TheIron Front(German:Eiserne Front) was a Germanparamilitaryorganization in theWeimar Republicwhich consisted ofsocial democrats,trade unionists,anddemocratic socialists.Its main goal was to defendsocial democracyagainst what was seen asanti-democratic,totalitarianideologies on thefar-rightandfar-left.The Iron Front chiefly opposed theSturmabteilung(SA) wing of theNazi Partyand theAntifaschistische Aktionwing of theCommunist Party of Germany.[1]Formally independent, it was intimately associated with theSocial Democratic Party of Germany(SPD). TheThree Arrows,originally designed for the Iron Front, became a well-knownsocial democraticsymbol representing resistance againstmonarchism,Nazism,andcommunismduringthe parliamentary electionsin November 1932. The Three Arrows were later adopted by the SPD itself.[2]
| Iron Front | |
|---|---|
| Eiserne Front | |
 Emblem of the Iron Front | |
| Active regions | Germany |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Centre-lefttoleft-wing |
| Opponents | |
History
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The Iron Front was formed on 16 December 1931 in theWeimar Republicby theSocial Democratic Party(SPD), along with theAllgemeiner Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund(ADGB), theReichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold,andworkers' sport clubs.[3]The Iron Front chiefly opposed the paramilitary organisations of both the fascistNational Socialist German Workers Party(NSDAP), i.e. the Nazi Party, and theCommunist Party of Germany(KPD). Its initial purpose was to counter theright-wingHarzburg Front.The organization sought to engage the old Reichsbanner, the SPD youth organization, andlabourandliberalgroups, as a united front. The SPD rallied to the Iron Front, held mass demonstrations, armed themselves, and fought the Nazi SA and Communist RFB in the streets. This was more than the SPD leaders wanted, but SPD workers grew increasingly militant in their resistance against the authoritarian and totalitarian movements threatening the Weimar Republic and its democratic institutions.[4]
The Iron Front was regarded as an anti-communist and "social fascistterror organisation "by the KPD, who regarded the SPD as their main adversary.[5]In response to the formation of the Iron Front, the KPD founded its own activist wing,Antifaschistische Aktion(Antifa), which opposed the social democrat SPD and the fascist NSDAP.[6]
On January 30, 1933, the day Hitler was appointed Chancellor, the KPD asked the Iron Front, the SPD, the general trade union association ADGB and their organisations, and the Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold to declare a general strike against Hitler. The Iron Front declined, issued a call on February 2 to "all comrades of the Reichsbanner and the Iron Front", warning against participating in "wild actions organised by irresponsible people", and exhorted members to "turn all Iron Front events into powerful rallies for freedom".[7]
On March 3, the Iron Front planned a march inKassel,but was hindered by regular police. On May 2, all trade unions, with which the Iron Front was closely allied, were finally abolished, together with all trade union structures.[8]Until the mid 1930s and in some cases until the war years, some local branches of the Iron Front and the former trade union organisations continued with resistance, mostly by spreading leaflets, organizing secret meetings, and carrying out acts of sabotage.[9]
Its logo, theThree Arrows(pointing southwest) was designed bySergei Chakhotin,former assistant to the physiologistIvan Pavlovin 1931.[10][11][12]Designed so as to be able to easily coverNaziswastikas,the meaning of the three arrows has been variously interpreted. The present-day Reichsbanner association says the arrows of the logo stood for the SPD, the trade unions, and theReichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold,as well as for the political, economic, and physical strength of the working class.[13]The symbol was used on aNovember 1932 Reichstag electionposter of the SPD to represent opposition to theNazi Party(Nazism), theCommunist Party(Communism), theGerman National People's Party(Monarchism) as well as other reactionary groups.[14]
About its formation,Karl Höltermann,chairman of the Reichsbanner, commented: "The year 1932 will be our year, the year of victory of the republic over its opponents. Not one day nor one hour more do we want to remain on the defensive. We attack! Attack on the whole line! We must be part of the general offensive. Today we call - tomorrow we strike!"[15]
Legacy
editThe Three Arrows became a symbol of thesocial democraticresistance against the ideologies of Nazism and Soviet Style State Socialism.[2]More recently, the symbol has been appropriated byAmerican anti-fascist movements,along with flags historically derived from the German Communist Party'sAntifaschistische Aktion.[16]Antifa opposed the Iron Front, whom they regarded as bourgeois andfascist,as the Three Arrows logo was used to represent resistance against Antifa's affiliated party, the KPD as well.[2]
The Iron Front flag has been adopted by supporters ofMajor League Soccer(MLS) teams including thePortland Timbersand theSeattle Soundersfrequently seen at their games. MLS banned the flag in 2019 as part of a crackdown on "political symbols," although the league repealed the ban weeks later.[17]
See also
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Footnotes
edit- ^Harsch, Donna (2009).The Iron Front: Weimar Social Democracy between Tradition and Modernity(1 ed.). Berghahn Books. pp.251–274.ISBN978-1-57181-120-2.JSTORj.ctt9qcp9v.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ^abcPotthoff, Heinrich; Faulenbach, Bernd (1998).Sozialdemokraten und Kommunisten nach Nationalsozialismus und Krieg: zur historischen Einordnung der Zwangsvereinigung.Klartext. p. 27.
- ^Andreas Linhardt (2006).Die Technische Nothilfe in der Weimarer Republik.Dissertation:Braunschweig University of Technology.p. 667.ISBN978-3-8334-4889-8.Retrieved 6 August 2011(in German).
- ^"Drei Pfeile für die Republik - 85 Jahre" Eiserne Front "".Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold(in German). 16 December 2016.Retrieved25 May2024.
- ^Siegfried Lokatis:Der rote Faden. Kommunistische Parteigeschichte und Zensur unter Walter Ulbricht.Böhlau Verlag, Köln 2003,ISBN3-412-04603-5(Zeithistorische Studienseries, vol. 25), p. 60|quote=Thälmann hatte die SPD als „Hilfspolizei für den Faschismus “, als „verräterische und volksfeindliche Partei “, ihre Führer als „berufsmäßige Arbeiterverräter “, „Kapitalsknechte “und „Todfeinde des Sozialismus “, die Eiserne Front als „Terrororganisation des Sozialfaschismus “beschimpft und die „Liquidierung der SAJ als Massenorganisation “gefordert. [Thälmann had insulted the SPD as" auxiliary police for fascism "and a" treacherous and anti-people party ", its leaders as" professional traitors "," servants of capital ", and" mortal enemies of socialism ", the Iron Front as a" terrorist organization of social fascism ", and declared that the" Liquidation of the SAJ as a mass organization "was required.]
- ^Langer, Bernd (2012).80 Jahre Antifaschistische Aktion(PDF).Göttingen: Verein zur Förderung antifaschistischer Kultur. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2019-02-04.Retrieved2019-08-21.
- ^Hessischer Volksfreund 2.2.1933, In: VVN-BdA, Das Jahr 1933,https://dasjahr1933.de/eiserne-front-und-reichsbanner-warnen-vor-wilden-aktionen-2-februar-1933/
- ^VVN-BdA,Das Jahr 1933/
- ^Heinz, Stefan,Interview with Gerda Henkel Stiftung,15 December 2015
- ^Friedrich-Wilhelm Witt (1971)."Die Hamburger Sozialdemokratie in der Weimarer Republik". Unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Jahre 1929/30 – 1933("Hamburg Social Democracy in the Weimar Republic". With special consideration of the years 1929/30 – 1933). Hannover. p. 136.
- ^Sergei Tschachotin (1933).Dreipfeil gegen Hakenkreuz("Three Arrows Against the Swastika"). Kopenhagen. Book was reviewed by Dieter Rebentisch (1972) in the periodicalArchiv für Sozialgeschichte( "Archives for Social History" ). No. 12. p. 679–???.ISSN0066-6505.
- ^Richard Albrecht (January 2005)."Dreipfeil gegen Hakenkreuz" – Symbolkrieg in Deutschland 1932("Three Arrows Against the Swastika" – symbol war in Germany 1932 ". Historical Case-Study in Anti-Nazi-Propaganda Within Germany and Western Europe, 1931-35).
- ^"Die Eiserne Front".Archived7 October 2011 at theWayback MachineBundesverband Reichbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold, Bund Aktiver Demokraten e. V. Retrieved 6 August 2011(in German).
- ^"Kapitel 2: Selbstverständnis".Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold(in German).Retrieved25 May2024.
- ^Werner K. Blessing (2003). "Dok. 9 Aufruf des Bundesvorsitzenden Karl Höltermann, Anfang Januar 1932". Bayerische Landeszentrale für Politische Bildungsarbeit. Die Weimarer Republik Band III. Retrieved 6 August 2011(in German).
- ^Friedmann, Sarah (August 15, 2017)."This Is What The Antifa Flag Symbols Mean".Bustle.Retrieved16 April2019.
- ^Rosenberg, Eli (31 August 2019)."There is an anti-fascist rebellion brewing in the Pacific Northwest. And soccer is at the center of it".The Washington Post.Retrieved7 January2021.
Further reading
edit- "Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold - Themen: Die Eiserne Front".Reichsbanner Schwarz-Rot-Gold - Reichsbanner Geschichte(in German). Archived fromthe originalon 2021-01-22.Retrieved2020-12-18.