Otto Ritter von Dandl (13 May 1868 in
Straubing – 20 May 1942) was a Bavarian politician and lawyer who was the last
Minister-President
A minister-president or minister president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments with a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government where they preside over the council of ministers. I ...
of the
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...
.
Life
Otto Ritter von Dandl was born in Straubing,
Lower Bavaria
Lower Bavaria (german: Niederbayern, Bavarian: ''Niedabayern'') is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state.
Geography
Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions () – Landshut and Donau- ...
, in 1868, his parents being Georg Ritter von Dandl and Karoline Weninger. He studied law and graduated in 1890. He entered the Bavarian government service, becoming a
judge at the court in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
. He rose through the ranks quickly, occupying a position in the justice department from 1900.
In 1906, von Dandl became an adviser of
Prinzregent Luitpold, who ruled Bavaria in his nephew's, King
Otto's stead. With the death of Luitpold in 1912, his son
Ludwig took up the position as ''Prinzregent'' (''Prince Regent'') of Bavaria and von Dandl became the chief of his cabinet. Ludwig acceded to the throne of Bavaria as Ludwig III in 1913 and bestowed the title of ''
Staatsrat'' on von Dandl.
In 1917, when Germany's situation had gradually worsened due to
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 ...
, Otto Ritter von Dandl was made ''Minister of State of the Royal Household and of the Exterior'' and ''President of the Council of Ministers'' on 11 November 1917, a title equivalent to Prime Minister of Bavaria.
On 2 November 1918, von Dandl reached an agreement with all major parties, to reform Bavaria and to build a new coalition government with him as leaders and prominent members of the
Zentrumspartei
The Centre Party (german: Zentrum), officially the German Centre Party (german: link=no, Deutsche Zentrumspartei) and also known in English as the Catholic Centre Party, is a Catholic political party in History of Germany, Germany, influential i ...
and the
SPD
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 t ...
in ministerial posts. The event of the German surrender a few days after meant, this government never came to be. It would have included three future Bavarian prime ministers,
Heinrich Held
Heinrich Held (6 June 1868 – 4 August 1938) was a German Catholic politician and Minister President of Bavaria. He was forced out of office by the Nazi takeover in Germany in 1933.
Biography
Heinrich Held was born in Erbach in the Taunus, th ...
,
and
Johannes Hoffmann as ministers.
He only held this position for one year; with the collapse of
Imperial Germany
The German Empire (), Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditar ...
, the Kingdom of Bavaria was abolished by Kurt Eisner on 8 November 1918, who succeeded him to the office of prime minister, making von Dandl the last prime minister of the Kingdom of Bavaria.
On 12 November 1918, Dandl went to ''
Schloss Anif'', near
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
, to see the King and obtain what is known as the ''Anifer Erklärung'' (''
Anif declaration'') in which the King released all government officials, soldiers and officers from their oath to him, but made no declaration of resignation. The Eisner government published the declaration when Dandl returned to Munich the next day, interpreting it, somewhat ambiguously, as the end to
Wittelsbacher
The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate o ...
rule.
Anifer Erklärung, 12./13. November 1918
(in German) Historisches Lexikon Bayerns, accessed: 10 May 2008
Von Dandl remained in government service, becoming the director of the taxation department in Würzburg
Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River.
Würzburg ...
in 1919. From 1929 to 1933, he held the same position in Munich.
In his town of birth, Straubing, a street is named after him, the ''Otto-von-Dandl-Ring''.
Ritter
Ritter (German for "knight") is a designation used as a title of nobility in German-speaking areas. Traditionally it denotes the second-lowest rank within the nobility, standing above " Edler" and below "Freiherr" (Baron). As with most titles a ...
, as in the name Otto Ritter von Dandl, is not a name but a noble title, considered roughly equal to the title Knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
or Baronet
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...
.
See also
* List of Premiers of Bavaria
Sources
Universitätsbibliothek Regensburg - Bosls bayrische Biographie - Otto Ritter von Dandl
(in German) author: Karl Bosl, publisher: Pustet, page 127
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dandl, Otto Ritter von
1868 births
1942 deaths
People from the Kingdom of Bavaria
Ministers-President of Bavaria