Kurt Eisner
Kurt Eisner was a prominent German socialist and political activist born in 1867. Educated in literature, philosophy, and psychology, he initially made a mark as a newspaper reporter and developed an interest in political theater. Eisner's career spanned various editorial roles, including significant contributions to the Frankfurter Zeitung and later the Muenchener Post, where he gained recognition for advocating social change and critiquing the German government, particularly during World War I. His outspoken views led to periods of imprisonment, which further elevated his profile among the political left.
In the aftermath of the war, Eisner played a crucial role in the Bavarian socialist movement, successfully rallying support and briefly becoming the provisional prime minister of Bavaria after a revolutionary uprising in 1918. Despite his initial success, his leadership faced challenges, and he was assassinated shortly after assuming power. Eisner's legacy is complex, marked by his commitment to socialist ideals and the tumultuous political landscape of early 20th-century Germany, ultimately culminating in a violent backlash against his movement. His contributions to socialist thought and activism continue to be a subject of interest in discussions about German history and the socialist movement.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Kurt Eisner
Minister President
- Born: May 14, 1867
- Birthplace: Berlin, Germany
- Died: February 21, 1919
Biography
Kurt Eisner was born in 1867 to Emanuel Eisner. He received a classical education and entered Friedrich Wilhelm University, where he studied German literature, history, philosophy, and psychology. Eisner also became enamored with political theater. As a young newspaper reporter, Eisner developed a people’s theater in 1890. In 1892, Eisner married, moved to Berlin to become a night-time editor at Frankfurter Zeitung, and published his first book. Psychopathia spiritualis, the first German book about Friedrich Nietzsche, compared Karl Marx’s prescription for addressing social problems with Nietzsche’s one-dimensional criticism.
An increasingly politicized Eisner spent parts of 1897 and 1898 in jail for his veiled criticism of the emperor. The publicity from Eisner’s trial and the notoriety gained from his jail term gained the activist writer increased cache with the political left. Eisner’s subsequent editorship of Vorwaerts focused on making the journal more readable and more accessible. Infighting at the Social Democratic Party lead to Eisner’s resignation as editor in 1905. By 1907, though, Eisner had taken on a similar revitalization of the Bavarian socialist newspaper Fraenkische Tagespost.
Eisner moved to Munich in 1910 and edited the Muenchener Post. Soon after World War I broke out in 1914, Eisner lost his position with the Muenchener Post in retribution for his outspoken condemnation of Germany’s involvement in the war. Censored by the German government, Eisner sought to get his views published in political publications and established discussion groups to help disseminate information about the war and about opposition to the war. In 1918, with the German government precarious in the waning months of World War I, Eisner’s public call for a general strike landed the writer in jail again. Eisner resumed the jailhouse writing he had begun during his first incarceration. The works appeared in 1920 as Die Goetterpruefung: Eine weltpolitische Posse in fuenf Akten und einer Zwischenaktspantomime.
In the month following Eisner’s release, he coalesced support around the Bavarian Peasants League, Munich’s factory foremen, and some soldiers. Eisner used a November 7 rally to developed momentum, and he was so successful that he took control of Munich. However, as the provisional prime minister, Eisner could not hold the center together. He was assassinated on his way to resign, less than one hundred days following the Bavarian Socialists’s rise to power. A brutal counterattack by the conservative government routed out the Socialists.