Bavarian Soviet Republic
[1] A group of communists and anarchists declared the Bavarian Soviet Republic on 6 April 1919, forcing the government of the existing People's State of Bavaria to flee to Bamberg.[2] The members of the new government, led by playwright Ernst Toller, had no political or administrative experience,[3] and after just six days in power they were ousted in a putsch organized by the Communist Party of Germany (KPD).Food shortages led to popular unrest, and on 3 May the People's State was violently put down by soldiers of the German Army, supported by paramilitary Freikorps troops.The Bavarian Soviet Republic contributed to the nationwide split between the moderate and radical Left represented by the Social Democrats and the Communists, which seriously weakened opposition to the Nazi rise to power.That prompted other armed supporters of Eisner to open fire, which caused a melee that killed the conservative parliamentarian Heinrich Osel [de] and provoked nervous breakdowns in at least two ministers.The assassination of Eisner created a martyr for the leftist cause and prompted demonstrations, the closing of the University of Munich, the kidnapping of aristocrats and the forced pealing of church bells.[28] Initially, the Bavarian Soviet Republic was ruled by USPD members such as Ernst Toller, and anarchists like writer Gustav Landauer, economist Silvio Gesell, and playwright Erich Mühsam.[28] Most infamous was the Commissar of Foreign Affairs Dr. Franz Lipp – who had been admitted several times to psychiatric hospitals – declared war on Württemberg and Switzerland over the Swiss refusal to lend 60 locomotives to the Republic.[1][38][39] The communists managed to secure power after the so called Palm Sunday Putsch, where the counter-revolutionary government forces were suppressed by the Bavarian Red Army commander Rudolf Egelhofer."[41] Having received the blessings of Lenin – who at the annual May Day celebration in Red Square said: "The liberated working class is celebrating its anniversary not only in Soviet Russia but in ... Soviet Bavaria"[38][27][31] – Leviné began to enact more communist reforms, which included forming a "Red Army" from factory workers, seizing cash, food supplies, and privately owned guns, expropriating luxurious apartments and giving them to the homeless and placing factories under the ownership and control of their workers.[31] On 27 April, due to disputes over whether negotiations should be held with Hoffmann's People's State of Bavaria, Leviné's committee resigned and re-elected Toller to lead the Bavarian Soviet Republic.The BSR forces – led by Ernst Toller – were victorious in the first battle at Dachau, but Hoffmann made a deal that gave him the services of 20,000 men of the Freikorps under Lt. General Burghard von Oven.Oven and the Freikorps, along with Hoffmann's loyalist elements of the German Army – called the "White Guards of Capitalism" by the communists – then took Dachau and surrounded Munich.[56][57] Adolf Hitler's longstanding chauffeur and first leader of the Schutzstaffel (SS) Julius Schreck signed up and served as a member of the Red Army in late April 1919.
Workers of the world, unite!The InternationaleUnrecognized stateMunichGermanSoviet republicErnst TollerEugen LevinéInterwar periodRevolutions of 1917–1923Political violence in Germany (1918–1933)German PapiermarkPeople's State of BavariaWeimar RepublicFree State of BavariaGermanysocialist stateBavariaGerman revolution of 1918–1919BambergCommunist Party of GermanyBolshevikGerman ArmyFreikorpsSocial DemocratsCommunistsNazi rise to powerGerman EmpireFirst World WarSocial Democratic Party of GermanyGerman sailors mutiniedworkers' and soldiers' councilOctober RevolutionKing Ludwig IIIResidenz PalaceKurt EisnerIndependent Social Democratic Party of Germanyminister-presidentBavarian Peasants' Leaguesocialist republicRussianBolsheviksproperty rightsnationalistAnton Graf von Arco auf ValleyLandtagErhard AuerUniversity of MunichMartin SegitzJohannes Hoffmannanarchistscommunist revolution in Hungarydictatorship of the proletariatcounter-revolutionaryPaul LeviGustav LandauerSilvio GesellErich MühsamDr. Franz Lipppsychiatric hospitalsWürttembergSwitzerlandPope Benedict XVVladimir LeninFreigeldFranz LippIndependentFritz SoldmannMax LevienPalm Sunday PutschRudolf EgelhoferRed Squareexpropriatinghomelesspaper moneyaristocratsparamilitaryvolkischeThule Societysoldiers' and workers' councilsDachauBurghard von OvenHotel Vier JahreszeitenPrince Gustav of Thurn and TaxisStadelheim PrisonKapp PutschNazi eraJewish BolshevismGeorg SchrimpfOskar Maria GrafB.TravenLujo BrentanoBruno WalterHeinrich MannRainer Maria RilkeAdolf HitlerSchutzstaffelJulius SchreckFranz Ritter von EppHermann ErhardtNazi PartyRudolf HessWhittaker ChambersCommunist Party USAFelix DzerzhinskyIgor SazonovAlsace Soviet RepublicAftermath of World War IHistory of BavariaBremen Soviet RepublicGerman Democratic RepublicGerman RevolutionHistory of GermanyHungarian Soviet RepublicSoviet (council)ABC-CLIOMühsam, ErichNoske, GustavFrölich, PaulBullock, AlanAlfred A. KnopfShirer, William L.Simon & SchusterJournal of Contemporary HistoryUllrich, VolkerVintage Books