Julius Klaus

The title of this article is ambiguous. For the Swiss engineer, entrepreneur and race hygienist, see Julius Klaus (race hygienist) .

Julius Bruno Theodor Klaus (born October 5, 1910 in Schwäbisch Gmünd ; † December 14, 1988 ibid) was a German politician ( CDU ) and mayor of Schwäbisch Gmünd from 1957 to 1965 . His term of office is assessed differently. His energy and his undisputed achievements for urban development contrast with the nationwide media coverage of his unorthodox administration.

Life

Julius Klaus came from a Gmünd merchant family. After graduating from high school, Bruno Klaus's grandson first studied physics and mathematics before deciding to study law at the Eberhard Karls University in Tübingen . He was a member of the Catholic student union AV Guestfalia Tübingen . In 1935 he was introduced to the fundamentals of the emergency (and self-defense) problem and his solution de lege ferenda for Dr. iur. PhD . After completing his legal traineeship in Schwäbisch Gmünd, Ellwangen and Stuttgart , he passed the “Great State Examination” in 1937.

He initially worked as a judge at the Stuttgart Regional Court before being drafted into the Wehrmacht in 1940 . After a serious wound on the Eastern Front in 1942, he worked at the Künzelsau , Heilbronn and Öhringen courts until the end of the war .

Klaus established himself as a lawyer in his hometown in June 1947. As a consultant to the small bus company Severin Abt from Rechberg , he played a key role in the development of Gmünd city transport in the early 1950s.

Term of office as Lord Mayor

In Schwäbisch Gmünd, Mayor Konrad retired after only a short term in office for health reasons. For his successor applied next to Mayor Ruisinger u. a. Julius Klaus. On January 20, 1957, after a short but fierce election campaign, Klaus was elected the new Lord Mayor of the city with 74.2 percent of the vote and took office on March 7, 1957.

Urban development services

By incorporating Bettringen in 1959, he secured urgently needed building land for the city and Schwäbisch Gmünd grew to 40,000 inhabitants. He guaranteed his colleague Bruno Maurer 5 million DM for the development of Betttringens  , which Betttringen would no longer have managed on its own. The groundbreaking ceremony for a new school building in Bettringen, which was completed in 1965, took place one day before the official incorporation. The commitments made for the community of Bettringen were exemplary for all of the following incorporations.

He also campaigned for the establishment of a middle school in Schwäbisch Gmünd, which opened in 1958, and the construction of an elementary school in Weststadt. In the city center, the Buhl gymnasium was able to create an exercise facility for schools and clubs. The former administration building of the AOK in Königsturmstraße was acquired for the youth and converted into a youth center in 1964.

In order to get the traffic problem under control, Klaus endeavored from the beginning of his term of office to expand and improve the roads. The widening of Remsstrasse fell on criticism of the citizens, as a row of trees on the former promenade had to be felled. His roundabout at the Glocke intersection, introduced in 1958, was given the derisive name of "Klausen-Ei" by the citizens, since Klaus "after brooding for several hours" , as he was quoted, came up with this traffic solution in his Black Forest holiday resort.

During his term of office, the city of Schwäbisch Gmünd celebrated its 800th anniversary, which was celebrated in large celebrations from July 7th to 22nd, 1962. In this context, Klaus welcomed the Lord Mayor of Baden-Württemberg, Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia , Kurt Georg Kiesinger , Bishop Carl Joseph Leiprecht , Eduard Leuze , Gebhard Müller and other personalities. The city anniversary was also recognized in a cultural sense. To mark the occasion, the city announced an art prize, the Stuttgart Philharmonic under the direction of Hermann Michael performed and Hansmartin Decker-Hauff gave the keynote lecture . The festival weeks were captured in color on a documentary, and the city published a volume on the city's history.

Failed construction projects

Behind the Rauchbeinschule , Klaus planned to build a garden pool for which he was able to obtain approval from the local council. It was never carried out because the slope of the site was unsuitable for the bathroom, access road and parking spaces.

As a result of the hospital issue, Klaus came into conflict with District Administrator Burkhardt . Although the Schwäbisch Gmünd district was planning a new district hospital in neighboring Mutlangen , Klaus did not simply want to give up the urban hospital system after 100 years. Even when the district started building today's Staufer Clinic in 1962 , it was able to win the support of the municipal council for the construction of a new city hospital.

His major construction project to meet the housing shortage with a satellite town in the Gügling district also remained in the planning phase. Klaus planned a settlement there for several thousand residents, with shopping centers and public facilities. However, he could not convince the Gmünder to see the Gügling as a settlement area, since this area was too far away from the city center, while there was still building land in more convenient proximity to the city. This goal was abandoned under his successor Hansludwig Scheffold . Today the Gügling houses the industrial area planned by Scheffold.

Criticism of the administration and the electoral defeat against Scheffold

Grave of Julius Klaus in Schwäbisch Gmünd

He gained nationwide fame as the so-called "Bull of Gmünd" after he put down a photo reporter. Ultimately, he was not re-elected because of his unorthodox conduct and abuse of office. An administrative complaint against Klaus was filed with the Ministry of Justice in Stuttgart in 1964.

After his tenure as Lord Mayor, Klaus practiced as a lawyer and notary in his uncle's house in Gmünder Haussmannstrasse.

Julius Klaus is buried in the Trinity Cemetery in Schwäbisch Gmünd.

family

His son Volkmar founded today's Bullyland AG in Spraitbach in 1973 and managed it until 2005. He and his wife Jane also promote Spraitbach community life with the Volkmar and Jane Klaus Foundation gGmbH .

literature

• Ernst Lämmle: From the German Empire through the time of the world wars to the democratic republic . In: History of the City of Schwäbisch Gmünd , ed. from the Schwäbisch Gmünd city archive , Konrad Theiss Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 3-8062-0399-7
• Obituary in einhorn yearbook Schwäbisch Gmünd 1989 . Einhorn-Verlag Eduard Dietenberger, Schwäbisch Gmünd 1989, ISBN 3-921703-99-9

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Lämmle, p. 507
2. ↑ Lämmle, p. 508f.
3. ↑ Kuno Staudenmaier: In the VW Beetle on the field path. 50 years ago Bettringen came to Schwäbisch Gmünd - today there is a new flag for the district . In: Gmünder Tagespost , April 7, 2009; Pay retrieval under gmuender-tagespost.de possible
4. ↑ Lämmle, p. 509
5. ↑ Jürgen Steck: With a top and without a bell. This is not the first time Schwäbisch Gmünd has opted for a roundabout by the Rinderbacher Tower . In: Gmünder Daily Mail , August 1, 2003 pay demand among gmuender-tagespost.de possible
6. ^ Film by Rolf Zeeb, Offenburg. As VHS video 2002 using the 1962 anniversary poster Schwäbisch Gmünd 800 years city. Festival weeks from July 7th to 22nd, 1962 , running time 90 minutes, republished. The information is taken from this video.
7. ↑ Lämmle, p. 512
8. ↑ Lämmle, pp. 511f.
9. ↑ Lämmle, p. 511ff.
10. ↑ "Your Julius" . In: Der Spiegel . No. 5 , 1964 ( online ).
11. ↑ "From Affair to Affair" . In: Die Zeit , No. 5/1964
12. ↑ See Main State Archives Stuttgart, Q 1/22 Bü 328 .
13. ↑ See Main State Archives Stuttgart, Q 1/22 Bü 232 .
14. ↑ Hanna Meid: Family seat with a lot of email and etiquette. Hundred years of family tradition at Haußmannstrasse 26 . In: Gmünder Tagespost , August 30, 2003; Pay retrieval under gmuender-tagespost.de possible
15. ↑ Michael length: Bullyland changes hands. Toy figure manufacturers Volkmar and Jane Klaus sell their company . In: Gmünder Daily Mail , December 8, 2005 call fee under gmuender-tagespost.de possible