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German Democratic Party
The German Democratic Party (Deutsche Demokratische Partei, DDP) was a liberal political party in the Weimar Republic, considered centrist or centre-left. Along with the right-liberal German People's Party (Deutsche Volkspartei, DVP), it represented political liberalism in Germany between 1918 and 1933. It was formed in 1918 from the Progressive People's Party and the liberal wing of the National Liberal Party, both of which had been active in the German Empire.
After the formation of the first German state to be constituted along pluralist-democratic lines, the DDP took part as a member of varying coalitions in almost all Weimar Republic cabinets from 1919 to 1932. Before the Reichstag elections of 1930, it united with the Volksnationale Reichsvereinigung, which was part of the national liberal Young German Order (Jungdeutscher Orden). From that point on the party called itself the German State Party (Deutsche Staatspartei, DStP) and retained the name even after the Reich Association left the party. Because of the connection to the Reich Association, members of the left wing of the DDP broke away from the party and toward the end of the Republic founded the Radical Democratic Party, which was unsuccessful in parliament. Others joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).
After the National Socialists took power, the German State Party was dissolved on 28 June 1933 as part of the process of Gleichschaltung (coordination) by means of which the Nazis established totalitarian control over German society.
The German Empire had a series of major liberal parties, including the National Liberal Party (NLP). The German Progress Party and Liberal Union merged into the German Free-minded Party. Friedrich Naumann's National-Social Association merged into the Free-minded Union in 1903. Theodor Barth and his supporters broke away into the Democratic Union in 1908, and maintained their independence until joining the DDP in 1918. The other liberal parties united into the left-liberal Progressive People's Party (FVP) in 1910. The FVP received 1.5 million votes in the 1912 election, the last one before the outbreak of World War I.
A proposal to merge the NLP and FVP was made in the waning days of World War I, but faced opposition from the NLP's right-wing and FVP's left-wing. The formation of the German Democratic Party was announced on 16 November. Among the founding members were Theodor Vogelstein, Richard Witting, Richard Frankfurter, Hjalmar Schacht, and Kurt von Kleefeld. The group contacted Theodor Wolff, the editor-in-chief of the Berliner Tageblatt, about how to organize the party. It was named the Democratic Party at Wolff's insistence. On 16 November 1918, one week after the November Revolution, an appeal for the founding of a new democratic party was written by Wolff and signed by 60 people, among them Albert Einstein. An almost identical statement was published at the same time by the Vossische Zeitung (Voss's Newspaper). The FVP, NLP's left-wing, and DDP merged together on 20 November. Right-wing members of the NLP formed the German People's Party (DVP).
The FVP raised 26,000 RM in 1911, and had 1,054 individual contributors in 1912. The DDP raised millions in the leadup to the 1919 election and had over one million members by January 1919. The party won 75 seats in the election and became the third-largest party in the Weimar National Assembly, but their support halved in the 1920 election and their seat total fell to 39.
The DDP was a member of the Scheidemann cabinet, but left in June 1919 in response to the Treaty of Versailles before returning to the coalition in October. Friedrich von Payer resigned as chair of the DDP's legislative caucus after voting in favor of the treaty. It was heavily involved with the creation of the Weimar Constitution. The document was drafted by Preuß, Max Weber influenced the section covering the presidency, and Erich Koch-Weser wrote the section covering referendums.
Naumann served as the first chair of the party until his death in 1919. His faction and ideological allies included Gertrud Bäumer, Anton Erkelenz, Wilhelm Heile, Theodor Heuss, Carl Wilhelm Petersen, and Gustav Stolper. This group held positions of high leadership within the party for the entirety of its history. Petersen served as chair until 1924, when he resigned after his election as mayor of Hamburg.
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German Democratic Party
The German Democratic Party (Deutsche Demokratische Partei, DDP) was a liberal political party in the Weimar Republic, considered centrist or centre-left. Along with the right-liberal German People's Party (Deutsche Volkspartei, DVP), it represented political liberalism in Germany between 1918 and 1933. It was formed in 1918 from the Progressive People's Party and the liberal wing of the National Liberal Party, both of which had been active in the German Empire.
After the formation of the first German state to be constituted along pluralist-democratic lines, the DDP took part as a member of varying coalitions in almost all Weimar Republic cabinets from 1919 to 1932. Before the Reichstag elections of 1930, it united with the Volksnationale Reichsvereinigung, which was part of the national liberal Young German Order (Jungdeutscher Orden). From that point on the party called itself the German State Party (Deutsche Staatspartei, DStP) and retained the name even after the Reich Association left the party. Because of the connection to the Reich Association, members of the left wing of the DDP broke away from the party and toward the end of the Republic founded the Radical Democratic Party, which was unsuccessful in parliament. Others joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).
After the National Socialists took power, the German State Party was dissolved on 28 June 1933 as part of the process of Gleichschaltung (coordination) by means of which the Nazis established totalitarian control over German society.
The German Empire had a series of major liberal parties, including the National Liberal Party (NLP). The German Progress Party and Liberal Union merged into the German Free-minded Party. Friedrich Naumann's National-Social Association merged into the Free-minded Union in 1903. Theodor Barth and his supporters broke away into the Democratic Union in 1908, and maintained their independence until joining the DDP in 1918. The other liberal parties united into the left-liberal Progressive People's Party (FVP) in 1910. The FVP received 1.5 million votes in the 1912 election, the last one before the outbreak of World War I.
A proposal to merge the NLP and FVP was made in the waning days of World War I, but faced opposition from the NLP's right-wing and FVP's left-wing. The formation of the German Democratic Party was announced on 16 November. Among the founding members were Theodor Vogelstein, Richard Witting, Richard Frankfurter, Hjalmar Schacht, and Kurt von Kleefeld. The group contacted Theodor Wolff, the editor-in-chief of the Berliner Tageblatt, about how to organize the party. It was named the Democratic Party at Wolff's insistence. On 16 November 1918, one week after the November Revolution, an appeal for the founding of a new democratic party was written by Wolff and signed by 60 people, among them Albert Einstein. An almost identical statement was published at the same time by the Vossische Zeitung (Voss's Newspaper). The FVP, NLP's left-wing, and DDP merged together on 20 November. Right-wing members of the NLP formed the German People's Party (DVP).
The FVP raised 26,000 RM in 1911, and had 1,054 individual contributors in 1912. The DDP raised millions in the leadup to the 1919 election and had over one million members by January 1919. The party won 75 seats in the election and became the third-largest party in the Weimar National Assembly, but their support halved in the 1920 election and their seat total fell to 39.
The DDP was a member of the Scheidemann cabinet, but left in June 1919 in response to the Treaty of Versailles before returning to the coalition in October. Friedrich von Payer resigned as chair of the DDP's legislative caucus after voting in favor of the treaty. It was heavily involved with the creation of the Weimar Constitution. The document was drafted by Preuß, Max Weber influenced the section covering the presidency, and Erich Koch-Weser wrote the section covering referendums.
Naumann served as the first chair of the party until his death in 1919. His faction and ideological allies included Gertrud Bäumer, Anton Erkelenz, Wilhelm Heile, Theodor Heuss, Carl Wilhelm Petersen, and Gustav Stolper. This group held positions of high leadership within the party for the entirety of its history. Petersen served as chair until 1924, when he resigned after his election as mayor of Hamburg.