The Volksmarinedivision (People's Navy Division) was an armed unit formed on 11 November 1918 during the
November Revolution that broke out in Germany following its defeat 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 ...
. At its peak late that month, the People's Navy Division had about 3,200 members. In the struggles between the various elements involved in the revolution to determine Germany's future form of government, it initially supported the moderate socialist interim government of
Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert (; 4 February 187128 February 1925) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and the first President of Germany (1919–1945), president of Germany from 1919 until his death in office in 1925.
Eber ...
and the
Council of the People's Deputies
The Council of the People's Deputies (, sometimes translated as Council of People's Representatives or Council of People's Commissars) was the name given to the government of the November Revolution in Germany from November 1918 until February 19 ...
. By December of 1918 it had turned more to the left and was involved in skirmishes against government troops. In March 1919, after the success of the Ebert government in the
elections to the National Assembly that drew up the
Weimar Constitution
The Constitution of the German Reich (german: Die Verfassung des Deutschen Reichs), usually known as the Weimar Constitution (''Weimarer Verfassung''), was the constitution that governed Germany during the Weimar Republic era (1919–1933). The c ...
, the People's Navy Division was disbanded and 30 of its members summarily shot by members of a
Freikorps
(, "Free Corps" or "Volunteer Corps") were irregular German and other European military volunteer units, or paramilitary, that existed from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. They effectively fought as mercenary or private armies, regar ...
unit.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J0908-0600-002, Novemberrevolution, Matrosenaufstand](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-J0908-0600-002%2C_Novemberrevolution%2C_Matrosenaufstand.jpg)
Structure
The People's Navy Division initially comprised about 600 men, rising to 1,500 by 13 November and 3,200 by the end of the month, but then dropping to 1,800 by December. Although most of its members were nonpartisan sailors, it included members of the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
Fo ...
(SPD), its more leftist offshoot the
Independent Social Democratic Party
The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Unabhängige Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, USPD) was a short-lived political party in Germany during the German Empire and the Weimar Republic. The organization was establish ...
(USPD), along with Communists and
Spartacists, members of a
Marxist
Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
revolutionary movement organized during World War I.
During its most active period, the People's Navy Division was divided into three sections. The First Section, with 1,550 men, was based in the
Imperial Stables in Berlin and had as its main responsibility guarding the
Reich Chancellery
The Reich Chancellery (german: Reichskanzlei) was the traditional name of the office of the Chancellor of Germany (then called ''Reichskanzler'') in the period of the German Reich from 1878 to 1945. The Chancellery's seat, selected and prepared s ...
, the
Reichsbank
The ''Reichsbank'' (; 'Bank of the Reich, Bank of the Realm') was the central bank of the German Reich from 1876 until 1945.
History until 1933
The Reichsbank was founded on 1 January 1876, shortly after the establishment of the German Empi ...
,
Museum Island
The Museum Island (german: Museumsinsel) is a museum complex on the northern part of the Spree Island in the historic heart of Berlin. It is one of the most visited sights of Germany's capital and one of the most important museum sites in Europ ...
and the
Ullstein publishing house.
Section II with 800 men was initially based in the
Berlin Palace
The Berlin Palace (german: Berliner Schloss), formally the Royal Palace (german: Königliches Schloss), on the Museum Island in the Mitte area of Berlin, was the main residence of the House of Hohenzollern from 1443 to 1918. Expanded by order ...
, later in a public establishment on Kistenmacher Street and then in the
Prussian House of Representatives. This detachment was responsible for guarding the House of Representatives and
Prussian House of Lords
The Prussian House of Lords (german: Preußisches Herrenhaus) in Berlin was the upper house of the Landtag of Prussia (german: Preußischer Landtag), the parliament of Prussia from 1850 to 1918. Together with the lower house, the House of Repres ...
.
Section III consisted for the most part of sailors from
Cuxhaven
Cuxhaven (; ) is an independent town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town includes the northernmost point of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the shore of the North Sea at the mouth of the Elbe River. Cuxhaven has ...
and reached a strength of 900 men. It was located at the
Lehrter train station in Berlin. Besides guarding the train stations, it provided standby and patrol duty.
The administrative department of the People's Navy Division, with 100 men, had its headquarters first in the Imperial Stables, later in the Marinehaus. Its tasks included seeing to supplies and provisioning.
History
![Rat der Volksbeauftragten](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Rat_der_Volksbeauftragten.jpg)
On 10 November 1918 Berlin factory workers and regiments stationed in and around the city elected workers' and soldiers' councils. One of these, the People's Marine Council of Greater Berlin, established the People's Navy Division on 11 November at the suggestion of Chief Petty Officer Paul Wieczorek, one of the leaders of the 3 November
Kiel Mutiny
The Kiel mutiny () was a major revolt by sailors of the German High Seas Fleet on 3 November 1918. The revolt triggered the German revolution which was to sweep aside the monarchy within a few days. It ultimately led to the end of the German ...
that had triggered the November Revolution. Revolutionary sailors of the former
Imperial German Navy
The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Wilhel ...
were to be placed at the disposal of Berlin's new police president,
Emil Eichhorn
Robert Emil Eichhorn (9 October 1863 – 26 July 1925) was a German politician, journalist and Chief of the Berlin Police during the 1918–1919 German Revolution.
Eichhorn was born in Röhrsdorf near Chemnitz in October 1863 and became apprenti ...
. Wieczorek was elected the first commander.
On 14 November 1918 Wieczorek was shot and killed by Captain Friedrich Brettschneider, who tried to take over leadership of the People's Navy Division but was himself killed shortly afterwards. A few hours later, seaman Otto Tost from Cuxhaven was elected the new commander.
Early actions
Initially the People's Navy Division was on the side of a moderate social democracy. On 6 December 1918 sailors of the troop under the command of First Lieutenant of the Reserve Hermann von Wolff-Metternich, along with other military units, marched to the Reich Chancellery and publicly expressed their support for Chancellor Friedrich Ebert, who was head of the Council of the People's Deputies, the de facto German government during the November Revolution. The troops also demanded elections to the National Assembly before the end of December and criticized the Executive Council of the Workers' and Soldiers' Councils of Greater Berlin. The sailors offered Ebert the office of president, but he dismissed the idea. The troops then withdrew and searched the editorial office of the ''
Rote Fahne
''Die Rote Fahne'' (, ''The Red Flag'') was a German newspaper originally founded in 1876 by Socialist Worker's party leader Wilhelm Hasselmann, and which has been since published on and off, at times underground, by German Socialists and Communis ...
'' (Red Flag), the newspaper of the Spartacus League. Other troops not from the People's Navy Division arrested the Executive Council, leading to violent confrontations.
The plans to have the troops proclaim Ebert head of state with dictatorial powers had come from Hans von Haeften, a colonel in the
Supreme Army Command. The aim of his counter-revolutionary action was to eliminate the workers' and soldiers' councils and restore the officers' power of command. Haeften discussed this with ministerial director Ferdinand von Stumm, who suggested that the People's Navy Division, led by his kinsman Wolff-Metternich, be allowed to head the enterprise. The plan was never carried out.
Turn to the left
In the following weeks the troops began to orient themselves more to the left. On 30 December 1918 a detachment guarded the Prussian House of Representatives in Berlin where the founding conference of the
German Communist Party
The German Communist Party (german: Deutsche Kommunistische Partei, ) is a communist party in Germany. The DKP supports left positions and was an observer member of the European Left. At the end of February 2016 it left the European party.
His ...
(KPD) was taking place.
The Division increasingly roused the displeasure of political leaders. On 12 December Finance Minister Hugo Simon accused the troops of thefts of considerable value from the Berlin Palace where they were quartered. After the arrival of
Guard troops, the military in particular pressed for the Division to be disbanded.
Otto Wels
Otto Wels (15 September 1873 – 16 September 1939) was a German politician who served as a member of parliament from 1912 to 1933 and as the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) from 1919 until his death in 1939. His 1933 sp ...
, the military commander of Berlin, planned to incorporate its reliable sections into the
Reichswehr
''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...
and to dismiss the rest after giving them severance pay, but the troops rejected his plan. He then ordered them to vacate the Palace by 16 December in an ultimatum to which they did not respond.
On 17 December Heinrich Dorrenbach, an influential member of the Division's central committee, succeeded in pushing a resolution through the Soldiers' Councils of Greater Berlin. Under its terms the councils were to hold the power of command over army units, all rank insignia were to be abolished, and all officers dismissed. A delegation from the People's Navy Division invaded the session of the
Reich Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils and demanded an immediate decision on the resolution. After a violent tumult,
Hugo Haase
Hugo Haase (29 September 1863 – 7 November 1919) was a German socialist politician, jurist and pacifist. With Friedrich Ebert, he co-chaired of the Council of the People's Deputies after the German Revolution of 1918–19.
Early life
Hugo Haa ...
, co-chair of the Council of the People's Deputies, succeeded in adjourning the meeting until the next day. Under pressure from the Soldiers' Councils, what came to be called the 'Hamburg Points', which were very close to the demands of the People's Navy Division, were adopted on 18 December.
Skirmish of the Berlin Palace
![Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1971-038-54, Revolution in Berlin, MG-Posten vor dem Schloss](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1971-038-54%2C_Revolution_in_Berlin%2C_MG-Posten_vor_dem_Schloss.jpg)
The refusal of the People's Navy Division to leave their quarters without the outstanding pay due them led to the so-called
skirmish of the Berlin Palace (German: '','' 'Christmas battles') on 23 and 24 December 1918. The Division held Otto Wels hostage, detained the government and took control of the Reich Chancellery telephone exchange. Ebert saw no other option than to ask the army for support under the
Ebert–Groener Pact The Ebert–Groener pact, sometimes called the Ebert-Groener deal, was an agreement between the Social Democrat Friedrich Ebert, at the time the Chancellor of Germany, and Wilhelm Groener, Quartermaster General of the German Army, on November 10, ...
, a secret 10 November agreement in which
Wilhelm Groener
Karl Eduard Wilhelm Groener (; 22 November 1867 – 3 May 1939) was a German general and politician. His organisational and logistical abilities resulted in a successful military career before and during World War I.
After a confrontation wi ...
, Quartermaster General of the German Army had assured Ebert of the Army's loyalty, in return for which Ebert had promised, among other things, to take prompt action against leftist uprisings. Regular troops under the command of General Arnold Lequis advanced against the People's Navy Division but were unable to storm the Palace because armed workers and other revolutionary units were supporting them. After 56 government soldiers and civilians were killed, Ebert gave the order to stop the fighting. The government had to make significant concessions to the People's Navy Division. It was allowed to remain whole, was absorbed intact into the Republican Soldiers' Army and received the outstanding pay it was due. Politically, the skirmish led to the breakup of the USPD-SPD coalition when the three USPD members of the Council of the People's Deputies resigned in protest of the actions taken by Ebert and the SPD.
Spartacist uprising and the Berlin March battles
During the communist led
Spartacist uprising
The Spartacist uprising (German: ), also known as the January uprising (), was a general strike and the accompanying armed struggles that took place in Berlin from 5 to 12 January 1919. It occurred in connection with the November Revolutio ...
of January 1919, the troops were on the side of the radical left in spite of their incorporation into the Republican Soldiers' Army. The Division's commander, Dorrenbach, played a decisive role in the decision to begin the fight by claiming that not only the People's Navy Division but all troops in Berlin were behind the
Revolutionary Stewards During the First World War (1914–1918), the Revolutionary Stewards ( German: ''Revolutionäre Obleute'') were shop stewards who were independent from the official unions and freely chosen by workers in various German industries. They rejected ...
and were prepared to use force against the government of Ebert and
Philipp Scheidemann
Philipp Heinrich Scheidemann (26 July 1865 – 29 November 1939) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). In the first quarter of the 20th century he played a leading role in both his party and in the young Weimar ...
. The pressure from the troops was one of the triggers that prompted
Karl Liebknecht
Karl Paul August Friedrich Liebknecht (; 13 August 1871 – 15 January 1919) was a German socialist and anti-militarist. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) beginning in 1900, he was one of its deputies in the Reichstag from ...
, founder of the Communist Party of Germany, and others who were present to not only protest the dismissal of Police President
Emil Eichhorn
Robert Emil Eichhorn (9 October 1863 – 26 July 1925) was a German politician, journalist and Chief of the Berlin Police during the 1918–1919 German Revolution.
Eichhorn was born in Röhrsdorf near Chemnitz in October 1863 and became apprenti ...
for refusing to use his forces against the People's Navy Division during the skirmish at the Palace, but also to aim for the overthrow of the government. The attempt quickly failed.
On 5 March 1919, during the
Berlin March battles, the remnants of the People's Navy Division were ordered to relieve the government troops beleaguered inside the police headquarters. The government troops took the Division for enemies and opened fire. The sailors fired back and joined the insurgents. The government troops responded aggressively and defeated the insurgents.
Disbandment and decimation
The unit was disbanded in March 1919. When its members came to pick up their discharge papers and back pay, Otto Marloh of the Reinhard Freikorps regiment, whose commander claimed to be acting under the general orders of Reich Defense Minister
Gustav Noske
Gustav Noske (9 July 1868 – 30 November 1946) was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). He served as the first Minister of Defence (''Reichswehrminister'') of the Weimar Republic between 1919 and 1920. Noske has been a cont ...
, selected out every tenth man and had him shot. Although most of the 30 thus chosen died, at least one escaped to relate the story. Marloh was later acquitted of the killings, while his superiors who had ordered the massacre were never tried.
Memorialization in East Germany
The naval forces of the
German Democratic Republic
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 ...
(East Germany) were named the People's Navy () of the GDR after the Volksmarinedivision. Some units and ships were named after well-known members of the People's Navy Division.
Commanders of the People's Navy Division
* Paul Wieczorek (11 November – 13 November 1918)
* Otto Tost (13 November – 23 November 1918)
* Graf Hermann Wolff-Metternich (23 November 1918 –7 December 1918)
* Fritz Radtke (8 December 1918 – 8 January 1919)
* Walter Junge and Markus Markiewicz (8 January – 11 March 1919)
References
{{reflist
1918 establishments in Germany
Military units and formations established in 1918
German Revolution of 1918–1919