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Left Communists (Weimar Republic)

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Left Communists
Linke Kommunisten
FoundedJanuary 1926 (1926-01)
DissolvedMay 1928 (1928-05)
Split fromCommunist Party of Germany
Succeeded byLenin League
IdeologyLeft communism
Ultra-leftism
Political positionFar-left

The Left Communists were a group of members of the Reichstag and the Prussian Landtag expelled from the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) in the period 1926–1928.

Reichstag

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The Left Communists in the Reichstag were not a uniform political group, but merely a "technical" group to achieve group or parliamentary rights, totalling 15 politicians who had been expelled from the KPD between January 1926 and February 1928.[1] These were both former members of the "left" wing of the KPD, such as Ruth Fischer, Hugo Urbahns, and Werner Scholem,[2] as well as "ultra-left" members of parliament such as Iwan Katz, Karl Korsch, Ernst Schwarz, Heinrich Schlagewerth [de], and Karl Tiedt [de], there was no consensus on fundamental questions for communists, such as the question of a united front, the attitude to the Soviet Union, or the ADGB trade unions.

Prussian Landtag

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There was also in a group of eight deputies in the Prussian Landtag between 1927 and 1928 who were left communists, led by Anton Grylewicz.

Dissolution

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In 1928, some members of the Left Communists such as Fischer, Urbahns, and Otto Weber [de] participated in the founding of the Lenin League, others engaged in council communist groups, or retired from politics after the loss of the mandate in the May 1928 elections.

Members

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Reichstag deputies

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Landtag deputies

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Other members

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See also

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References

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  1. Hoffrogge, Ralf (19 August 2014). "Für Lenin, gegen Stalin. Linksradikale in der Weimarer Republik: Werner Scholem und die "Ultralinken" der KPD" [For Lenin, against Stalin. Left-wing radicals in the Weimar Republic: Werner Scholem and the "ultra-left" of the KPD]. Analyse & Kritik (in German). p. 32. ISSN 0945-1153. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  2. Bois, Marcel (2014). Kommunisten gegen Hitler und Stalin. Die linke Opposition der KPD in der Weimarer Republik. Eine Gesamtdarstellung [Communists against Hitler and Stalin. The Left Opposition of the KPD in the Weimar Republic. An overall view.] (in German). Essen: Klartext. ISBN 978-3-8375-1282-3.

Bibliography

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  • Otto Langels: Die ultralinke Opposition der KPD in der Weimarer Republik. Zur Geschichte und Theorie der KPD-Opposition (Linke KPD), der Entschiedenen Linken, der Gruppe „Kommunistische Politik“ und des Deutschen Industrie-Verbandes in den Jahren 1924 bis 1928 (= Europäische Hochschulschriften. Reihe 31: Politikwissenschaft. Bd. 65) Lang, Frankfurt am Main u. a. 1984, ISBN 3-8204-5385-7 (Zugleich: Heidelberg, Universität, Dissertation, 1984).
  • Rüdiger Zimmermann: Der Leninbund. Linke Kommunisten in der Weimarer Republik (= Beiträge zur Geschichte des Parlamentarismus und der politischen Parteien. Bd. 62). Droste, Düsseldorf 1978, ISBN 3-7700-5096-7 (Zugleich: Darmstadt, Technische Hochschule, Dissertation, 1976).