Ernst Meyer (German politician)
Encyclopedia
Ernst Meyer was a German Communist political activist and politician. He is best remembered as a founding member and top leader of the Communist Party of Germany
and as the leader of that party's fraction in the Prussian Landtag. A political opponent of Ernst Thälmann
, Meyer was moved out of the top party leadership after 1928, not long before his death of tuberculosis-related pneumonia at the age of 43.
.
Meyer studied economics and philosophy at the University of Königsberg
, from which he received a PhD
in 1910.
(SPD) in 1908, while he was still a student in college, beginning to write almost immediately for Vorwärts (Forward), the SPD's official daily newspaper. In 1911 Meyer was promoted to the position of the economics editor of 'Vorwärts.
At the time of World War I
, Meyer took his place on the extreme left of the SPD, along with Rosa Luxemburg
, Karl Liebknecht
, Franz Mehring
, and Clara Zetkin
. He was a close political friend of Leo Jogiches
and participated in the issuance of the letters and leaflets of the Spartakusbund (Spartacus League). Meyer remained the only Spartakan on the editorial board of Vorwarts and he attempted to resist efforts by the majority of the editorial board to support German efforts in the war. This discordant position made Meyer a target of the SDP's right wing and on April 15, 1915, he was removed from his position on the paper's editorial board.
Meyer was the delegate of the Spartacus League to the Zimmerwald Conference
in 1915, one of five Germans from three political groups to participate. Meyer and his Spartacist comrade, Bertha Thälheimer, did not lend their support to the resolution of the Zimmerwald Left
at that gathering demanding an immediate break of revolutionary socialists
from the reformist
wing of the Social Democratic movement.
Meyer also served as a delegate to the Zimmerwald movement's second conference, held at Kienthal
the following year.
Following the trial of Karl Liebknecht for his anti-war activities, Meyer went into hiding together with his comrades Luxemburg and Mehring.
At the end of 1918 the Spartacus League became the Communist Party of Germany
(KPD). Meyer was elected as one of the twelve members of the Zentrale (Central Committee) of the new organization.
During the German Revolution of 1918–1919, Meyer emerged to serve on the editorial board of Die Rote Fahne (The Red Flag), the official organ of the Communist Party. He was a founding member of the Communist Party of Germany in December 1918 and was elected by the founding congress to the governing Central Committee of the new organization.
In 1920 Meyer was re-elected to the Zentrale and was made a member of the party's Political Bureau. The summer of that same year he attended the 2nd World Congress
of the Communist International in Moscow
as a representative of the KPD. Meyer reported on the agrarian question to the 2nd Congress, which elected him to the Executive Committee of the Communist International
(ECCI) and its Presidium.
In 1921, Meyer was elected as a Communist to the Prussian Landtag.
At the August 1921 congress of the KPD, Meyer delivered the keynote speech, the political report of the Zentrale, emphasizing his place as a top leader of the organization.
Meyer returned to Moscow in 1922 as a member of the German delegation to the 4th World Congress of the Comintern.
Meyer again delivered the key political report to the KPD's January 1923 party congress, but this time he was not re-elected to the Central Committee. He nevertheless remained an important member of the German Communist Party, returning to the top echelon after a further factional shift in 1925.
In the spring of 1926 Meyer attended the 6th Enlarged Plenum of the Comintern, although he faced personal criticism in that body's discussion of the German question. He returned in November to participate in the 7th Enlarged Plenum of the CI.
Meyer was re-elected to the Central Committee and its Politburo by the 1927 congress of the KPD. He was one of the leaders of the Versöhnler (Conciliator) faction and a political opponent of Ernst Thälmann
, whose ascendency to top leadership of the KPD in 1928 effectively spelled the end of Meyer's political career.
Meyer addressed the KPD's 12th Congress in June 1929, but he was removed of all party functions.
, contracted a case of pneumonia
. He died on February 2, 1930, at the age of 43.
At the time of his death Meyer's comrade Paul Frölich
remembered Meyer as a "very cool, sober, and deliberate thinker" who was valued for these characteristics during debates over party policies and tactics.
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...
and as the leader of that party's fraction in the Prussian Landtag. A political opponent of Ernst Thälmann
Ernst Thälmann
Ernst Thälmann was the leader of the Communist Party of Germany during much of the Weimar Republic. He was arrested by the Gestapo in 1933 and held in solitary confinement for eleven years, before being shot in Buchenwald on Adolf Hitler's orders in 1944...
, Meyer was moved out of the top party leadership after 1928, not long before his death of tuberculosis-related pneumonia at the age of 43.
Early years
Ernst Meyer was born in 1887 in Prostken, East PrussiaEast Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
.
Meyer studied economics and philosophy at the University of Königsberg
University of Königsberg
The University of Königsberg was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as second Protestant academy by Duke Albert of Prussia, and was commonly known as the Albertina....
, from which he received a PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in 1910.
Political career
Meyer joined the Social Democratic Party of GermanySocial Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
(SPD) in 1908, while he was still a student in college, beginning to write almost immediately for Vorwärts (Forward), the SPD's official daily newspaper. In 1911 Meyer was promoted to the position of the economics editor of 'Vorwärts.
At the time of 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...
, Meyer took his place on the extreme left of the SPD, along with 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...
, Franz Mehring
Franz Mehring
Franz Erdmann Mehring , was a German publicist, politician and historian.-Early years:Franz Mehring was born 27 February 1846 in Schlawe, Pomerania, the son of a bourgeois family.-Political career:...
, and Clara Zetkin
Clara Zetkin
Clara Zetkin was a German Marxist theorist, activist, and fighter for women's rights. In 1910, she organized the first International Women's Day....
. He was a close political friend of Leo Jogiches
Leo Jogiches
Leo Jogiches , also known by his party name of Leon Tyszka was a Marxist revolutionary active in Lithuania, Poland, and Germany....
and participated in the issuance of the letters and leaflets of the Spartakusbund (Spartacus League). Meyer remained the only Spartakan on the editorial board of Vorwarts and he attempted to resist efforts by the majority of the editorial board to support German efforts in the war. This discordant position made Meyer a target of the SDP's right wing and on April 15, 1915, he was removed from his position on the paper's editorial board.
Meyer was the delegate of the Spartacus League to the Zimmerwald Conference
Zimmerwald Conference
The Zimmerwald Conference was held in Zimmerwald, Switzerland, from September 5 through September 8, 1915. It was an international socialist conference, which saw the beginning of the end of the coalition between revolutionary socialists and reformist socialists in the Second International.-...
in 1915, one of five Germans from three political groups to participate. Meyer and his Spartacist comrade, Bertha Thälheimer, did not lend their support to the resolution of the Zimmerwald Left
Zimmerwald Left
The Zimmerwald Left was a revolutionary minority fraction at the Zimmerwald Peace Conference of 1915, headed by Lenin. The Left of the Zimmerwald Congress was made up of eight out of 38 people: Lenin, Zinoviev , Jānis K. Bērziņš , Karl Radek , Julian Borchardt , Fritz Platten , Zeth Höglund and...
at that gathering demanding an immediate break of revolutionary socialists
Revolutionary socialism
The term revolutionary socialism refers to Socialist tendencies that advocate the need for fundamental social change through revolution by mass movements of the working class, as a strategy to achieve a socialist society...
from the reformist
Reformism
Reformism is the belief that gradual democratic changes in a society can ultimately change a society's fundamental economic relations and political structures...
wing of the Social Democratic movement.
Meyer also served as a delegate to the Zimmerwald movement's second conference, held at Kienthal
Kienthal Conference
The Kienthal Conference was held from April 24 to 30, 1916. Like its 1915 predecessor in Zimmerwald, it was an international conference of socialists who opposed the First World War.- Background :...
the following year.
Following the trial of Karl Liebknecht for his anti-war activities, Meyer went into hiding together with his comrades Luxemburg and Mehring.
At the end of 1918 the Spartacus League became 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...
(KPD). Meyer was elected as one of the twelve members of the Zentrale (Central Committee) of the new organization.
During the German Revolution of 1918–1919, Meyer emerged to serve on the editorial board of Die Rote Fahne (The Red Flag), the official organ of the Communist Party. He was a founding member of the Communist Party of Germany in December 1918 and was elected by the founding congress to the governing Central Committee of the new organization.
In 1920 Meyer was re-elected to the Zentrale and was made a member of the party's Political Bureau. The summer of that same year he attended the 2nd World Congress
2nd World Congress of the Comintern
The 2nd World Congress of the Comintern was a gathering of approximately 220 voting and non-voting representatives of Communist and revolutionary socialist political parties from around the world, held in Petrograd and Moscow from July 19 to August 7, 1920...
of the Communist International in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
as a representative of the KPD. Meyer reported on the agrarian question to the 2nd Congress, which elected him to the Executive Committee of the Communist International
Executive Committee of the Communist International
The Executive Committee of the Communist International, commonly known by its acronym, ECCI, was the governing authority of the Comintern between the World Congresses of that body...
(ECCI) and its Presidium.
In 1921, Meyer was elected as a Communist to the Prussian Landtag.
At the August 1921 congress of the KPD, Meyer delivered the keynote speech, the political report of the Zentrale, emphasizing his place as a top leader of the organization.
Meyer returned to Moscow in 1922 as a member of the German delegation to the 4th World Congress of the Comintern.
Meyer again delivered the key political report to the KPD's January 1923 party congress, but this time he was not re-elected to the Central Committee. He nevertheless remained an important member of the German Communist Party, returning to the top echelon after a further factional shift in 1925.
In the spring of 1926 Meyer attended the 6th Enlarged Plenum of the Comintern, although he faced personal criticism in that body's discussion of the German question. He returned in November to participate in the 7th Enlarged Plenum of the CI.
Meyer was re-elected to the Central Committee and its Politburo by the 1927 congress of the KPD. He was one of the leaders of the Versöhnler (Conciliator) faction and a political opponent of Ernst Thälmann
Ernst Thälmann
Ernst Thälmann was the leader of the Communist Party of Germany during much of the Weimar Republic. He was arrested by the Gestapo in 1933 and held in solitary confinement for eleven years, before being shot in Buchenwald on Adolf Hitler's orders in 1944...
, whose ascendency to top leadership of the KPD in 1928 effectively spelled the end of Meyer's political career.
Meyer addressed the KPD's 12th Congress in June 1929, but he was removed of all party functions.
Death and legacy
In the winter of 1929-30 Meyer, who had long suffered from tuberculosisTuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, contracted a case of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. He died on February 2, 1930, at the age of 43.
At the time of his death Meyer's comrade Paul Frölich
Paul Frölich
Paul Frölich was a journalist and left wing political activist who was a founding member of the Communist Party of Germany and founder of the party's paper, Die Rote Fahne. A Communist Party deputy in the Reichstag on two occasions, Frölich was expelled from the Party in 1928, after which he...
remembered Meyer as a "very cool, sober, and deliberate thinker" who was valued for these characteristics during debates over party policies and tactics.
Further reading
- Pierre Broué, The German Revolution, 1917-1923. [1971] John Archer, trans. Chicago: Haymarket Books, 2006.
- "The Decline, Disorientation and Decomposition of a Leadership: The German Communist Party: From Revolutionary Marxism to Centrism," Revolutionary History, Vol. 2 No. 3 (Autumn 1989). Part 1. || Part 2.