The Young Communist League of Germany (Opposition) (german: Kommunistischer Jugendverband Deutschlands (Opposition), abbreviated KJVD-Opposition, KJVDO, KJVO or KJO) was a youth organization in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. KJVD-Opposition was the youth wing of the

Communist Party of Germany (Opposition) The Communist Party of Germany (Opposition) (german: Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands (Opposition)), generally abbreviated as KPO or KPD(O), was a communist opposition organisation established at the end of 1928 and maintaining its existence unt ...

.Schilde, Kurt.
Jugendopposition 1933-1945: ausgewählte Beiträge
'. Berlin: Lukas, 2007. pp. 21-22

Organization

KJVD-Opposition had approximately 1,000 members. It was strongest in

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

and

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. Other areas where the organization was active were

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...

, Wasserkante,

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...

and

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...

. KJVD-Opposition had a national school (''Reichsschule''), which could host 35 people at a time. At the school, the organization conducted political training, usually for two weeks at a time.

Publications

KJVD-Opposition published the monthly ''Junge Kämpfer'' ('Young Fighter') in Berlin from 1929-1931, which was distributed amongst members and sympathizers of the movement. ''Junge Kämpfer'' was mainly edited by Walter Uhlmann. Another monthly KJVD-Opposition publication, ''Kommunistische Jugend-Politik'' ('Communist Youth Politics') dealt with organizational issues and was distributed amongst cadres.Gruppe Arbeiterpolitik.
Archiv Arbeiterpolitik Rundbrief Nr. 3
'

Under the National Socialist regime

In 1932 the national leadership of KJVD-Opposition shifted from

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

. Around this time Alfred Albrecht became the national leader of KJVD-Opposition.Bergmann, Theodor, and Tom Adler.
Klassenkampf und Solidarität: Geschichte der Stuttgarter Metallarbeiter
'. Hamburg: VSA-Verlag, 2007. p. 362 Albeit a minor group in the German labour movement, KJVD-Opposition organized some resistance activities against the National Socialist regime in the 1930s. Under Albrecht's leadership KJVD-Opposition formed a youth cartel of left-wing organizations, and conducted anti-fascist mobilizations in working-class neighbourhoods.Miller, Frederick Alfred.
Left-wing splinter parties in the Weimar Republic
' Walter Uhlmann was the representative of KJVD-Opposition in the underground Berlin Committee of the mother party.Foitzik, Jan.
Zwischen den Fronten: Zur Politik, Organisation und Funktion linker politischer Kleinorganisationen im Widerstand 1933 bis 1939/40
'. S.l: Neue Gesellschaft, 1986. p. 60

References

{{Authority control Youth wings of communist parties Historical youth wings of political parties in Germany Right Opposition