Canton of Solothurn in the time of National Socialism
The canton of Solothurn headed in the era of National Socialism politically as the entire Switzerland a mixed rate between adaptation and resistance against the dangers of the powerful Hitler -Regimes and its " fifth column " on site in Canton.
politics
A distinction must be made here between ideological affinities of varying degrees and pure adaptation politics. The Solothurn law student Ubald von Roll, for example, was the leader of one of the many front organizations in Bern in the 1930s. In the mid-1930s, which were characterized by the spring of the front , there were at least borderline cases of ideological overlaps even among established politicians, for example when the incumbent, otherwise in relatively good reputation, Government Councilor Oskar Stampfli , brother of the later Federal Councilor Walther Stampfli , in the foreword to a book from 1935 formulated in Social Darwinian terminology: "History is the proof that the natural law, according to which the weak and inexpedient is stamped out, applies to peoples in exactly the same way." He mentions this in connection with the statement that Switzerland must be well equipped militarily against attacks.
Otherwise, the principle of very cautious distancing tended to apply in cantonal politics, whereby meticulous care was taken not to provoke the exponents of the northern neighbor. This applied, for example, to the case of the Solothurn arms factory in Zuchwil , where the Swiss foreman Werner Schaad, a staunch Hitler sympathizer, had staged aggressive Nazi propaganda within the factory. Neither federal nor cantonal authorities took any decisive action against it. A popular assembly of the Zuchwil population was required, which issued an appeal “against the National Socialist activities in Zuchwil” so that the cantonal government could put adequate pressure on the management of the arms factory to dismiss Schaad without notice. In the Biberist paper mill , even the managing director, who came from the German Reich, was at least a subliminal Nazi sympathizer; Police reports say his stance is all in all "not entirely clear".
Obviously a relaxed relationship also existed between the leaders of the rich German colony in Solothurn , Osthoff, and Mayor and FDP - Senate Paul Haefelin . Osthoff thanks Haefelin in correspondence for the courteous provision of meeting rooms for the colony, which held its Nazi rituals there (especially in the concert hall). Haefelin immediately praised the good relationships and raved about his "wonderful study time" in the German Reich. In Olten, on the other hand, 1,500 frontists from all over Switzerland were allowed a demonstration by the bourgeois authorities over a weekend, while at the same time a social democratic counter-demonstration was banned in Grenchen . There was also a local branch of the National Front in Olten .
On the other hand, reports the then SP Government Councilor Jacques Schmid , as a measure of resistance against a possible invasion, the cantonal government had the civil servants armed to defend the town hall.
Press
"Der Morgen", the organ of the Catholic Conservatives (today CVP Canton Solothurn ), commented very positively on Hitler's rise to power in 1933. The FDP newspapers also highlight the Grenchner Tagblatt in Jean-Maurice Lätt's cantonal SP party history : it expressly welcomed the fact that the German Social Democrats were interned by Hitler and described their “political extermination” as “historical justice”. In the wake of the defeatist radio speech by Federal Councilor Marcel Pilet-Golaz on June 25, 1940, after the conquest of France by Hitler's troops, the Solothurner Zeitung pleaded on June 27 that the parties should “shake hands across party lines a powerful unity party. ”What did not happen then, Switzerland remained politically pluralistic.
economy
Hitler's allied opponents of the war drew up black lists of Swiss industrial companies that, against their resolute will, delivered massive arms and other war material to Germany and its allies. The following statistical information is based on export statistics from the Federal Taken from the Department of Economics.
The Solothurn arms factory, incidentally under German ownership, primarily supplied Benito Mussolini's Italy, in third place in terms of quantity of all war material deliveries to Hitler's allies.
But also when it came to deliveries to the German Reich itself, the Solothurn industry was in top position: 5th place for the Pignons-Werke Grenchen, with components such as cogwheels for various war materials; 8th place for Autophon AG , the predecessor company of today's Ascom , with transmission electronics in advance; 11th place for Sphinx-Werke Müller AG, which was previously very well known in the region. A little further back in the ranking are the Zuchwiler Scintilla AG, which still exists and which supplied ignition devices, and the Langendorf watch factory, from where time fuses went to Germany. All products were high quality. Incidentally, several Solothurn companies have supplied Hitler's most important Swiss arms supplier, the Zurich-based Oerlikon-Bührle , with individual components for use in his arms.
source
Special supplement in the Solothurner Zeitung on the canton of Solothurn during the Nazi era of December 16, 1997 (8 pages); Authors: Christian Hilzinger (with foreword by Urs Altermatt )
Individual evidence
- ↑ Catherine Arber: Frontism and National Socialism in the City of Bern , 2003
- ^ A. Bracher: Solothurn and the border occupation 14 to 18 , 1935
- ^ ME Fischer: Olten - City history in pictures , 2001
- ^ Christian Hilzinger in the main source mentioned, supplement to the Solothurner Zeitung
- ↑ Jakob Tanner : Reduit national und Aussenwirtschaft (essay on the whole of Switzerland)