Ludwig Landmann (18 May 1868 – 5 March 1945) was a liberal German politician of the Weimar Republic. Landmann belonged first to the National Social party, then the Progressive People's Party, and finally, after 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 ...

of 1918, the

German Democratic Party The German Democratic Party (, or DDP) was a center-left liberal party in the Weimar Republic. Along with the German People's Party (, or DVP), it represented political liberalism in Germany between 1918 and 1933. It was formed in 1918 from the ...

. He eventually moved from Mannheim 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 ...

, where he became

Mayor of Frankfurt The Mayor of Frankfurt (German: (male) or (female), sometimes translated as "Lord Mayor") is the highest-ranking member of city government in Frankfurt, Germany. The mayor was traditionally elected by the city council. This system was replaced ...

from 1924 until 1933 and led a significant expansion of the city. Through reorganizations and construction, Landmann gave the city new luster. Landmann was the first

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

mayor of Frankfurt. At the time he was mayor he hired the architect

Ernst May Ernst May (27 July 1886 – 11 September 1970) was a German architect and city planner. May successfully applied urban design techniques to the city of Frankfurt am Main during the Weimar Republic period, and in 1930 less successfully expor ...

to organize a new housing project, which became known as the ''

New Frankfurt New Frankfurt (German: ''Neues Frankfurt'') was an affordable public housing program in Frankfurt started in 1925 and completed in 1930. It was also the name of the accompanying magazine that was published from 1926 to 1931 dedicated to interna ...

'' (Neues Frankfurt). Landmann founded also the '' Nassau home'' (Nassauische Heimstätte), an organization that helped guarantee every citizen had access to decent housing. After the

Nazi 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 ...

election victory in the municipal elections on 12 March 1933, he was expelled from his office. He then handed in his official resignation as mayor. He was succeeded by Friedrich Krebs of the

NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

. Landmann left then for Berlin. But because of his Jewish ancestry, he was exposed to various antisemitic Nazi harassment; among other things, his pension payments were temporarily stopped. In 1939, he left Germany and emigrated to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, the home of his wife. After the

German occupation of the Netherlands Despite Dutch neutrality, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 as part of Fall Gelb (Case Yellow). On 15 May 1940, one day after the bombing of Rotterdam, the Dutch forces surrendered. The Dutch government and the royal family re ...

from 1940, he was hidden by relatives and friends to protect him from deportation, and possible death. He died in 1945 in hiding from

malnutrition Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is "a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients" which adversely affects the body's tissues a ...

during Holland's ' Hunger Winter'. Today Ludwig Landmann Street in Frankfurt is dedicated to his memory. A portrait of the mayor by

William Runze William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...

, a painter from the Sossenheim district of Frankfurt, hangs in the Council Hall at the Römer, Frankfurt's City Hall.

References

;Sources *Dieter Rebentisch. ''Ludwig Landmann. Frankfurter Oberbürgermeister der Weimarer Republik''. Wiesbaden 1975, (basing on Rebentischs dissertation,

University of Frankfurt am Main Goethe University (german: link=no, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main) is a university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealt ...

, 1970) Politicians from Mannheim People from Hesse-Nassau 1868 births 1945 deaths Mayors of Frankfurt Burials at Frankfurt Main Cemetery Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the Netherlands Deaths by starvation German Jews who died in the Holocaust {{Germany-DDP-politician-stub