Awakening of German Patriots - Central Germany (, short-form: AdPM) was a German political party that splintered from the

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (, AfD, ) is a Far-right politics in Germany (1945–present), far-right,Far-right: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative p ...

(AfD) and was established by

André Poggenburg André Poggenburg (born 1975 in Weißenfels, Bezirk Halle, East Germany) is a German politician and former member of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. He was state chairman of the party in the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt and was leadi ...

on January 11, 2019, following his forced resignation from AfD in 2018.

Background

In 2018, Poggenburg, the leader of the AfD's

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...

branch, was reprimanded by AfD leadership for messaging "Germany for Germans" to party members over

WhatsApp WhatsApp (officially WhatsApp Messenger) is an American social media, instant messaging (IM), and voice-over-IP (VoIP) service owned by technology conglomerate Meta. It allows users to send text, voice messages and video messages, make vo ...

. Later that year he resigned from the party after a censure for calling German Turks "camel drivers" and "caraway seed traders" in a speech to party supporters.

History

Establishment

Following his ousting from the AfD, Poggenburg formed his own political party, the Awakening of German Patriots, unveiling the party to the German public on January 11, 2019, immediately being faced with criticism for including the

Cornflower ''Centaurea cyanus'', commonly known as cornflower or bachelor's button (among other names), is an annual flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to Europe. In the past, it often grew as a weed in cornfields (in the broad sense of "co ...

on the party logo. The Cornflower has long been a symbol of German Nationalists, first developed by

Georg von Schönerer Georg may refer to: * ''Georg'' (film), 1997 *Georg (musical), Estonian musical * Georg (given name) * Georg (surname) * , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker * Spiders Georg, an Internet meme See also * George (disambiguation) George may refer to: ...

as a symbol of

pan-Germanism Pan-Germanism ( or '), also occasionally known as Pan-Germanicism, is a pan-nationalist political idea. Pan-Germanism seeks to unify all ethnic Germans, German-speaking people, and possibly also non-German Germanic peoples – into a sin ...

it became a symbol of support for the

Kaiser Kaiser ( ; ) is the title historically used by German and Austrian emperors. In German, the title in principle applies to rulers anywhere in the world above the rank of king (). In English, the word ''kaiser'' is mainly applied to the emperors ...

and later as a secret symbol of the Nazi party of Austria during the period from 1933 to 1938 when the party was banned; and most recently as the symbol of the

Freedom Party of Austria The Freedom Party of Austria (, FPÖ) is a political party in Austria, variously described as far-right, right-wing populist, national-conservative, and Eurosceptic. It has been led by Herbert Kickl since 2021. It is the largest of five part ...

until 2017. Poggenburg announced that the party would follow what had been the AfD's party line from 2017 and prior, before what Poggenburg called a "shift to the left" within the party when it began to expel its more radical members. Poggenburg stated that the party intended to contest upcoming elections, and could enter regional parliaments. He also stated that the party intends to be a "

middle German Central German or Middle German () is a group of High German languages spoken from the Rhineland in the west to the former eastern territories of Germany. Central German divides into two subgroups, West Central German and East Central German. ...

movement," with branches in Brandenburg, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. In their first election, the May 2019 Saxony local election, the party received only 0.6% of the vote in the

Zwickau district Zwickau () is a district ('' Kreis'') in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. History The district was established by merging the former districts Zwickauer Land, Chemnitzer Land and the urban district Zwickau as part of the district reform of ...

and 0.4% of the vote at the Meißen district. In the September

2019 Saxony state election Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' D ...

the party only won 0.2% of the votes cast.

Decline

After the poor performance in the local elections, Poggenburg applied at the August 2019 party congress for the party to dissolve and rejoin the AfD. The vote was rejected and Poggenburg left the party. The party has staged no public events since spring of 2020 and only had 45 registered members. Poggenburg later endorsed the

Freie Sachsen Freie Sachsen () is a far-right monarchist, autonomist, and secessionist movement within the German State of Saxony. It seeks to restore the former Kingdom of Saxony through an autonomist government or a "Saexit if Necessary". History Foundi ...

(Free Saxons) for the

2024 Saxony state election 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is a square number, the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. Evolution of the H ...

References

{{German far-right 2019 establishments in Germany Defunct political parties in Germany Political parties established in 2019 Eurosceptic parties in Germany Far-right political parties in Germany Alternative for Germany breakaway groups