Hecker uprising

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Fighting in the course of the Baden Revolution of 1848/49
Death of General von Gagern in the "Battle of Kandern", which ended the Hecker procession. The lithograph shows the battle from the perspective of the revolutionaries.

The Hecker Uprising is the attempt of the Baden revolutionary leaders Friedrich Hecker , Gustav Struve and several other radical democrats to implement the goals of the March Revolution in the Grand Duchy of Baden in April 1848 , overthrow the monarchy and establish a republic . In the main action of the uprising, the so-called Heckerzug , attracted a Freischar of several hundred armed under Hecker guide of constancy in the direction Karlsruhe to topple there together with other free hosts the government. Hecker's group, however, was stopped militarily before troops of the German Confederation joined forces in the battle on the Scheideck . The failed Hecker uprising was the first major uprising of the Baden Revolution and, like its leader, became a political myth .

prehistory

In the Grand Duchy of Baden, which already had a relatively liberal constitution under the politically moderate Grand Duke Leopold , radical democratic ideas were very popular. The influence of the French February Revolution , in which the Second Republic had been proclaimed a few weeks earlier , was one of the strongest here.

The Hecker uprising is named after its leader, the then 37-year-old Friedrich Hecker , lawyer in Mannheim , who had already appeared in the Baden Second Chamber as the spokesman for the liberal-democratic opposition in the years before 1848.

Hecker, Georg Herwegh and Gustav Struve were well-known representatives of the left in the northern Baden region. In the pre-parliaments of the March Revolution, however, they were in the minority with their far-reaching, radically anti-monarchist ideas. The majority of the bourgeois-liberal MPs of the revolution, most of whom came from the upper bourgeoisie , favored a constitutional monarchy under a hereditary empire in which liberal reforms were to become possible.

Hecker and Struve took part in the Frankfurt pre-parliament from March 31 to April 4, 1848. In Frankfurt, however, they had suffered complete personal and factual defeat. Neither of them succeeded in being elected to the Fifties Committee , which was supposed to bridge the time until a proper national parliament was formed. Their political ideas were not met with any response either. So Hecker, disappointed, decided to first promote the revolution in his home town of Baden.

preparation

Joseph Fickler (1808–1865), radical democratic publicist

The southern Baden Lake Constance city of Constance seemed a suitable starting point for Hecker. The capital of the lake district was considered particularly open to liberal ideas; Hecker expected to find numerous supporters in the city and the surrounding area. Various circles of free-thinking, liberal and republican-minded citizens had already formed in Constance in the 1830s. Joseph Fickler , editor and editor of Seeblätter , a radical democratic newspaper, acted as the local agitator in the pre-March period . Under Fickler's leadership, a gymnastics club with 40 members was founded on March 31 with the aim of "forming an armed but free corps"; shortly afterwards a national-liberal workers' association was founded. Fickler's arrest on April 8, 1848 gave Hecker the final impetus to move to Constance.

Franz Sigel , leader of the Constance militia, as Union General in the Civil War (1861)

In fact, in the spring of 1848 there was already a diffuse republican, but above all militant mood in the Constance citizenship. Since March 5, 1848 there was a permanent committee of the citizens, convened by a people's assembly, which should represent the citizens politically at the pre-parliamentary assemblies in Offenburg . The situation in the city was tense. In response to the - incorrect - rumor that tens of thousands of armed and unarmed French had crossed the border near Offenburg and were pillaging through the country, a general armament of the people took place in the city on March 26th. Franz Sigel , a former officer, formed a vigilante group of 400 men in the quasi-militarized city on behalf of Mayor Karl Hüetlin . Hecker and Struve's hopes rested on them.

Hecker arrived in Constance on the evening of April 11th. To avoid arrest, he had traveled via France and Switzerland. Together with Franz Sigel and Gustav Struve and Theodor Mögling , who had also traveled, he planned the next steps: four marches were to move to Karlsruhe in a star march ; one from Konstanz , two on different routes from Donaueschingen and a fourth over the Black Forest, St. Blasien and Waldshut . It was hoped that there would be an avalanche effect: more and more Baden citizens would join the trains on the way, so that the Baden state would eventually collapse like a house of cards.

Hecker is said to have proclaimed the republic from this balcony on the Konstanz townhouse - the event, however, is not documented by contemporary sources. Johannes Grützke created the large majolica relief in 1996/98, which is reminiscent of the Hecker uprising.

The Constance Republicans, however, rejected Hecker's plan as unrealistic and too dangerous. The troops of the German Confederation are already stationed everywhere, the company is poorly prepared. They did not want to support an armed uprising; one armed only to protect oneself against enemies from outside. Hecker pushed for a popular assembly, hoping to gain more popular approval. The people's assembly took place on April 12th at around five o'clock in the town hall. There Hecker explained his political stance and called for participation in his project. However, he and his companions did not find the expected enthusiastic reception. In the tumultuous atmosphere, Hecker received threats and hostility. Although he encountered what he saw as a republican majority, neither the citizens' committee, nor the people's assembly, nor the vigilante spontaneously wanted to join his revolutionary march.

Shortly afterwards the myth emerged that Hecker had proclaimed the republic that evening from the balcony of the town house in front of an enthusiastic crowd. However, none of the three reporting newspapers, including the left-wing Seeblätter , mentions such an event; an actual proclamation would certainly have found its way into the press. In the context of what happened that evening, it also seems unlikely that it was more than just a rumor. Nevertheless, this myth remained very persistent for a long time, as it could also be used for post-revolutionary republican propaganda.

The Hecker train

Friedrich Hecker in "revolutionary uniform" with saber, rifle and " Hecker hat " (contemporary anti-Hecker caricature)

The goal of Hecker train, the day after the People's Assembly from Constance broke up, was it in the direction of the Rhine level to advance to there with another Republican volunteer corps to unite consisting of France advancing about 900-strong German Democratic Legion under the poet Georg Herwegh . Together with her, they wanted to take the Baden capital, Karlsruhe , remove power from the Grand Duke and establish a German republic from there.

Route of the "Hecker train" in southern Baden

The first day of the Hecker Parade, Thursday April 13, 1848, was a disaster. On the evening of the people's assembly, at which Hecker had met with violent rejection, Franz Sigel had ordered his militia to take part in the revolutionary procession; However, this was prevented by Mayor Karl Hüetlin . Admittedly 150 men actually gathered on the market place the following morning, but in view of the rainy weather and the strategic hopelessness of the undertaking, only between 30 and 50 men finally joined. With Hecker, Sigel and Mögling, they left town around eight o'clock - the number of curious spectators is said to have been significantly larger than that of the participants. Hecker, "Chief of the Insurrection and High Commander" (Sigel), wore his revolutionary uniform, in which he must have looked like a romantic robber chief: blue blouse, saber and pistol on his belt and the distinctive, broad-brimmed " Hecker hat ".

The hoped-for closed influx of the rural people did not materialize. While Hecker moved to the north-west via Allensbach , Radolfzell , Stockach and Engen , isolated groups from the localities joined, so that the train slowly grew. In a few places like Singen am Hohentwiel , the entire vigilante group joined. Supporters were finally found in Konstanz as well: On the first day after the departure, April 14th, a large crowd of Hecker supporters gathered to follow the procession. There was an armed confrontation in front of the city chancellery, which almost degenerated into a small civil war. There was a (false) rumor that thousands of farmers had joined Hecker. On Saturday, April 15th, between 150 and 250 volunteers followed with two cannons from Konstanz, allegedly accompanied by “cheering crowds”. On April 16, the mayor of Wollmating , Thomas Sättele , asked his colleague from Allensbach to call on all local branches of the district to come to Hegne on April 17, 1848 with all men capable of military service and all available weapons .

Entry of a column of rioters under Gustav Struve in Lörrach on April 20, 1848 on the way to support the Hecker platoon in the battle of Kandern. (Oil painting by Friedrich Kaiser )

The uprising was put down within a few days. As early as April 14th, military units on behalf of the German Confederation under the command of General Friedrich von Gagern set themselves on the heels of the Hecker platoon. On Sunday, April 16, Hecker had to move south in the direction of Stühlingen and Bonndorf without having reached Donaueschingen in order to avoid a clash with the Württemberg troops. With that he was cut off from the Lower Rhine District; Mannheim , Heidelberg and Karlsruhe were now inaccessible. The military pushed his platoon further and further south-west. At Kandern , in the far south-west corner of the country, Hecker was forced to surrender. On April 20, there was a battle on the Scheideck . Around 800 Hecker supporters faced around 2000 soldiers from Hesse and Baden. The troops of the federal government were not only superior, but also better armed and trained. There were deaths on both sides. General von Gagern was one of the first casualties in the battle, but the militants were put to flight. Hecker and Struve themselves managed to escape and settled in nearby Switzerland .

After the defeat

It took a few days for news of Hecker's defeat to spread. Meanwhile, groups of militants continued to break out to join the train. Although they were informed of the defeat of the Hecker train, on April 23, 1848 a people's assembly in Freiburg im Breisgau decided to armed resistance against the approximately 3,000 soldiers who had arrived; however, the uprising was brutally suppressed on April 23 ( battle near Günterstal ) and April 24 ( storm on Freiburg ). Since the government troops were waiting for the irregulars in the valleys, they moved into night quarters in the mountain villages of Vogelbach and Marzell. The next day the poorly armed rebels climbed the Sirnitz Pass and descended to Mulden, which is now a district of Münstertal / Black Forest .

On April 26, there was a brief firefight at the Rhine Bridge in Mannheim between the Freikorps and the vigilante group on the one hand and troops from Bavaria and Hesse-Nassau on the other, with four Mannheimers and four military personnel being wounded.

One week after the battle near Kandern (battle on the Scheideck), on April 27, 1848, Herwegh's group was finally defeated near Dossenbach . His 650 men had only crossed the Rhine on April 23 - too late to come to Hecker's aid. In the French town of Hüningen , German journeymen had been gathering since April 20, which were then reinforced by stragglers of the German Democratic Legion and scattered militants from previous battles. On April 25, a group advanced into German territory and, under the leadership of August Willich, settled on the so-called Schusterinsel near Weil . On April 27th - after Herwegh's defeat became known - these irregulars withdrew to France.

Bavarian soldiers had already entered Constance on April 25 ; The Lake and Upper Rhine District were at war. Some revolutionaries were arrested. The city remained besieged until March 1849.

The first major republican uprising of the Baden Revolution had thus failed. The rumor that Hecker was planning another uprising from Switzerland continued for months. Hecker, however, who could hardly put any hope in the Baden revolution, traveled to the USA via France to settle there and only return briefly when the revolution flared up again in May 1849. Gustav Struve stayed in the region and tried another uprising in Lörrach in September 1848 with the so-called Struve Putsch , which also failed. Georg Herwegh , who had also fled to Switzerland, no longer took part in the Baden uprisings. In addition to Struve, who was released from prison in 1849, Franz Sigel , the former military, took part in the May uprisings of 1849. In June 1849 Sigel became Minister of War of the short-lived Baden Republic . With the capture of Rastatt by Prussian troops on July 23, 1849, the provisional republic and with it the revolution came to an end.

Composition of the Heckerzug

On the first day between 30 and 50 men took part in the Hecker train. Around 120 to 250 followed from Constance on the second and third day. One week after the departure, at the "Battle of Kandern", between 800 and 1,200 men are said to have been involved in the Hecker train. In addition to the Konstanz group, most of them came from places that Hecker and Struve passed through or where they passed. Many spontaneously decided to take part in the Hecker Parade - mostly groups of a handful of men or local vigilante groups . Participants from Dettighofen , Stockach , Singen am Hohentwiel , Emmingen from Egg , Liptingen , Immendingen , Freiburg im Breisgau , Möhringen , Grimmelshofen , Geisingen , Bärental , Falkau , Gurtweil , Tiengen , Utzenfeld are booked . Even after the procession was crushed, there were still occasional resolutions to join, either out of misinformation or to protest against the occupation of the country.

Around 60 percent of the participants in the Hecker Parade were craftsmen (22.5% foremen and 35% journeymen ). Many of them were impoverished because their social situation had deteriorated, especially during the famine of 1846/47. Many journeymen could not find work and had little hope of becoming masters themselves. Even craftsmen with a master's degree had hardly had the opportunity to earn more than a necessary income in the previous years. But there were also indebted manufacturers among the participants, as well as Freiburg students.

literature

Commons : Hecker Uprising  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Web links

Commons : Heckeraufstand  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Zang 1995, p. 167
  2. ↑ Franz Sigel in his memoir, quoted in n. Zang 1993, p. 173
  3. ↑ State Center for Political Education Baden-Württemberg: Ways of the Revolutionaries. Hiking routes of the German Revolution in Baden 1848/49 , 1998, p. 36 (PDF; 608 kB)
  4. ^ Gustav Struve: History of the three popular surveys in Baden 1848/1849 ; Freiburg, 1980, p. 67f., Quotation: “ In order to establish contact with the Hecker band as quickly as possible, the Weisshaar-Struve Colonne, about 700 strong, moved the following morning, Maundy Thursday, April 20 to Loerrach. There should be rest. "
  5. ↑ Willy Real: The Revolution in Baden 1848/49 (Stuttgart, 1983), Fig. 3 (between pp. 64 and 65)
  6. ↑ State Center for Civic Education Baden-Württemberg : Information on the Hecker Uprising (PDF), p. 3, last accessed on April 26, 2019
  7. ↑ s. Max Oeser: History of the City of Mannheim. New edition supplemented up to the present. , Mannheim 1908, p. 571–572 Digitalization in the Internet Archive and Friedrich Walter : Mannheim in Past and Present. Volume 2: History of Mannheim from the transition to Baden (1802) to the foundation of the empire. Mannheim 1907, pp. 341–342 Digitized in the Internet Archive
  8. ↑ 30 in Zang 1994, p. 171; 50 after Hermann 1999
  9. ↑ Archive link ( Memento from July 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
  10. ↑ Zang 1993, p. 162