Josef Hammes

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Josef Hammes (born March 3, 1890 in Binsfeld , † November 30, 1963 in Remagen ) was a German district administrator in the Bitburg district .

Origin and life

After completing his studies in law and political science at the end of his school education , he took part in the First World War and was seriously wounded there. In 1927 he became a politician of the Center Party as Acting Mayor of Morsbach appointed, followed the unanimous choice to twelve years for full-time mayor 1928th From 1929 , the Oberbergischer Boten newspaper, founded by the Reichsleiter of the NSDAP Robert Ley , published abusive articles with insults and slander against Dr. Josef Hammes by giving him u. a. was accused of inciting false testimony and that he would act self-glorious, reckless and only for his own benefit. It is also known that Hammes tore off Hitler posters from billboards and called the Oberbergischer Bote a revolver sheet and demanded that slander directed against him should be corrected. In 1931, he succeeded in getting those responsible for the newspaper convicted and in its reasoning for the judgment that the court found “that the mayor's reputation and honor were severely impaired”.

When, after the municipal council elections in 1933, the German Center Party had retained an absolute majority in Morsbach, but the NSDAP had remained the strongest faction in the other municipalities and thus controlled the district assembly, Hammes was forbidden from continuing to exercise his office. After he was given leave of absence on March 14, 1933, and the NSDAP Gauleitung had determined that “Dr. Hammes was a declared opponent of National Socialism , ” a group of National Socialists tried to break into Hammes' apartment on April 26, 1933 in order to take him into protective custody. The Nazis first broke open the door to his apartment by force, and there was also shooting, but without injuring anyone. However, when Hammes suffered severe heart cramps, as a doctor later discovered, no further arrest was made. However, his salary was cut by half and his pension entitlements were completely revoked, which remained so even after the dismissed complaint in court in 1938.

Hammes then moved to Koblenz, where he lived until 1945 and employed a half-Jewish woman as a private secretary. On October 24 or 29, 1946, he was appointed acting district administrator of the Bitburg district, which was followed by a definitive appointment on October 1, 1948 . On November 30, 1952, he retired.

Awards and honors

  • On July 5, 1960, Dr. Hammes was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit 1st Class "for services to the public, for willingness to build up and certainly also as a reconciliation for some of the sufferings of defamation" .
  • On July 27, 2003 a memorial stone in honor of Josef Hammes, the last democratically elected mayor of the community during the Weimar period, was unveiled in front of the town hall in Morsbach. The inscription reads:
"For Dr. Josef Hammes, mayor of Morsbach from 1927 to 1933, who defended himself against National Socialism in difficult times. For all citizens of our community who thought and acted like him. As a reminder to future generations to courageously oppose the enemies of the rule of law and democracy "

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Resists the Nazis with civil courage, Dr. Josef Hammes, In: Flurschütz Morsbach, issue 50, August 2, 2003, morsbach.de
  2. ↑ a b c d Courageously opposes the Nazis, Kölnische Rundschau, July 28, 2003, In: rundschau-online.de
  3. ↑ Remembrance of a Courageous One, by Larissa Breidbach, Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, July 30, 2003, In: ksta.de
personal data
SURNAME Hammes, Josef
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German district administrator
DATE OF BIRTH March 3, 1890
PLACE OF BIRTH Binsfeld (Eifel)
DATE OF DEATH November 30, 1963
Place of death Remagen