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State Socialism (german: Staatssozialismus) was a set of
social program 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 specifical ...
s implemented in the German Empire that were initiated by
Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of ...
in 1883 as remedial measures to appease the
working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...
and detract support for
socialism 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 the
Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been ...
following earlier attempts to achieve the same objective through Bismarck's
Anti-Socialist Laws The Anti-Socialist Laws or Socialist Laws (german: Sozialistengesetze; officially , approximately "Law against the public danger of Social Democratic endeavours") were a series of acts of the parliament of the German Empire, the first of which wa ...
. As a term, it was coined by Bismarck's
liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and ...
opposition to these social welfare policies, but it was later accepted by Bismarck. This did not prevent the Social Democrats from becoming the biggest party in the Reichstag by 1912. According to historian Jonathan Steinberg, " l told, Bismarck's system was a massive success—except in one respect. His goal to keep the Social Democratic Party out of power utterly failed. The vote for the Social Democratic Party went up and by 1912 they were the biggest party in the Reichstag". In spite of its name, State Socialism was a
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...
ideology which supported the
aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word ...
, the
church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...
and the
monarchy A monarchy is a government#Forms, form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The legitimacy (political)#monarchy, political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restric ...
while maintaining harmony with capitalists and
workers The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic regi ...
, in opposition to both
liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for ...
and
socialism 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 ...
. Hence, its supporters called themselves the Conservative Party while its opponents called themselves the National Liberal Party and the Socialist Workers' Party. Historian
Alexander Nove Alexander Nove, FRSE, FBA (born Aleksandr Yakovlevich Novakovsky; russian: Алекса́ндр Я́ковлевич Новако́вский; also published under Alec Nove; 24 November 1915 – 15 May 1994) was a Professor of Economics at the ...
argued that
social ownership Social ownership is the appropriation of the surplus product, produced by the means of production, or the wealth that comes from it, to society as a whole. It is the defining characteristic of a socialist economic system. It can take the form o ...
through government can only occur if the government is socially controlled which was not the case where an emperor rules by the will of God as in Germany since the Emperor was not the public. Nove's definition of ''social ownership'', a common characteristic that accomunates
types of socialism Types of socialism include a range of economic and social systems characterised by social ownership and democratic controlArnold, N. Scott (1998). ''The Philosophy and Economics of Market Socialism: A Critical Study''. Oxford University Press. p ...
, refers to "the major part of means of production", but this remained in private hands under State Socialism. In "Why I Am Not a Conservative",
Friedrich Hayek Friedrich August von Hayek ( , ; 8 May 189923 March 1992), often referred to by his initials F. A. Hayek, was an Austrian–British economist, legal theorist and philosopher who is best known for his defense of classical liberalism. Hayek ...
explained that " ere are, however, two economic and philosophical estimates of society with which State Socialism may be brought into broad contrast", namely
liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for ...
and
socialism 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 ...
. According to journalist William Harbutt Dawson, an acknowledged expert on German politics and society, " e great disagreement between Socialism and State Socialism is that the former would entirely subvert the State, while the latter accepts its political form as it is. Socialism would abolish the existing order altogether, while State Socialism would use the State for the accomplishment of great economic and social purposes, especially restoring to it the function, which
Frederick the Great 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 S ...
held to be the principal business of the State, of 'holding the balance ..between classes and parties". Bismarck's biographer
A. J. P. Taylor Alan John Percivale Taylor (25 March 1906 – 7 September 1990) was a British historian who specialised in 19th- and 20th-century European diplomacy. Both a journalist and a broadcaster, he became well known to millions through his televi ...
wrote that " would be unfair to say that Bismarck took up social welfare solely to weaken the Social Democrats; he had had it in mind for a long time, and believed in it deeply. But as usual he acted on his beliefs at the exact moment when they served a practical need".Taylor, A. J. P. (1955). ''Bismarck. The Man and the Statesman''. London: Hamish Hamilton. p. 202. "Since he could not shake the Centre, he would win over the Social Democrats—not certainly by appealing to their leaders, whom he was persecuting and sending to prison, but by a constructive social programme, which he hoped would detach the working-class voters from the Social Democratic party. It would be unfair to say that Bismarck took up social welfare solely to weaken the Social Democrats; he had had it in mind for a long time, and believed in it deeply. But as usual he acted on his beliefs at the exact moment when they served a practical need. challenge drove him forward. He first avowed his social programme when Bebel taunted him with his old friendship with Lassalle. He answered by calling himself a Socialist, indeed a more practical Socialist than the Social Democrats; and he provocatively rejoiced in echoing Frederick the Great's wish to be le ''roi des guex'', king of the poor. Richter, the Progressive leader, called Bismarck's proposals 'not Socialistic, but Communistic'. The proposal was merely that part of the cost of Socials Insurance should be borne by the state; and nowadays Bismarck seems the progressive, Richter the unenlightened reactionary". When a reference was made to his friendship with
Ferdinand Lassalle Ferdinand Lassalle (; 11 April 1825 – 31 August 1864) was a Prussian- German jurist, philosopher, socialist and political activist best remembered as the initiator of the social democratic movement in Germany. "Lassalle was the first man in G ...
, a democratic and state-oriented reformist socialist, Bismarck stated that he was a more practical socialist than the Social Democrats. Bismarck justified his social welfare programs by stating that " oever has pensions for his old age is far more easier to handle than one who has no such prospect. Look at the difference between a private servant in the chancellery or at court; the latter will put up with much more, because he has a pension to look forward to".


Overview

According to William Harbutt Dawson, despite being labeled ''socialist'' by his opponents, Bismarck's social legislation sought to preserve the existing economic order and state in Germany. This was in stark contrast to
socialists 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 ...
, who sought to subvert the power of the existing state and eventually replace the
capitalist Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...
order with a
socialist economy Socialist economics comprises the economic theories, practices and norms of hypothetical and existing socialist economic systems. A socialist economic system is characterized by social ownership and operation of the means of production that may t ...
.Dawson, William Harbutt (1891). ''Bismarck and State Socialism: An Exposition of the Social and Economic Legislation of Germany Since 1870''. London: S. Sonnenschein. p. 2. The Prussian welfare state was developed by the German academic '' Sozialpolitiker'' (Social Policy Supporter) group, intellectually associated with the
historical school of economics The historical school of economics was an approach to academic economics and to public administration that emerged in the 19th century in Germany, and held sway there until well into the 20th century. The professors involved compiled massive eco ...
. At the time, the historical school of economics influenced
social democracy Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote ...
in the United Kingdom and
progressivism in the United States Progressivism in the United States is a political philosophy and reform movement in the United States advocating for policies that are generally considered left-wing, left-wing populist, libertarian socialist, social democratic, and environment ...
as well as the current post-World War II German economy (the
social market economy The social market economy (SOME; german: soziale Marktwirtschaft), also called Rhine capitalism, Rhine-Alpine capitalism, the Rhenish model, and social capitalism, is a socioeconomic model combining a free-market capitalist economic system alo ...
) which is a continuation of similar policies.


Social legislation

The 1880s were a period when Germany started on its long road towards the
welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitabl ...
as it is today. The Centre,
National Liberal National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal policies and issues with elements of nationalism. Historically, national liberalism has also been used in the same meaning as conservative liberalism (right-liberalism). A seri ...
and
Social Democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote so ...
political parties were all involved in the beginnings of social legislation, but it was Bismarck who established the first practical aspects of this program. The program of the Social Democrats included all of the programs that Bismarck eventually implemented, but it also included programs designed to preempt the programs championed by radicals. Bismarck's idea was to implement the minimum aspects of these programs that were acceptable to the German government without any of the overtly socialistic aspects. Bismarck opened debate on the subject on 17 November 1881 in the Imperial Message to the Reichstag, using the term ''practical Christianity'' to describe his program. In 1881, Bismarck had also referred to this program as ''Staatssozialismus'' ("State Socialism") when he made the following accurate prediction to a colleague:
It is possible that all our politics will come to nothing when I am dead but state socialism will drub itself in (''Der Staatssozialismus paukt sich durch'').
Bismarck's program centered squarely on insurance programs designed to increase productivity and focus the political attentions of German workers on supporting the
Junker Junker ( da, Junker, german: Junker, nl, Jonkheer, en, Yunker, no, Junker, sv, Junker ka, იუნკერი (Iunkeri)) is a noble honorific, derived from Middle High German ''Juncherre'', meaning "young nobleman"Duden; Meaning of Junke ...
's government. The program included health insurance, accident insurance (workman's compensation), disability insurance and an old-age retirement pension, none of which then in existence to any great degree. After Bismarck left office in 1890, further social legislation regulated working time and conditions and sought to protect more vulnerable workers (women and children) and establish a system to allow redress for employer abuse. Based on Bismarck's message, the Reichstag filed three bills designed to deal with the concept of accident insurance and one for health insurance, although other bills were passed after Bismarck left office. Retirement pensions and disability insurance were placed on the back burner for the time being.Holborn, Hajo (1969). ''A History of Modern Germany: 1840–1945''. Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 291–293. In a speech on 20 March 1884,Bismarck, Otto (20 March 1884)
"Reichstagsprotokolle, 1884,1"
''Verhandlungen des Deutschen Reichstags'' (in German). Retrieved 9 September 2020.
Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of ...
stated:
The real grievance of the worker is the insecurity of his existence; he is not sure that he will always have work, he is not sure that if he will always be healthy, and he foresees that he will one day be old and unfit to work. If he falls into poverty, even if only through a prolonged illness, he is then completely helpless, left to his own devices, and society does not currently recognize any real obligation toward him beyond the usual help for the poor, even if he has been working all the time ever so faithfully and diligently. The usual help for the poor, however, leaves a lot to be desired, especially in large cities, where it is very much worse than in the country.Frölich, Markus; Kaplan, David; Pages, Carmen; Rigolini, Jamele; Robalino, David A., eds. (2014). ''Social Insurance, Informality, and Labour Markets: How to Protect Workers While Creating Good Jobs''. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 36. .


Health Insurance Bill of 1883

The first bill that had success was the Health Insurance bill which was passed in 1883. The program was considered the least important from Bismarck's point of view and the least politically troublesome. The program was established to provide health insurance for the largest segment of the German workers. The health service was established on a local basis, with the cost divided between employers and the employed. The employers contributed one-third, the workers the rest. The contributions were made to "sickness funds" which employees could draw from when they needed medical care. The minimum payments for medical treatment and sick pay for up to 13 weeks were legally fixed. The individual local health bureaus were administered by a committee elected by the members of each bureau and this move had the unintended effect of establishing a majority representation for the workers on account of their large financial contribution. This worked to the advantage of the Social Democrats, who through heavy worker membership achieved their first small foothold in public administration.


Accident Insurance Bill of 1884

Bismarck's government had to submit three draft bills before it could get one passed by the Reichstag in 1884. Bismarck had originally proposed that the federal government should pay a portion of the accident insurance contribution to show the willingness of the German government to lessen the hardship experienced by the German workers as a means of weaning them away from the various
left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political%20ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically in ...
parties, most importantly the Social Democrats. The National Liberals took this program to be an expression of
state socialism State socialism is a political and economic ideology within the socialist movement that advocates state ownership of the means of production. This is intended either as a temporary measure, or as a characteristic of socialism in the transition ...
which they were strongly against. The Centre Party was afraid of the expansion of federal power at the expense of states' rights. The only way the program could be passed at all was for the entire expense to be underwritten by the employers. To facilitate this, Bismarck arranged for the administration of this program to be placed in the hands of "the organization of employers in occupational corporations". This organization established central and bureaucratic insurance offices on the federal and in some cases the state level to perform the actual administration. The program kicked in to replace the health insurance program as of the 14th week. It paid for medical treatment and a pension of up to two-thirds of earned wages if the worker was fully disabled. This program was expanded in 1886 to include agricultural workers.


Old Age and Disability Insurance Bill of 1889

The old age pension program, financed by a tax on workers, was designed to provide a pension annuity for workers who reached the age of 70. At the time, the
life expectancy Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of its birth, current age, and other demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth ...
for the average Prussian was 45, although this reflects the high infant mortality of the era and retired workers could expect to live until 70 years. Unlike accident insurance and health insurance, this program covered industrial, agrarian, artisans and servants from the start. Unlike the other two programs, the principle that the federal government should also contribute a portion of the underwriting cost, with the other two portions prorated accordingly, was accepted without question. The disability insurance program was intended to be used by those permanently disabled. This time, the state supervised the programs directly.


Workers Protection Act of 1891

The law set up stricter regulations to ensure greater workplace safety, banned work on Sundays, introduced a maximum working day of eleven hours for women and ten hours for workers under 16 years of age and prohibited night work by them, banned those under the age of 13 from working in industry and encouraged the establishment of worker's committees in factories to address disputes. Industrial tribunals were set up to settle disputes between employees and employers.Berger, Stefan (2014). ''Social Democracy and the Working Class: in Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Germany''. London: Routledge. p. 73. .


Children's Protection Act of 1903

The law further tightened regulations on
child labor Child labour refers to the exploitation of children through any form of work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular school, and is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Such ...
to prevent exploitation of children.


See also

*
Anti-socialist laws The Anti-Socialist Laws or Socialist Laws (german: Sozialistengesetze; officially , approximately "Law against the public danger of Social Democratic endeavours") were a series of acts of the parliament of the German Empire, the first of which wa ...
*
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, or Mustafa Kemal Pasha until 1921, and Ghazi Mustafa Kemal from 1921 until 1934 ( 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish field marshal, revolutionary statesman, author, and the founding father of the Repu ...
* Celal Bayar *
Communitarianism Communitarianism is a philosophy that emphasizes the connection between the individual and the community. Its overriding philosophy is based upon the belief that a person's social identity and personality are largely molded by community relat ...
*
Compassionate conservatism Compassionate conservatism is an American political philosophy that stresses using conservative techniques and concepts in order to improve the general welfare of society. The philosophy supports the implementation of policies designed to help th ...
*
Conservatism in Germany Conservatism in Germany has encompassed a wide range of theories and ideologies in the last three hundred years, but most historical conservative theories supported the monarchical/hierarchical political structure. Historical conservative strai ...
* Criticism of socialism *
History of the Social Democratic Party of Germany The foundation of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, SPD) can be traced back to the 1860s, and it has represented the centre-left in German politics for much of the 20th and 21st centuries. ...
* İsmet İnönü *
Kemalism Kemalism ( tr, Kemalizm, also archaically ''Kamâlizm''), also known as Atatürkism ( tr, Atatürkçülük, Atatürkçü düşünce), or The Six Arrows ( tr, Altı Ok), is the founding official ideology of the Republic of Turkey.Eric J. Zurche ...
*
Liberalism in Germany This article aims to give a historical outline of liberalism in Germany. The liberal parties dealt with in the timeline below are, largely, those which received sufficient support at one time or another to have been represented in parliament. No ...
* '' Preussentum und Sozialismus'' *
Rhine capitalism The social market economy (SOME; german: soziale Marktwirtschaft), also called Rhine capitalism, Rhine-Alpine capitalism, the Rhenish model, and social capitalism, is a socioeconomic model combining a free-market capitalist economic system alo ...
*
Paternalistic conservatism Paternalistic conservatism is a strand of conservatism which reflects the belief that societies exist and develop organically and that members within them have obligations towards each other. There is particular emphasis on the paternalistic obli ...
*
Social conservatism Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institution ...
*
Social corporatism Social corporatism, also called social democratic corporatism, is a form of economic tripartite corporatism based upon a social partnership between the interests of capital and labour, involving collective bargaining between representatives of ...
* Social market *
State capitalism State capitalism is an economic system in which the state undertakes business and commercial (i.e. for-profit) economic activity and where the means of production are nationalized as state-owned enterprises (including the processes of capital a ...
*
State socialism State socialism is a political and economic ideology within the socialist movement that advocates state ownership of the means of production. This is intended either as a temporary measure, or as a characteristic of socialism in the transition ...
* Tory socialism *
Traditionalist conservatism Traditionalist conservatism, often known as classical conservatism, is a political and social philosophy that emphasizes the importance of transcendent moral principles, manifested through certain natural laws to which society should adhere ...
*
Welfare capitalism Welfare capitalism is capitalism that includes social welfare policies and/or the practice of businesses providing welfare services to their employees. Welfare capitalism in this second sense, or industrial paternalism, was centered on industrie ...
*
Welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitabl ...
*
Yellow socialism Yellow socialism or yellow unionism, was an economic system proposed in 1902 by Pierre Biétry, as an alternative to the " Red socialism" advocated in Marxism. Biétry envisioned workers organizing unions which would operate in parallel with grou ...


References

{{conservatism footer 1880s in Germany Otto von Bismarck Conservatism in Germany History of socialism Paternalistic conservatism Political science terminology Political terminology in Germany Socialism in Germany Syncretic political movements Progressive conservatism