Minna Specht (22 December 1879 in Schloss

Reinbek Reinbek (; probably from "Rainbek" = brook at the field margin; Northern Low Saxon: ''Reinbeek'') is a town located in Stormarn (district), Stormarn district in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein within the metropolitan regio ...

– 3 February 1961 in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

) was a German educator,

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

and member of the

German Resistance German resistance can refer to: * Freikorps, German nationalist paramilitary groups resisting German communist uprisings and the Weimar Republic government * German resistance to Nazism * Landsturm, German resistance groups fighting against France d ...

. She was one of the founders of the

Internationaler Sozialistischer Kampfbund The Internationaler Sozialistischer Kampfbund (, "International Socialist Militant League") or ISK was a socialist split-off from the SPD during the Weimar Republic and was active in the German Resistance against Nazism. History The ''Interna ...

Early years

Minna Specht was born the seventh child of Mathilde and Wilhelm Specht (d. 1882). The family lived in Reinbek castle, originally the hunting lodge in

Friedrichsruh Friedrichsruh () is a district in the municipality of Aumühle, Herzogtum Lauenburg district, Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany. Friedrichsruh manor is known as a residence of the princely House of Bismarck, mainly of Chancellor Otto von Bis ...

, which they acquired in 1874 and turned into a hotel. The approximately 70-room castle was only open in summer, during which the children lived with a

nanny A nanny is a person who provides child care. Typically, this care is given within the children's family setting. Throughout history, nannies were usually servants in large households and reported directly to the lady of the house. Today, modern ...

and a

governess A governess is a largely obsolete term for a woman employed as a private tutor, who teaches and trains a child or children in their home. A governess often lives in the same residence as the children she is teaching. In contrast to a nanny, th ...

in one of two small houses next door."Minna Specht: Biografisches"
Philosophical-Political Academy, official website. Retrieved July 19, 2010 Ilse Fischer

Friedrich Ebert Foundation The Friedrich Ebert Foundation (''German: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung e.V.; Abbreviation: FES'') is a German political party foundation associated with, but independent from, the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). Established in 1925 as the ...

, official website. Retrieved July 20, 2010 In 1882, following an accident, her father died, leaving the family in financial difficulties. Specht's first schooling was in a small private school at the castle from 1884 to 1894 and at a girls' school in

Bergedorf Bergedorf () is the largest of the seven boroughs of Hamburg, Germany, named after Bergedorf quarter within this borough. In 2020 the population of the borough was 130,994. History The city of Bergedorf received town privileges in 1275, then ...

. She then attended a

monastic school Monastic schools ( la, Scholae monasticae) were, along with cathedral schools, the most important institutions of higher learning in the Latin West from the early Middle Ages until the 12th century. Since Cassiodorus's educational program, the st ...

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

from 1896 to 1899, where she was trained as a teacher, the only career available to impoverished upper-class families.Dr.

Inge Hansen-Schaberg Inge Hansen-Schaberg (born 11 March 1954) is a German educational researcher. Life Born in Flensburg, Hansen-Schaberg studied German and biology at the from 1974 and passed the state examinations in 1980 and 1983. She then worked at a West Ber ...

''Erinnerung an Minna Specht''
Philosophical-Political Academy. Lecture on memories of Minna Specht at the opening of an exhibit at Rhinbek castle. Retrieved July 19, 2010 Her education was such, that Specht first applied for work as a governess. In 1902, she was invited to teach in a new girls' school in Hamburg, founded by a teacher from the monastic school she had attended. In this new job, she was given the freedom to decide her own

curriculum In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...

and she discovered her love of teaching. She remained there until she went to university in 1906 in order to increase her qualifications and become an ''Oberlehrerin''. For three years, she studied geography, history, geology and philosophy at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...

and one or two semesters at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...

. In 1909, she returned to teach at the girls' school where she'd previously worked, staying until 1914.

Returns to university

In 1914, at the age of 35, Specht returned to the University of Göttingen to study mathematics, finishing as an ''Oberlehrerin'', certified to teach the higher grades. The following year, she met the philosopher

Leonard Nelson Leonard Nelson (; ; 11 July 1882 – 29 October 1927), sometimes spelt Leonhard, was a German mathematician, critical philosopher, and socialist. He was part of the neo-Friesian school (named after post-Kantian philosopher Jakob Friedrich Fr ...

, an acquaintance that changed her way of thinking and developed into a close working and personal relationship. Together, they founded the ''Internationaler Jugendbund'',"Politische und pädagogische Arbeit"
Philosophical-Political Academy, official website. Retrieved July 19, 2010 along with

Max Hodann Max Julius Carl Alexander Hodann (30 August 1894 – 17 December 1946) was a German physician, eugenicist, sex educator and Marxist, "the best-known and most controversial medical sex educationalist in the Weimar Republic". He wrote for a workin ...

and his wife,

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

. Specht worked for a short while with

Hermann Lietz Hermann Lietz (28 April 1868, in Putbus, Dumgenevitz auf Rügen – 12 June 1919, in Haubinda) was a German Progressive education, educational progressive and theologian who founded the German ''Landerziehungsheime für Jungen'' (country boarding s ...

at his Haubinda progressive boarding school, In 1922, she went to ''Walkemühle'', a progressive boarding school in

Melsungen Melsungen () is a small climatic spa town in the Schwalm-Eder district in northern Hesse, Germany. In 1987, the town hosted the 27th ''Hessentag'' state festival. Geography Melsungen lies on the river Fulda in the North Hesse Highlands. The stream ...

near

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

, founded by Nelson. She then ran the school until 1931, when she went to Berlin to work as the editor of the ISK's newspaper, ''

Der Funke ''Der Funke'' (, "The Spark") was a daily newspaper published from Berlin, Germany, from 1932 to 1933. It was the national organ of the International Socialist Struggle League (ISK). The ISK leader Willi Eichler was the editor-in-chief of ''Der F ...

''. After Nelson's death in 1927, she ran the

(ISK) with

Willi Eichler Willi Eichler (7 January 1896 – 17 October 1971) was a German journalist and politician with the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). Before 1945 Eichler was born in Berlin, the son of a postal worker. He attended Volksschule and then bec ...

. In 1932, she was one of the 33 signatories of the ISK's ''

Dringender Appell The "Urgent Call for Unity" (german: Dringender Appell für die Einheit) was an appeal by the Internationaler Sozialistischer Kampfbund (ISK) to defeat the National Socialist German Workers Party. It was signed by nearly three dozen well-known Germa ...

'', which called for a

united front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts and/or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political a ...

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 ...

s and

s in the fight against

National Socialism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

. Well-known artists, scientists and politicians who signed the appeal included

Käthe Kollwitz Käthe Kollwitz ( born as Schmidt; 8 July 1867 – 22 April 1945) was a German artist who worked with painting, printmaking (including etching, lithography and woodcuts) and sculpture. Her most famous art cycles, including ''The Weavers'' and ''T ...

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

Erich Kästner Emil Erich Kästner (; 23 February 1899 – 29 July 1974) was a German writer, poet, screenwriter and satirist, known primarily for his humorous, socially astute poems and for children's books including '' Emil and the Detectives''. He received ...

and Erich Zeigner.''Der Funke'', Edition No. 147 A
(PDF) Friedrich Ebert Foundation, official website. (June 25, 1932) ''Dringender Appell'' on p. 2. Retrieved July 6, 2010 Specht returned to Walkemühle in March 1933, as it was occupied by the SA. The school was

confiscate Confiscation (from the Latin ''confiscatio'' "to consign to the ''fiscus'', i.e. transfer to the treasury") is a legal form of seizure by a government or other public authority. The word is also used, popularly, of spoliation under legal forms, o ...

d in May 1933.

Exile and return

In 1933, Specht fled Germany with the ''Walkenmühle'' pupils, most of whom were children of socialist or Jewish parents and went to

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

, where she established a school for the children of German émigrés. In November 1938, she emigrated to

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and was interned as an

enemy alien In customary international law, an enemy alien is any native, citizen, denizen or subject of any foreign nation or government with which a domestic nation or government is in conflict and who is liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured and ...

on the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

from 1940 to 1941. Her public opposition to the Nazis provided evidence that led to her release after one year. After her release, she worked in London on political re-education for a Nazi-free Germany, developing a concept based on the needs of youth who had been raised with Nazism and shattered by war. In fall 1945, she was the only German invited to an international conference in Zurich on children shattered by war. There, she met the founders of the

Odenwaldschule The Odenwaldschule was a German school located in Heppenheim in the Odenwald. Founded in 1910, it was Germany's oldest '' Landerziehungsheim'', a private boarding school located in a rural setting. Edith and Paul Geheeb established it using ...

Edith Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and vari ...

and

Paul Geheeb Paul Geheeb (1870–1961) was a German pedagogue in the German rural boarding school movement known for co-founding the boarding schools Wickersdorf Free School Community, Odenwaldschule, and Ecole d'Humanité The Ecole d'Humanité is an i ...

, who decided to ask her to head up the school, which they had had to abandon in 1934. Specht returned to Germany and ran the Odenwaldschule, from 1946 through 1951."Exil und Neuanfang"
Philosophical-Political Academy, official website. Retrieved July 20, 2010 Specht was a member of the

German Commission for UNESCO The German Commission for UNESCO is one of 195 National Commissions for UNESCO worldwide, a unique structure in the UN system, foreseen by UNESCO's constitution of 1946. The German Commission was founded on May 12, 1950, one year before West Ge ...

. In 1952, she began working with Professor Dr. Walther Merck at the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

-''Instituts für Pädagogik'' in Hamburg. She was also an inspector of boarding schools. In 1955, she was awarded the

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

Plaque for Training and Education for her service in educational science theory and practice. Specht died in

in 1961 aged 79.

Legacy

Specht's personal papers are located at the

in Bonn, in the Archive of Social Democracy. The collection contains extensive correspondence, files, records on the history of ''Walkemühle'', the schools in Denmark and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, manuscripts and Specht's published writings on

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

and politics. There are also photo albums. There is a school in Frankfurt am Main named for Minna Specht.Minna-Specht-Schule
Official website. Retrieved July 20, 2010

Selected works

* ''Jakob Friedrich Fries. Der Begründer unserer politischen Weltansicht'', Verlag Öffentliches Leben, Stuttgart (1927) * ''Vom Sinn der

Jugendweihe Jugendweihe (''Youth consecration'') or Jugendfeier (''Youth ceremony'') is a secular coming of age ceremony practised by German 14-year-olds. It originated among the secular societies in the 19th century as an alternative to Confirmation by th ...

'', Verlag Öffentliches Leben, Göttingen (1930) * ''Education in post-war Germany'', International Publishing Company, London (1944) * ''Re-making Germany'', by Mary Saran,

, Wilhelm Heidorn, Minna Specht. Preface by James Griffiths. Published on behalf of the Socialist Vanguard Group, International Publishing Company, London (1945) * ''Kindernöte'', edited with Martha Friedländer. Verlag Öffentliches Leben, Frankfurt am Main (1950) * ''Leonard Nelson. Zum Gedächtnis'', Verlag Öffentliches Leben, Frankfurt am Main (1953)

References

External links

*
Archive of Social Democracy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Specht, Minna German resistance members 1879 births 1961 deaths Heads of schools in Germany German emigrants to Denmark People interned in the Isle of Man during World War II