Arnsberg. After visiting secondary school up to the "Sekunda" (equivalent to today's Mittlere Reife
Mittlere Reife
The Mittlere Reife is a school leaving certificate in Germany that is roughly comparable with the American high school diploma. It is regularly awarded after ten years of schooling....
, a diploma of secondary education
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
below the full-blown Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
) he learned the tanning trade from his parents. In 1857/58 he was forced into a year of military service; in 1859, another period of military service with the Prussian army in Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
and Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
followed.
In between and afterwards, Hasenclever - like many artisan
Artisan
An artisan is a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative, including furniture, clothing, jewellery, household items, and tools...
s of the time - took to the road, taking on various short-term jobs and visiting most member states of the North German Confederation
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and southern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. His experiences, which made him aware of the problems of the proletariat
Proletariat
The proletariat is a term used to identify a lower social class, usually the working class; a member of such a class is proletarian...
, greatly influenced his later political stance.
Early journalistic and political work
Sports club
A sports club or sport club, sometimes athletics club or sports association is a club for the purpose of playing one or more sports...
s, Hasenclever discovered his love of writing and holding speeches. In 1862/63 he became editor for the democratically oriented newspaper Westfälische Volkszeitung in Hagen
Hagen
Hagen is the 39th-largest city in Germany, located in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located on the eastern edge of the Ruhr area, 15 km south of Dortmund, where the rivers Lenne, Volme and Ennepe meet the river Ruhr...
. As a journalist, he became aware of the writings of the socialist Ferdinand Lassalle
Ferdinand 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...
, in particular Lasalle's programme for the working class. This became the foundation of the first German social democrat party, with subgroups in most states of the Confederation: the 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...
(Allgemeiner Deutscher Arbeiterverein, ADAV), founded on 13 May 1863 in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
and instigated by Lasalle.
During the Second War of Schleswig
Second War of Schleswig
The Second Schleswig War was the second military conflict as a result of the Schleswig-Holstein Question. It began on 1 February 1864, when Prussian forces crossed the border into Schleswig.Denmark fought Prussia and Austria...
Hasenclever was once again drafted into the Prussian army for a short time. Shortly after his release he was sentenced to six weeks in prison on grounds of Ehrfuhrchtsverletzung gegenüber Sr. Majestät (Lèse majesté
Lèse majesté
Lese-majesty is the crime of violating majesty, an offence against the dignity of a reigning sovereign or against a state.This behavior was first classified as a criminal offence against the dignity of the Roman republic in Ancient Rome...
against the Prussian king Wilhelm I) due to an article he had written for the Rheinische Zeitung
Rheinische Zeitung
The Rheinische Zeitung was a 19th-century German newspaper, edited most famously by Karl Marx.The paper was founded on January 1, 1842 with a reformist pro-democracy editorial slant, providing an outlet for the Rhine region's middle-class and intellectuals, who were increasingly opposed to...
. However, he was acquitted on appeal.
After these experiences with the Prussian judicial system he joined the ADAV the same year - only a few months after Lasalle had died in a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
.
Career in the ADAV, rivalry with the SDAP
In 1866 Hasenclever was elected secretary of the ADAV under association president Carl Wilhelm TölckeCarl Wilhelm Tölcke
Carl Wilhelm Tölcke was a German Social democratic politician, the "father of Social democracy in Westphalia" and president of the General German Workers' Association.-References:...
. From 1868 to 1870 he was responsible for the party's finances. At the same time, from 1867 to 1869, he ran the tannery in Halver
Halver
Halver is a town in the Märkischer Kreis district, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It has a population of 18,083 and covers an area of 77.37 km², of which 51% are used for agricultural purposes and 35% are forest...
that belonged to his sister.
In 1869 Hasenclever became the representative for Duisburg
Duisburg
- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
in the Reichstag
Reichstag (German Empire)
The Reichstag was the parliament of the North German Confederation , and of the German Reich ....
(parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
) of the North German Confederation
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...
, which had been founded in 1876 after Prussia had won the Austro-Prussian War
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War was a war fought in 1866 between the German Confederation under the leadership of the Austrian Empire and its German allies on one side and the Kingdom of Prussia with its German allies and Italy on the...
against Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. After the election he moved to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. The other ADAV representatives were Friedrich Wilhelm Fritzsche and the anti-Prussian, anti-Marxist Johann Baptist von Schweitzer, who had become president of the ADAV the same year.
Also present in the Reichstag was the Social Democratic Workers' Party
Social Democratic Workers' Party
Social Democratic Workers' Party may refer to one of the following parties:*Social Democratic Workers' Party *Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria*Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany*Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party...
(Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei, SDAP), with 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...
and 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:...
. The party, which was revolutionary and 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...
, had been formed 1869 in Eisenach
Eisenach
Eisenach is a city in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated between the northern foothills of the Thuringian Forest and the Hainich National Park. Its population in 2006 was 43,626.-History:...
, Kingdom of Saxony
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...
, from the left wing of the Saxon People's Party
Saxon People's Party
The Saxon People's Party was a left-liberal and radical democratic party in Germany, which existed from its founding by Wilhelm Liebknecht and August Bebel in 1866 in Chemnitz until being integrated into the then founded Social Democratic Workers' Party in 1869. It was an alliance between...
(Sächsische Volkspartei). Contrary to the ADAV, the SAP followed a strict anti-Prussian line and worked towards "Großdeutsche" (greater German) unification including Austria and a federal
Federation
A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...
structure, with the goal of constricting the hegemony
Hegemony
Hegemony is an indirect form of imperial dominance in which the hegemon rules sub-ordinate states by the implied means of power rather than direct military force. In Ancient Greece , hegemony denoted the politico–military dominance of a city-state over other city-states...
of Prussia, which was considered reactionary and militaristic by the SAP. That was not only in conflict with the goals of the conservative Prussian president and chancellor of the North German Confederation, 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...
, but also with Schweitzer, the controversial leader of the ADAV, who was closer to the chancellor in national matters than the more internationally
Proletarian internationalism
Proletarian internationalism, sometimes referred to as international socialism, is a Marxist social class concept based on the view that capitalism is now a global system, and therefore the working class must act as a global class if it is to defeat it...
-oriented SAP.
After the end of his first Reichstag period Hasenclever took part in the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
of 1870/71. After the victory of the North German Confederation under Prussian leadership, the southern German states Baden
Baden
Baden is a historical state on the east bank of the Rhine in the southwest of Germany, now the western part of the Baden-Württemberg of Germany....
, Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
and Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
joined the Confederation, forming the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
with the King of Prussia, Wilhelm I, as Kaiser
Kaiser
Kaiser is the German title meaning "Emperor", with Kaiserin being the female equivalent, "Empress". Like the Russian Czar it is directly derived from the Latin Emperors' title of Caesar, which in turn is derived from the personal name of a branch of the gens Julia, to which Gaius Julius Caesar,...
(Emperor). So, the "Kleindeutsche" (smaller German) solution had been implemented. Bismarck became Reichskanzler and leader of the government that had been specified by the Emperor.
Shortly afterwards, secret communication between the government and Schweitzer (who was known in the ADAV as an authoritarian, bordering on the dictatorial, leader) became known. Schweitzer stepped down as party leader and ended his political career. In 1871, Hasenclever was elected Schweitzer's successor as the president of the ADAV.
In the following years, Bismarck tried to play SDAP and ADAV (both of which he regarded as "enemies of the Reich") against each other. The rivalry between the two parties made it easier for the government to harass worker's associations in the whole Reich with raids and searches.
As newly elected president of the ADAV, Hasenclever began to give a new direction to the ADAV. That, combined with Bismarck's increasingly restrictive line, led to a party line closer to that of the SDAP. However both parties kept their priorities for the time being and criticized each other for it: reform (ADAV) versus revolution (SDAP), national influence of the worker's movement (ADAV) against proletarian internationalism (SDAP), working towards cooperative
Cooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
s (ADAV) versus working towards trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s (SDAP).
The two papers of the ADAV - Der Social-Demokrat ("The Social Democrat") and Der Agitator ("The Agitator
Agitator
An agitator is a person who actively supports some ideology or movement with speeches and especially actions. The Agitators were a political movement as well as elected representatives of soldiers, including the New Model Army of Oliver Cromwell, during the English Civil War. They were also known...
"), both dominated by Schweitzer until he stepped down - now were merged into a new party publication called Der Neue Sozial-Demokrat ("The New Social Democrat"). Editors-in-chief were Hasenclever and his party friend and supporter Wilhelm Hasselmann. Additionally, Hasenclever was editor for the magazine Sozial-politische Blätter ("Socio-Political Papers") and, from 1873 onwards, publisher of the special edition Sozialpolitische Blätter zur Unterhaltung und Belehrung der deutschen Arbeiter ("Socio-Political Papers for the Entertainment and Education of the German Workers").
Under Hasenclever's leadership the ADAV grew from 5300 (1871) to more than 19000 (1873/74) members. Der Neue Sozial-Demokrat had more than 11000 subscribers. For his publications, Hasenclever got multiple criminal sentences, up to one to three months of prison, for crimes such as "publicly encouraging criminal acts", "libel" and "membership in a closed society".
Fusion of the ADAV and the SDAP - the SAP
After a hiatus of four years, Hasenclever was once again elected to the Reichstag (which had become the Reichstag of the German Empire), this time representing Altona. Since then, the positions of the ADAV and the SDAP increasingly converged. On a joint party meeting on 5 May 1875 in GothaGotha (town)
Gotha is a town in Thuringia, within the central core of Germany. It is the capital of the district of Gotha.- History :The town has existed at least since the 8th century, when it was mentioned in a document signed by Charlemagne as Villa Gotaha . Its importance derives from having been chosen in...
, the two parties finally merged, forming 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...
(Sozialistische Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands, SAP).
Hasenclever and Wilhelm Liebknecht, the leaders of the two parties, had struck a compromise that was written down in the Gotha programme (Gothaer Programm) of the SAP. It included toning down the revolutionary goals of the SDAP to work within legal bounds:
Additionally, these goals should be reached primarily on a national level, which weakened the internationalist aspect of social democrat politics. The party programme also was also much more insistent on furthering cooperative economics than the previous programme of the SDAP.
While the Marxist goals of Liebknecht were not gone entirely, 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...
himself criticized the more reform-oriented compromise in his Kritik des Gothaer Programms ("Critique of the Gotha Programme") from his exile in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Hasenclever was on the board of the new SAP in 1975/76 together with Liebknecht and August Bebel. Together with Liebknecht, he founded the new central party publication Vorwärts
Vorwärts
Vorwärts was the central organ of the Social Democratic Party of Germany published daily in Berlin from 1891 to 1933 by decision of the party's Halle Congress, as the successor of Berliner Volksblatt, founded in 1884....
("Forward") 1876 in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
. The first issue was published on 1 October 1876. Vorwärts is still the official publication of the SAP's successor party, the SPD.
The same year, Hasenclever moved to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
and founded the Hamburg-Altonaer Volksblatt ("Hamburg-Altona People's Paper") . Additionally, he published a satirical worker's newspaper in Leipzig.
Work in the Reichstag and the anti-socialist laws
Because of the steady increase of support for the social democrats Bismarck tried to suppress the party and related associations more firmly. Two assassination attempts on Kaiser Wilhelm I in May and June 1878 gave him the opportunity to act. Even though he knew the contrary was true, he accused the SAP of commissioning the assassins.After a majority decision of the Conservative and the National Liberal
National Liberal Party (Germany)
The National Liberal Party was a German political party which flourished between 1867 and 1918. It was formed by Prussian liberals who put aside their differences with Bismarck over domestic policy due to their support for his highly successful foreign policy, which resulted in the unification of...
representatives of the Reichstag Bismarck submitted the Gesetz gegen die gemeingefährlichen Bestrebungen der Sozialdemokratie ("Law against the highly dangerous endeavors of Social Democracy", known today as the Sozialistengesetze in German and "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...
" in English) for the Kaiser to sign. It prohibited all activities, meetings and publications of the SAP outside of the Reichstag and the Landtag
Landtag
A Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
e (state parliaments). It went into effect on 22 October 1878 and was rescinded in 1890 - one year after Hasenclever's death and shortly after Bismarck had been relieved of his post as chancellor by the new Kaiser Wilhelm II.
The Vorwärts was prohibited in this time as well. Der Sozialdemokrat was one of the few party papers that were distributed illegally in the Reich. It was printed in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
since 1880, and in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
from 1887. Many Social Democrats were forced to emigrate
Emigration
Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
to neighboring countries, others were jailed for breaching the anti-socialist laws or were expelled from the towns they were living in as "agitators". When the government declared the so-called Kleiner Belagerungszustand (small state of siege) on several cities that were Social Democrat strongholds, these sanctions further increased.
Hasenclever, Liebknecht, Bebel and other SAP party members kept their seats in the Reichstag and continued to oppose Bismarck's politics and the parties that supported him. However, they were not allowed to publicly represent Social Democracy within the Reich's borders outside the Reichstag. Even though these heavy sanctions, their seats were confirmed in the next Reichstag elections, in which the SAP continued to gain additional votes. Against Bismarck's intentions, the anti-socialist laws had led to a surge of solidarity in the working class that politicized the workers and moved them closer to the party.
Between 1881 an 1890 the number of Reichstag votes for the SAP rose from 312000 in 1881 to more than 1.4 Million in 1890, an increase of more than 450%. That made the SAP the party with the highest number of votes in the Reich. The new Sozialgesetzgebung (social laws) of the chancellor, which created the basis for a system of social security, failed to stop that trend.
Like many socialists, Hasenclever was active with the trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s during the anti-socialist laws, independent of his party membership. For example, after 1878 he co-founded the Berliner Arbeiterbund ("Berlin Worker's Association"). His publications were partially written under a pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
.
Even though he had a seat in the Reichstag, he was forced to change his German place of residence multiple times by the Kleiner Belagerungszustand, since he was expelled from Leipzig in 1881 and from Berlin in 1884. He lived as a self-employed writer in Wurzen
Wurzen
Wurzen is a town in the Leipzig district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Mulde, here crossed by two bridges, 25 km east of Leipzig, by rail N.E. of Leipzig on the main line to Dresden...
, 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...
and Dessau
Dessau
Dessau is a town in Germany on the junction of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt. Since 1 July 2007, it is part of the merged town Dessau-Roßlau. Population of Dessau proper: 77,973 .-Geography:...
. Because he was mostly unable to finance his political work by himself, he had to rely on support by his wife Clara, which owned a cigar trade in Berlin.
Illness and death
In the late 1880s Hasenclever increasingly suffered from a neurological and psychiatrical condition that was not specifically diagnosed at the time. This made his political work harder and harder, and in the end impossible. In 1888 he stepped down from the Reichstag, after he had collapsed during the Geheimbund-Prozess ("secret society trial") in Düsseldorf. He tried to regain his health in the Maison de la santé (FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
for "house of health"), a sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
in Schöneberg
Schöneberg
Schöneberg is a locality of Berlin, Germany. Until Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it was a separate borough including the locality of Friedenau. Together with the former borough of Tempelhof it is now part of the new borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg....
south of Berlin. There he died, reliant on support by staff and mentally incapable, on 3 July 1889, aged 52. He did not experience the end of the anti-socialist laws and the renaming of the SAP to Social Democratic Party of Germany
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
(Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, SPD) a year later.
He was buried on the Friedhof der freireligiösen Gemeinde Berlins ("Cemetery of the independently religious community of Berlin") on Prenzlauer Berg
Prenzlauer Berg
Prenzlauer Berg is a locality of Berlin, in the borough of Pankow.Until 2001, Prenzlauer Berg was a borough of Berlin; in that year it was included in the borough of Pankow....
in Pankow
Pankow
Pankow is the third borough of Berlin. In Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it was merged with the former boroughs of Prenzlauer Berg and Weißensee; the resulting borough retained the name Pankow.- Overview :...
. About 15000 workers attended the funeral.
A year later, in 1890, party members of the SPD collected money for a memorial there. Its inscription is "Dem alten Kämpfer für Wahrheit, Freiheit und Recht" ("To the old fighter for truth, freedom and justice"). Today, the Wilhelm-Hasenclever-Platz, a square in Berlin-Wedding which features another memorial plaque, is named in his honor. Also, a street in Treptow is named after him. In 1987, Hasenclever's house of birth in Arnsberg was fitted with a memorial plaque as well.
Work as a writer
Hasenclever's work as a writer went beyond the numerous publications in newspapers and magazines, many of which he had founded himself. He wrote various treatises on sociopolitical problems of the time, but also novellaNovella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
s, poems and song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s, in which he addressed the cause of the workers in emotionally and full of pathos
Pathos
Pathos represents an appeal to the audience's emotions. Pathos is a communication technique used most often in rhetoric , and in literature, film and other narrative art....
. The roots of his poems were the political poems of the Vormärz
Vormärz
' is the time period leading up to the failed March 1848 revolution in the German Confederation. Also known as the Age of Metternich, it was a period of Austrian and Prussian police states and vast censorship in response to calls for liberalism...
and were intended to be more political than artistical. In day-to-day politics, however, Hasenclever was regarded as more moderate than other leading Socialists of the time.
Inside the party, one of his most controversial works was the treatise "Der Wahrheit die Ehre. Ein Beitrag zur Judenfrage in Deutschland" ("Truth Honored. A Submission on the Question of Jews in Germany"), which he had published in 1881 under the pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
"Wilhelm Revel". In it, Hasenclever addressed the racist-antisemitic position of Adolf Stoecker
Adolf Stoecker
Adolf Stoecker was the court chaplain to Kaiser Wilhelm II, a politician, and a German Lutheran theologian who founded one of the first Christian Social Gospel political parties in Germany, the Christian Social Party.-Life:Stoecker was born in Halberstadt, Province of Saxony.A staunch Protestant,...
, who had founded the Christian Social Party
Christian Social Party (Germany)
The Christian Social Party was a right-wing political party in the German Empire, founded in 1878 by Adolf Stoecker as the Christlichsoziale Arbeiterpartei . The party combined a strong Christian and conservative programme with progressive ideas on labour, and tried to provide an alternative for...
(Christlich-soziale Partei) to promote an anti-Semitic agenda politically. However, by criticizing this "movement", which tried to attract and subvert the social democrat voters (with limited success), Hasenclever touched upon the anti-Semitic ressentiment
Ressentiment
Ressentiment , in philosophy and psychology, is a particular form of resentment or hostility. It is the French word for "resentment" . Ressentiment is a sense of hostility directed at that which one identifies as the cause of one's frustration, that is, an assignment of blame for one's frustration...
s in the worker's movement and showed understanding for their anti-capitalist and anti-intellectual motivations. So, he showed his own latent antisemitical bias, which led to criticism by other leading party members, who saw it as a threat to the official party line of emancipation
Jewish Emancipation
Jewish emancipation was the external and internal process of freeing the Jewish people of Europe, including recognition of their rights as equal citizens, and the formal granting of citizenship as individuals; it occurred gradually between the late 18th century and the early 20th century...
and assimilation
Cultural assimilation
Cultural assimilation is a socio-political response to demographic multi-ethnicity that supports or promotes the assimilation of ethnic minorities into the dominant culture. The term assimilation is often used with regard to immigrants and various ethnic groups who have settled in a new land. New...
of Jews.
Partial bibliography
- "Über die Beeinflussung des Arbeiterstandes durch die gegenwärtige Presse" ("On the Influence of the Current Press on the Working Class"), Heidelberg 1864.
- "Erlebtes - Skizzen und Novellen" ("Experiences - Sketches and Novellas"), Leipzig 1877.
- "Erlebtes. Erinnerungen aus dem Soldatenleben 1857 bis 1871" ("Experiences. Recollections of Life as a Soldier 1857 to 1871"), Leipzig 1877.
- "Liebe, Leben, Kampf. Gedichte" ("Love, Life, Struggle. Poems."), Hamburg 1878.
- "Noch einmal Herr Findel und die Socialdemokratie" ("Once Again Mister Findel and Social Democracy"), Leipzig 1880.
- "Der Wahrheit die Ehre - Ein Beitrag zur Judenfrage in Deutschland" ("Truth Honored. A Submission on the Question of Jews in Germany"), Nuremberg 1881 (published under the pen name Wilhelm Revel).
External links
Biographical portrait of Wilhelm Hasenclever by Konrad Beck Short biography of Wilhelm Hasenclever The Gotha programme of the SAP on WikisourceWikisource
Wikisource is an online digital library of free content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Its aims are to host all forms of free text, in many languages, and translations. Originally conceived as an archive to store useful or important historical texts, it has...