Jenny Apolant (1874–1925) was a

German Jewish The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (''circa'' 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish ...

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

and

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

activist. Apolant played a key role in the early movement for

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

in Germany. In 1907, Apolant established the Information Center for Women's Community Services, a project of the General German Women's Association (Allgemeinen Deutschen Frauenverein). During her time in the organization, she authored numerous writings on the role of women in German society. She was a member of the Central Association of German Citizens of Jewish Faith. From 1919 to 1924, Apolant served as a DDP municipal councillor in Frankfurt, making her one of the first women to hold such position. In 1922, she founded the Political Workers Association (Politische Arbeitsgemeinschaft) which provided women with political education and prepared them to hold public office.

Biography

Jenny Rathenau was born on 5 November 1874 in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, Germany, to Mathilde Rathenau (née Nachman) and industrialist

Emil Rathenau Emil Moritz Rathenau (11 December 1838 – 20 June 1915) was a German entrepreneur, industrialist, mechanical engineer. He was a leading figure in the early European electrical industry. Early life Rathenau was born in Berlin, into a w ...

. She attended Humboldt Academy ( Humboldtakademie) from 1891 to 1895, where she received lectures on

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

and music. In 1899, Apolant married doctor and experimental cancer researcher, Hugo Apolant (1866–1915); their daughter Sophie Ella was born in January 1900. The family moved to

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

in 1905 for Hugo's job. While in Frankfurt, she founded temperance restaurants and worked in connection with hospitals. Her husband Hugo Apolant died in 1915. Jenny Apolant suffered from financial and health problems in her later years. She was forced to stay in

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal, make healthy'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, are antiquated names for specialised hospitals, for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often ...

s after several breakdowns, yet kept a positive spirit. Apolant died on 5 June 1925 of a heart condition. After Jenny's death, in the face of adversity from the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

, the Jewish Women's League recalled her as one person who was "inseparable from the story of the German women's movement." She was remembered fondly by Rabbi Georg Salzberger in his memoir.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Apolant, Jenny 1874 births 1925 deaths Activists from Berlin German suffragists German women's rights activists 19th-century German Jews German Democratic Party politicians Politicians from Hesse German city councillors Jewish feminists 20th-century German women politicians