Carl Legien

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Carl Legien
Bust of Carl Legiens on the memorial at Legiendamm 32, in Berlin-Kreuzberg
Grave in the central cemetery Friedrichsfelde in Berlin

Carl Rudolf Legien (born December 1, 1861 in Marienburg (West Prussia) , † December 26, 1920 in Berlin ) was a German trade union official .

Legien was a member of the Reichstag from 1893 to 1898 and from 1903 to 1920 .

Life

After the death of his parents, Legien grew up in an orphanage in Thorn from 1867 to 1875 . From 1875 to 1880 he completed an apprenticeship as a turner . From 1881 to 1884 he did his military service.

From 1884 to 1886 he worked as a wood turner in Berlin, Frankfurt am Main and Deutz near Cologne and finally settled in Hamburg .

In Berlin he was first secretary and from 1913 president of the International Trade Union Confederation .

Legien died in Berlin in 1920. He was buried at the curtain wall at the Friedrichsfelde central cemetery in Berlin-Lichtenberg.

Trade union and party political work

Legien joined the SPD in Frankfurt am Main in 1885 and the Hamburg professional wood turner's association in 1886 and thus joined the trade union movement. In the same year he became chairman of the local association. In 1887, the German Turners Association was founded under his leadership . In 1889 he took part in the international socialist congress in Paris , which led to the establishment of the Socialist International . From 1890 he was chairman of the general commission of the trade unions in Germany , based in Hamburg, and in this capacity he headed the Halberstadt Congress in 1892. He was secretary for many years, then from 1913 first president of the International Trade Union Confederation, which was renamed at the American request . In 1919 he became chairman of the ADGB's founding congress in Nuremberg .

While the German Metalworkers' Association under the new chairman Robert Dißmann committed itself to the council system after the November Revolution and criticized the cooperation of the trade unions in World War I, Legien took a stand against revolutionary efforts.

Legien had supported the decision not to strike during the World War and saw the war as a national task, for which, however, he expected return services from the state. Towards the end of the First World War he was already involved in the negotiations for the central working group with representatives of the industry. As a result of these negotiations, the trade unions in Germany were officially recognized by the employers as representatives of the workers' interests for the first time through the Stinnes-Legien Agreement and the eight-hour day was introduced. In 1920 Legien organized the general strike against the Kapp Putsch . In June 1920 he became deputy chairman of the Provisional Reich Economic Council . In March 1920 Friedrich Ebert offered him the formation of a government, which he refused. He passed away that same year.

Honors

  • Carl-Legien-Schule in Berlin-Neukölln , a vocational school with several professional fields that supports young people in their professional orientation. There is a bust of Carl Legien in the entrance hall of the school. The Carl-Legien-Schule has existed since 1984, it was originally built in 1910 as the Royal Prussian Building Trade School on Leinestrasse.
  • Since July 31, 1947 Legiendamm in Berlin's Luisenstadt (previously Luisenufer [1849–1937] and Kösterdamm [1937–1947]). The street runs along the former Luisenstadt Canal from Heinrich-Heine- Platz in ( center ) to Oranienplatz in ( Kreuzberg ).
  • Monument with bust on Legiendamm. A few meters away, on the opposite side of the green area, on Leuschnerdamm, there is a stele with a bust in honor of Wilhelm Leuschner .
  • The large housing estate Carl Legien in Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg was named after him.
  • In several cities such as For example, in Bremen- Hastedt, Hamm , Kiel , Osnabrück , Cologne-Mülheim , Leverkusen and Bergkamen there are streets named after Carl Legien, and in Hamburg-Horn on Legienstrasse there is also the U2 subway station of the same name . The sailors' uprising started in 1918 from today's Legienstrasse in Kiel, which led to the end of the World War and the German Empire.
  • On March 27, 1923, the Fährstrasse in Kiel, where the trade union building stands, was named Legienstrasse in honor of Carl Legien. The National Socialists reversed this on April 7, 1933. On December 17, 1947 it got its current name Legienstrasse back. The restaurant in the Kiel trade union building is called "Legienhof" after Carl Legien or Legienstrasse. This name is often used for the entire complex in which the German Trade Union Federation (DGB) and many of its individual trade unions have their headquarters to this day.

literature

Web links

Commons : Carl Legien  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Andreas Michaelis: Carl Legien. Tabular curriculum vitae in the LeMO ( DHM and HdG )
personal data
SURNAME Legien, Carl
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Legien, Carl Rudolf (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German trade unionists and politicians (SPD), MdR
DATE OF BIRTH December 1, 1861
PLACE OF BIRTH Marienburg (West Prussia)
DATE OF DEATH December 26, 1920
Place of death Berlin