Sent to a penal battalion for being a communist Otto Kreikbaum and his wife become involved in the Communist Party of Germany [Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, abbreviated to KPD] and its sub-organisations early on. As a result, he ends up as an inmate in one of the first Nazi concentration camps, and then in one of…
Honoured as Righteous Among the Nations Walter Krämer (1892-1941), a communist politician, falls into the clutches of the National Socialists shortly after the transfer of power – and they never relinquish their grip on him. As a prisoner functionary in Buchenwald concentration camp, he does so much for his fellow inmates that the Israeli remembrance…
The Bunte Tavern In the waning years of the Weimar Republic, the local group of the Socialist Workers’ Party of Germany [Sozialistische Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands, abbreviated to SAP] meets in the “Bunte Tavern” in the heart of Hanover’s old town. The aim is to form a united front against the increasingly powerful political right. After the…
An der Börse: Stolperstein for Willy Scheinhardt A victim of political murder: a ‘Stolperstein’ [literally a ‘stumbling stone’ in the form of a brass plaque] commemorates Willy Scheinhardt at the former headquarters of the German Factory Workers’ Union [‘Fabrikarbeiterverband’ abbreviated to FAV]. Born in Saxony in 1892, this unskilled labourer was already active in the…
Kurt Schumacher: Re-founder of the SPD The former SPD [abbreviation for Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, the Social Democratic Party of Germany] member of the Reichstag Kurt Schumacher is sent to Hanover in 1943 after being imprisoned in a concentration camp. Immediately following the liberation of the city, he begins to rebuild the party. For a few…
Klagesmarkt: Contentious meeting place In the Middle Ages, the site of the present-day Klagesmarkt – by the Steintor [now a pedestrian precinct] and the city walls of Hanover – was used for public executions. Later on, it took on its historical role as a trading venue, a tradition that continues to this day: it hosted…
The old trade union building at Goseriede The heart of Hanover’s labour movement: Hanover’s trade union building was a large housing complex situated between Goseriede and Odeonstrasse with several inner courtyards. It served as the headquarters of the SPD newspaper “Volksstimme” [literally, ‘Voice of the People’] and many individual trade unions. As early as 1…
Tour 3: Workers’ movement and resistance Mit dem Laden der Karte akzeptieren Sie die Datenschutzerklärung von OpenStreetMap Foundation.Mehr erfahren Karte laden OpenStreetMaps immer entsperren Duration: 01:15Distance: 4,92 km Workers’ movement and resistance Hanover was a city with a prominent labour movement supportive of social democratic ideas. Towards the end of the Weimar Republic, this movement…