Louise Schroeder
Encyclopedia
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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...
) was a German
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...
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) party. She was the first female member of the Weimar National Assembly
Weimar National Assembly
The Weimar National Assembly governed Germany from February 6, 1919 to June 6, 1920 and drew up the new constitution which governed Germany from 1919 to 1933, technically remaining in effect even until the end of Nazi rule in 1945...
during the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
. An educator and activist central in the Arbeiterwohlfahrt (Workers Welfare Institution) movement, and she was under scrutiny of the Nazi Party during the 1930s and 1940s for her socialist positions. After the division of Germany following World War II
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...
, she served as mayor of West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
from 1948–1951.
Life and work
Otto-Suhr-Institut
The Otto-Suhr-Institut für Politikwissenschaft is one of the most famous institutes of the Free University of Berlin and the biggest political-science institution in Germany....
(Otto-Suhr Institute for Political Studies) until she was disqualified by the Nazis
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. Up to the end of the Second World War, she spent time in Hamburg, Berlin and Denmark, even though repeatedly summoned to interrogations.
In 1948 Schroeder belonged to the foundation committee of the Freie Universität Berlin (Free University of Berlin
Free University of Berlin
Freie Universität Berlin is one of the leading and most prestigious research universities in Germany and continental Europe. It distinguishes itself through its modern and international character. It is the largest of the four universities in Berlin. Research at the university is focused on the...
).
Party
She was engaged in the Socialist Labour movement from early on and joined the SPD party in 1910, where she dedicated herself to social policy and equal rights for women.From 1946 to 1951 she was joint editor with Otto Suhr
Otto Suhr
Otto Suhr was a German political figure as a member of the SPD. He served as the mayor of West Berlin between 1955 and 1957....
in Berlin of a theoretical fortnightly publication entitled Das sozialistische Jahrhundert (The Socialist Century).
Political life
From 1919 she was one of the youngest members of the national assembly of the Weimar Republic and with the introduction of the female right to vote, Schroeder became its first female member. She held this position until the Nazis seized power in 1933.After 1945 she worked to restore German democracy, initially as a member of the city council (until 1 February 1952) and from 1949 until her death in 1957 as a member of European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
.
Public offices
Social politician Otto Suhr pushed for her becoming mayor, given her already well renowned political activities. Due to various tensions in town councils and municipalities, the first postwar mayor Otto OstrowskiOtto Ostrowski
Otto Ostrowski was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany and Mayor of Berlin in 1946–1947....
stepped down from his position, allowing for Ernst Reuter
Ernst Reuter
Ernst Rudolf Johannes Reuter was the German mayor of West Berlin from 1948 to 1953, during the time of the Cold War.- Early years :...
to be elected into office in June 1947. However he was not allowed to serve in this position due to soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
objection. Consequently, Louise Schroeder became acting mayor from 8 May 1947 until 7 December 1948, after which she then became mayor of West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
until 18 January 1951. To this day Schroeder is the only woman to have held this position in Berlin.
Honours
Louise Schroeder was awarded the Great Cross of Merit with Star and Shoulder Ribbon of the BundesverdienstkreuzBundesverdienstkreuz
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is the only general state decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has existed since 7 September 1951, and between 3,000 and 5,200 awards are given every year across all classes...
(Federal Cross of Merit).
On 2 April 1957 she was named honorary mayor of Berlin. A square in the Wedding
Wedding (Berlin)
Wedding is a locality in the borough of Mitte, Berlin, Germany and was a separate borough in the north-western inner city until it was fused with Tiergarten and Mitte in Berlin's 2001 administrative reform...
district of Berlin was named after her and later in 1998, the Louise Schroeder Medal was founded.
Since then, the Louise-Schroeder-Gymnasium
Louise-Schroeder-Gymnasium
The Louise-Schroeder-Gymnasium is situated in the Allach-Untermenzing district of Munich on Pfarrer-Grimm Street in Bavaria, Germany.-History:...
in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
was named after her, as well as a conference room of Hamburg Airport
Hamburg Airport
Hamburg Airport , also known as Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel Airport , is an international airport serving Hamburg, Germany.It originally covered . Since then, the site has grown more than tenfold to . The main apron covers . The airport is north of the centre of the city of Hamburg in the Fuhlsbüttel...
, and a street in her birthplace of Hamburg-Altona.