Friedrich Ebert

A saddler by trade, Friedrich Ebert participated in the socialist movement and joined the Social Democratic Party (Socialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, SPD) in 1889. After settling in Bremen (1891), he was an activist of the Association of Saddlers in Bremen and edited the Bremer-Bürgerzeitung newspaper from 1893. The next year he also became a chairperson in the local SPD organization. In 1900-1905 Ebert served as a member of municipal council and gained publicity after he presided over the SPD congress in Bremen (1904). This exposure provided him with a chance to occupy the post of a secretary in the SPD executive board in Berlin (1905). As a representative of the Elberfeld-Barmen constituency, Ebert was elected to the Reichstag (1912). Following the death of August Bebel, Friedrich Ebert and Hugo Haase were elected the SPD cochairmen on 20 Sep 1913. Under the leadership of Ebert, the Social Democratic movement gained increasing influence. During World War I, Ebert supported the policy of national interests and emerged as a sole leader of social democrats after the resignation of Haase in January 1916. Military defeats and revolutionary situation forced Reich Chancellor Prinz von Baden to issue an unauthorized proclamation about the abdications of Wilhelm II as emperor and king on 9 Nov 1918. On the same day after 12 noon, following the demand of the SPD executive board, Prinz von Baden transferred the office of Reich Chancellor to Ebert, who arrived to assume the post on condition of "further legal approval." With this formula, the constitutional legality should be preserved although the illegality of office transfer under the present constitution was without a doubt. Ebert took the office as "Reich Chancellor on behalf of the Regency," but the regency was never set up. In the coalition government (Rats der Volksbeauftragten) created by the SPD and the Independent Social Democrats (USPD) on 10 Nov 1918, which was approved by an assembly of workers' and soldiers' councils, Ebert assumed responsibility for internal and military affairs. In the correspondence between SPD and USPD, the latter demanded joint chairmanship of the respective leaders (Ebert, Haase) and though the SPD's answer was noncommittal, Ebert became one of the two chairmen. As a moderate Socialist, Ebert was determined to place the power in the hands of a freely elected constituent assembly. He firmly adhered to a political course excluding establishment of a soviet republic and applied force to suppress the revolts in December 1918 and January 1919. He became the most influential figure among the people's commissioners and strengthened his position after the USPD members left the council on 28/29 Dec 1918. The joint meeting of the Zentralrat (Central Council) and of the Council of People's Commissioners approved Ebert and Scheidemann as joint chairmen on 29 Dec 1918. A resolution, issued by the reconstituted Council of People's Commissioners on 30 Dec 1918, confirmed Ebert as executive chairman and head of the Cabinett. The elections to the Verfassungsgebende Nationalversammlung (National Constituent Assembly) were held in January and February 1919 and gave a majority of 85 percent to the Social Democrats, the Catholic Center Party and the Democratic Party (DDP). On 7 Feb 1919, the next day after the deputies convened in Weimar, the Council of People's Commissioners transferred its authority to the new German parliament. Ebert was elected the first Reich President by the National Constituent Assembly on 11 Feb 1919 with 277 votes out of 375. After the assembly completed drafting the constitution, it was promulgated by Ebert (11 Aug 1919) and went into effect on 14 Aug 1919. On 21 Aug 1919 Ebert was sworn in on the new constitution at the last session of the National Assembly in Weimar. The administration of Ebert survived the coup staged by radical nationalists, Wolfgang Kapp and Erich Ludendorff in March 1920, who planned to restore the monarchy. In 1922, the term of Ebert's presidency was extended by a constitutional amendment, effective 27 Oct 1922; this ended the provisional character of the presidency and provided that Ebert would remain in office until 30 Jun 1925. In 1923, France and Belgium occupied the Ruhr territory to settle the issue of reparations imposed by the Treaty of Versailles. The social and political crisis forced Ebert to dismiss the Reich Chancellor Wilhelm Cuno and to appoint a member of the People's Party (DVP) Gustav Stresemann (13 Aug 1923), who brought the crisis under control. However, the Ebert's party, SPD, left the ruling coalition in November 1923 and did not return to the government until June 1928. In 1924 the Allies agreed to end their occupation of the Ruhr and to adopt the Dawes Plan, which made the payment of reparations more realistic. The last months of Ebert's life were marred by the court hearings. On 23 Dec 1924, the court ruled that he had committed high treason, at least in the legal sense, during World War I by his support of a munition workers' strike in Berlin in 1918. Ebert died of protracted appendicitis on 28 Feb 1925. Biography source: [1][2][3][4]