Walter Bohne (9 January 1903 – 5 January 1944) was a German

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 ...

and

resistance fighter A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

against

Nazism 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 Na ...

Biography

Bohne was born in

Burg bei Magdeburg Burg (also known as Burg bei Magdeburg to distinguish from other places with the same name) is a town of about 22,400 inhabitants on the Elbe–Havel Canal in northeastern Germany, northeast of Magdeburg. It is the capital of the Jerichower Land ...

. A

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

by profession, he joined the

Young Communist League of Germany The Young Communist League of Germany (, abbreviated KJVD) was a political youth organization in Germany. History The KJVD was formed in 1920 from the Free Socialist Youth () of the Communist Party of Germany, A prior youth wing had been forme ...

(KJVD) in 1921 and 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 ...

(KPD) shortly afterwards. He moved to Hamburg in 1928 and was active in the

Red Sport International The International Association of Red Sports and Gymnastics Associations, commonly known as Red Sport International (RSI) or Sportintern was a Comintern-supported international sports organization established in July 1921. The RSI was established i ...

. In 1934 he was arrested and sentenced to two years' imprisonment. After his release, Bohne organized a group of communist athletes from 1939 and joined the

Bästlein-Jacob-Abshagen Group The Bästlein-Jacob-Abshagen Group was a German resistance group that developed around the core members Bernhard Bästlein, Franz Jacob and Robert Abshagen. It fought the National Socialist (Nazi) regime from 1940 till the end of the war in 1945. I ...

, an anti-Nazi resistance group, in 1941. He was arrested and imprisoned again in 1942, but managed to escape after the

bombing of Hamburg The Allied bombing of Hamburg during World War II included numerous attacks on civilians and civic infrastructure. As a large city and industrial centre, Hamburg's shipyards, U-boat pens, and the Hamburg-Harburg area oil refineries were attac ...

in July 1943. On 5 January 1944, three

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

officers tried to arrest Bohne in

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

; when trying to defend himself, he was shot to death.

References

1903 births 1944 deaths People from Burg bei Magdeburg Communist Party of Germany politicians Communists in the German Resistance People executed by Nazi Germany by firearm Resistance members killed by Nazi Germany {{Germany-activist-stub