Ludwig Bäumer (1 September 1888 – 28 August 1928) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

writer and

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

activist.

Biography

Bäumer was born in

Melle Melle may refer to: People * Basil Melle (1891–1966), South African cricketer * Gil Mellé (1931–2004), American artist, jazz musician and film composer * John van Melle (1887–1953), Dutch-born South African author * Melle Mel (born 19 ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

on September 1st 1888. He studied

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

, but interrupted his studies in 1911 to enter the artists' colony of

Worpswede Worpswede (Northern Low Saxon: ''Worpsweed'') is a municipality in the Osterholz-Scharmbeck, district of Osterholz, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated in the Teufelsmoor, northeast of Bremen (city), Bremen. The small town itself is located n ...

. He participated in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

as a

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

, but afterwards began to oppose the war. He was a delegate at the founding congress of the

Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (german: Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, , KPD ) was a major political party in the Weimar Republic between 1918 and 1933, an underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and a minor party in West German ...

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 ...

. He was involved with the Antinational Socialist Party signing their ''Appeal'' when they emerged from clandestiny in November 1918 following the

German Revolution German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

. Bäumer was imprisoned in 1919 because of a government crackdown, and afterwards he resigned from the Communist Party. He published a book called ''The Essence of Communism'' the same year. In 1920,

Kurt Schwitters Kurt Hermann Eduard Karl Julius Schwitters (20 June 1887 – 8 January 1948) was a German artist who was born in Hanover, Germany. Schwitters worked in several genres and media, including dadaism, constructivism, surrealism, poetry, sound, pain ...

created a Merz Picture collage based on him. Bäumer moved to Worpswede again in 1922, as Managing Director of the premises. Later, he lived as a freelance writer in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

and Berlin. In 1927,

Christian Schad Christian Schad (21 August 189425 February 1982) was a German painter and photographer. He was associated with the Dada and the New Objectivity movements. Considered as a group, Schad's portraits form an extraordinary record of life in Vienna a ...

painted his portrait. Bäumer died after committing suicide on 28 August 1928 in Berlin. :de:Ludwig Bäumer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baumer, Ludwig German communists 1888 births 1928 deaths 1928 suicides German Army personnel of World War I Suicides in Germany