Deutscher Kriegerbund ( en, link=yes, German Warrior League) was a

war veterans A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that h ...

' and

reservist A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is ...

s' association in Germany established in April 1873 in

Weißenfels Weißenfels (; often written in English as Weissenfels) is the largest town of the Burgenlandkreis district, in southern Saxony-Anhalt, central Germany. It is situated on the river Saale, approximately south of Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Halle. His ...

. Its origins lie in a Warrior Association established in 1786 by

fusilier Fusilier is a name given to various kinds of soldiers; its meaning depends on the historical context. While fusilier is derived from the 17th-century French language, French word ''fusil'' – meaning a type of flintlock musket – the term has ...

s of

Frederick II of Prussia Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the Sil ...

's army in Wangerin/

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

. The original purpose of the war veterans' associations was to provide their members and former soldiers with proper burial arrangements. Former soldiers felt the need of commemorative tombs that would preserve the dignity of their former comrades-in-arms and honor them even after their death. This type of association received a considerable boost after

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

's victorious battles against the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

(1864),

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n (1866) and French armies in 1871. A number of these veterans' associations established the Deutscher Kriegerbund by joining efforts for a common cause in 1873. In April 1897, the Deutscher Kriegerbund became the Prussian Country's Warrior League (german: Preußischer Landeskriegerverband). Its former name Deutscher Kriegerbund was kept for certain economic and social dealings. In this form, it was a forerunner of later German military

social welfare provision Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

s like the

National Socialist War Victim's Care The National Socialist War Victim's Care (german: Nationalsozialistische Kriegsopferversorgung, NSKOV) was a Social welfare provision, social welfare organization for seriously wounded veterans as well as frontline fighters of World War I. The NSK ...

. Since it was initially dominated by groups of soldiers of the former Prussian army, local veterans' associations of

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...

Hessen Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are Darm ...

and

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...

preferred to remain out of its circle. The Deutscher Kriegerbund began the efforts to build a memorial that would honor and represent the German warriors in 1888. This monument, located on top of the 473 m high

Kyffhäuser The Kyffhäuser (,''Duden - Das Aussprachewörterbuch, 7. Auflage (German)'', Dudenverlag, sometimes also referred to as ''Kyffhäusergebirge'', is a hill range in Central Germany, shared by Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt, southeast of the Harz mou ...

mountain, was finally inaugurated on 16 June 1896. The building of the memorial pleased and inspired the other German war veterans' associations who had been reluctant to join the Deutscher Kriegerbund. As a result of this change of attitude, the steps to form a wider organization were taken in 1900 and the

Kyffhäuserbund The Kyffhäuserbund ( en, link=yes, Kyffhäuser League) is an umbrella organization for war veterans' and reservists' associations in Germany based in Rüdesheim am Rhein. It owes its name to the Kyffhäuser Monument (german: Kyffhäuserdenkmal ...

was formed. This inclusive organization integrated the formerly scattered German war veterans' associations, which had been one of the main aims of the Deutscher Kriegerbund.

Related organizations

* Bayerischer Soldatenbund 1874 *

Notes and references

Kyffhäuserbund e.V.

Kyffhäuser-Bund der Deutschen Landeskriegerverbände e.V.
(Historisches Lexikon Bayerns). * Dieter Fricke et al.: ''Kyffhäuser-Bund der Deutschen Landeskriegerverbände (KB) 1900-1943.'' In: Dieter Fricke (Hrsg.): ''Die bürgerlichen Parteien in Deutschland''. Berlin 1968, S.296–312. * Karl Saul: ''Der "Deutsche Kriegerbund". Zur innenpolitischen Funktion eines nationalen Verbandes im kaiserlichen Deutschland.'' In: ''Militärgeschichtliche Mitteilungen (MGM).'' 2/1969. S.95–159. * Karl Führer: ''Der "Deutsche Reichskriegerbund Kyffhäuser" 1930-1934. Politik, Ideologie und Funktion eines "unpolitischen" Verbandes.'' In: ''Militärgeschichtliche Mitteilungen (MGM).'' 2/1984. S.57–76. *''Heinz Kleene Das Kriegervereinswesen im Emsland zur Zeit des Kaiserreiches'' In: ''Jahrbuch des Emsländ. Heimatbundes Sögel'' 2005. S.137–159. {{Authority control German veterans' organisations Military of Prussia Non-profit organisations based in Saxony-Anhalt Organizations established in 1873 Organizations disestablished in 1900 1873 establishments in Germany 1900 disestablishments in Germany

Related organizations

See also

Notes and references