Hermann Becker (politician, 1820)

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Hermann Becker 1878, detail from a painting by Julius Schrader in the historic Cologne City Hall.
Hermann Heinrich Becker at the Cologne town hall tower (next to Karl Marx), sculptor: Helmut Moos

Hermann Heinrich Becker (born  September 15, 1820 in Elberfeld (today in Wuppertal ); † December 9, 1885 in Cologne ; called the red Becker ) was a German politician .

Career

He got his nickname "the red Becker" during his high school days because of his red hair and kept it all his life because of his democratic and republican sentiments.

His father Dr. Hermann Becker was a general practitioner ; his mother Theodora Helene Caroline Wilhelmine Friedrike nee Krackrügge was a sister of the well-known democrat and Prussian MP Goswin Krackrügge . Hermann Heinrich Becker studied law and political science in Heidelberg , Bonn and Berlin . After completing his studies, he received his doctorate on May 10, 1847 at the law faculty in Göttingen , while he was a trainee lawyer at the regional court in Cologne. In 1840 he became a member of the Lumpia Heidelberg fraternity and in 1843 a member of the Fridericia Bonn fraternity.

During his internship in Cologne he got to know Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , Heinrich Bürgers and Wilhelm Wolff . He later took an active part in the movements of 1848 and 1849 as a publicist and popular speaker. Becker was also one of “the electors of the city of Cologne for the election of the members of the second chamber” for the “31. District". In 1849/50 he was editor-in-chief of the " Westdeutsche Zeitung ", which was republican, democratic and anti-Prussian, and Marx, Ernst Dronke , Engels, Ferdinand Freiligrath , Georg Weerth , Ferdinand Wolff and Wilhelm were the successors of the Neue Rheinische Zeitung Wolff clearly delimited. Since December 1850 he was in negotiations with Karl Marx about the publication of the "Collected Essays" by Marx, the first issue of which appeared in Cologne at the end of April 1851; further issues could not appear because of Becker's arrest. On May 19, 1851 he was arrested as a “communist” and in November 1852 was one of the main defendants in the Cologne communist trial . He was no longer allowed to enter Cologne, lost his civil rights and was therefore deleted from the list of trainee lawyers. On the basis of a log book obviously forged by the police, Becker was sentenced to five years' imprisonment (November 1852 to November 1857), which he served in Stettin and the Danzig fortress of Weichselmünde (now in Polish: Wisłoujście). His self-defense speech during the trial was printed in full by the Kölnische Zeitung .

After serving his imprisonment in a fortress, he settled in Dortmund , worked for a time in a commercial shop, then worked as an employee in various political and economic magazines and at the same time devoted his energies to the urban community. From 1864 to 1871 he was the city councilor of the city of Dortmund, was the founder and chairman of the Dortmund Volksbank , the trade association, and in 1870 became mayor of Dortmund. Although Becker no longer lived in Cologne, he continued to determine the political line of the German Progressive Party in Cologne.

He represented the constituency of Dortmund in the Prussian House of Representatives from 1862 to 1872, in the North German Reichstag from 1867 to 1870 and in the German Reichstag from 1871 to 1874 . In all parliaments into which he was elected, he belonged to the faction of the Progressive Party. In 1867 Becker was elected to the extended board of the Progress Party. In 1872 he was appointed to the manor house as a representative of the city of Dortmund , to which he belonged until 1885. As a member of parliament, Becker voted against the constitution of the North German Confederation in 1867 , but after 1870/71 he spoke out in favor of the completion of national unity in the form of the newly founded empire.

Grave at the Melatenfriedhof (HWG, between lit.M + T)
Tomb for Hermann Becker

In 1875 he left Dortmund and was elected Lord Mayor of Cologne and a member of the manor house and the Council of State for this city, which he remained until his death in 1885. In 1876 his application caused a sensation in the manor house when he demanded the introduction of travel expenses reimbursement for members of the manor house for journeys between home and Berlin. After heated discussion, his motion was voted down by the Conservatives in the plenary session on June 24, 1876. As Lord Mayor of Cologne, he brought the gas and water supply under municipal sovereignty, reformed the city's school system and expanded Cologne's urban area through incorporations.

It was not until his later years as Lord Mayor of Cologne that he married Henriette Metzmacher (born October 3, 1847 in Dortmund; † January 28, 1928), daughter of his old friend Carl Metzmacher (born January 26, 1846 in Dortmund), on October 8, 1877 Steam mill owner and member of the state parliament. However, this marriage was short-lived, as Becker died on December 9, 1885 at the age of 65 from complications from pulmonary tuberculosis from which he had contracted a year earlier. He was buried in the Melaten cemetery in Cologne . On his grave is a bronze portrait by Anton Werres (1887), which shows him in profile. Above it, the Colonia is depicted as a symbol for Cologne.

Works

  • West German newspaper. Democratic political daily newspaper . Becker, Cologne 1849–1850 (May 25, 1849 to July 21, 1850).
  • Collected essays by Karl Marx . Edited by Hermann Becker. 1st issue. Becker, Cologne 1850 (Reprint C. Slienger, London 1976).
  • Monarchy or republic in Germany. Part 1. Defense speech by Dr. H. Becker, held before the jury in Cologne on October 25, 1850, with an act of indictment . 4. through Edition print u. J. Creteur & Sohn, Cologne 1850.
  • Defense speech and act of indictment by H. Becker . Berlin 1850.
  • Defense speech of (...) Hermann Becker, (...) delivered before the jury court in Cologne on October 25, 1850 . Expedition of the Lübecker Zeitung, Lübeck 1850.
  • Monarchy or republic in Germany. Part 2. First secret press trial because of the defense speech of October 25, 1850, heard before the jury in Cologne on April 10, 1851. Published by the accused Dr. Herm. Becker. 2nd Edition. Becker, Cologne 1851.
  • Monarchy or republic in Germany. Part 1. Defense speech by Dr. H. Becker, held before the jury in Cologne on October 25, 1850. 7th edition. Cologne 1851.
  • Monarchy or republic in Germany. Act of indictment and defense speech by Dr. Mr. Becker before the jury in Cologne on October 25, 1850. 8th edition. Eisen, Cologne 1851 (online) .
  • My candidacy for the House of Representatives. (Election campaign on December 6, 1861) with an appendix entitled “Declaration” containing a section of his life . 3rd probably edition Krüger, Dortmund 1862.
  • The Dortmund wall tailor book . Edited by Hermann Becker. Crüwell, Dortmund 1871.
  • Speech by Hermann Becker, member of the Landtag and Reichstag, given on February 26, 1871 at a people's assembly in Dortmund. Stenographed by Ms. Kohn . Dortmund 1871 (from: Stenographic sheets from Westphalia , Dortmund. Volume 2, 1871. No. 5).
  • Speech by District Administrator Rynch, given at the introduction of Hermann Becker into his office as Mayor of Dortmund on July 1, 1871, and address in response by Mayor Hermann Becker. Welcome speech by Hermann Becker, addressed to the warriors of Dortmund (...) on September 2, 1871. Shorthand by Karl Pork and Fr. Kohn . Dortmund 1871 (from: Stenographic sheets from Westphalia . Dortmund. Volume 2, 1871. No. 5).

literature

  • Wermuth-Stieber: The Communist Conspiracies of the Nineteenth Century. In the official order for the use of the police authorities of all German federal states on the basis of the relevant judicial and police acts . 2 parts. AW Hayn, Berlin 1852-1854 (Reprint: Klaus Guhl, Berlin 1976).
  • Hermann Keussen:  Becker: Hermann Heinrich . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 46, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1902, pp. 315-317.
  • Karl E. Hackenberg: The red Becker. A German image of life from the 19th century . Bedecker, Leipzig 1899.
  • Karl E. Hackenberg: The red Becker former mayor of the city of Cologne on the Rhine . Lothar Joachim, Leipzig 1924.
  • Walter Kühn: The young Hermann Becker. A source contribution to the history of the labor movement in Rhenish Prussia. Volume 1 . Association of Friends of the City and State Library, Dortmund 1934.
  • Heinrich Heffter:  Becker, Hermann Heinrich. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 1, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1953, ISBN 3-428-00182-6 , p. 716 ( digitized version ).
  • Karl Bittel : The Communist Trial in Cologne 1852 in the mirror of the contemporary press. Edited and introduced . Rütten & Loening, Berlin 1955.
  • Eisfeld, Gerhard: The emergence of the liberal parties in Germany 1858-1870. Study on the organizations and programs of the Liberals and Democrats . Hanover: Verlag für Literatur und Zeitgeschehen, 1969 (series of publications of the research institute of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. Series B: historical-political writings).
  • Herwig Förder: Becker, Hermann Heinrich. In: History of the Labor Movement. Biographical Lexicon. Dietz Verlag, Berlin 1970, pp. 34-35.
  • The League of Communists. Documents and materials. 1836–1849 , Volume 1, Dietz Verlag, Berlin 1970.
  • The League of Communists. Documents and materials. 1849–1851 , Volume 2, Dietz Verlag, Berlin 1982.
  • The League of Communists. Documents and materials. 1851-1852 , Volume 3, Dietz Verlag, Berlin 1984.
  • Bernhard Dohm , Inge Taubert : Engels on the "red" Becker. An unknown letter from Friedrich Engels. In: Contributions to the history of the labor movement. 1973, No. 5, pp. 807-814.
  • Joachim Oepen: Hermann Becker, Lord Mayor of Cologne. 1875-1885. In: History in Cologne. 32, 1992, pp. 77-104.
  • Andreas Biefang: Heinrich Becker. 1820-1885. In: Rheinische Lebensbilder. Volume 13, Cologne 1993, pp. 153-181.
  • Becker, Hermann Heinrich. In: German Biographical Encyclopedia . Volume 1, Saur, Munich 1995, p. 378.
  • Helge Dvorak: Biographical Lexicon of the German Burschenschaft. Volume I: Politicians. Sub-Volume 1: A-E. Winter, Heidelberg 1996, ISBN 3-8253-0339-X , pp. 70-71.
  • Jürgen Herres: The Cologne Communist Trial of 1852 In: History in Cologne. Magazine for town and regional history. 50/2003 online version . (PDF file; 103 KB).
  • Karl-Ferdinand Besselmann: Hermann Heinrich Becker (1820–1885). In: Cologne collectors and their book collections in the University and City Library of Cologne. Cologne 2003, pp. 57–67 (= publications of the University and City Library Cologne. 13).
  • Detlef Brendel: Hermann Heinrich Becker (1820–1885). In: Heinz-Dietrich Fischer (Ed.): German press publishers from the 18th to the 20th century. Verlag Documentation, Pullach near Munich 1975, ISBN 3-7940-3604-4 , pp. 130-140.
  • Klaus Körner: Kölner Komunnistenverfahren , in: Kurt Groenewold, Alexander Ignor, Arnd Koch (Hrsg.): Lexicon of Political Criminal Processes, online, as of January 2018

Web links

Commons : Hermann Heinrich Becker  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Göttingen scholarly advertisements . Edited by the Royal Society of Sciences. Volume III, Göttingen 1847, p. 114.
  2. ^ Helge Dvorak: Biographical Lexicon of the German Burschenschaft. Volume 1, Heidelberg 1996, p. 70.
  3. ↑ Famous Bonn fraternities and Bonn Alemanni.  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on: alemannia-bonn.de@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.alemannia-bonn.de  
  4. ↑ Neue Rheinische Zeitung . Extra supplement No. 204, January 25, 1849.
  5. ^ Hermann Becker (ed.): Westdeutsche Zeitung. Democratic political daily newspaper. H. Becker, Cologne, May 25, 1849 to July 21, 1850.
  6. ^ To the editors of the "Frankfurter Journal". Marx-Engels-Werke Volume 6, p. 523 (online) ( Memento of the original from January 6, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.dearchiv.de
  7. ↑ Marx-Engels Complete Edition . Department III, Volume 6, p. 701.
  8. ↑ Issues No. 286, 287 and 288 of November 7, 8 and 9, 1852.
  9. ↑ Karin Schambach: Urban bourgeoisie and industrial upheaval. Dortmund 1780-1870. (= City and bourgeoisie. 5). Oldenbourg, Munich 1996, p. 416.
  10. ↑ Thomas Parent : "Passive Resistance" in the Prussian Constitutional Conflict. The Cologne parliamentary celebrations. (= Cologne series of publications on history and culture. 1). dme Verlag, Cologne 1982, p. 38.
  11. ^ Meyer's Large Conversational Lexicon. Volume 2, Leipzig 1905, p. 535.
  12. ↑ Georg Hirth (Ed.): German Parliament Almanach. 9th edition of May 9, 1871. Franz Duncker , Berlin 1871, p. 157 f.
  13. ↑ Klaus Erich Pollmann : Parliamentarism in the North German Confederation 1867-1870 . Droste, Düsseldorf 1985 (= Handbook of the History of German Parliamentarism ), p. 259.
  14. ↑ There he belonged to the faction of the Progressive Party (Hartwin Spenkuch: Das Preußische Herrenhaus. Nobility and bourgeoisie in the First Chamber of the State Parliament 1854–1918. (= Contributions to the history of parliamentarism and political parties. 110). Droste, Düsseldorf 1998, P. 356).
  15. ↑ Heinrich Heffter, p. 716.
  16. ↑ Hartwin Spenkuch, p. 381.
  17. ^ Hermann Becker: Wedding poems for Lord Mayor Hermann Becker and Henriette Nörrenberg geb. Metzmacher, Dortmund & Cologne, 8 Oct. 1877 .
  18. ↑ Hermann Keussen, p. 317.
  19. ↑ Biography, Note 549, pp. 725–726.
personal data
SURNAME Becker, Hermann
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Becker, Hermann Heinrich; The Red Becker (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German politician (Progress Party), MdR, Lord Mayor of Dortmund and Cologne
DATE OF BIRTH September 15, 1820
PLACE OF BIRTH Elberfeld
DATE OF DEATH December 9, 1885
Place of death Cologne