Klaus von Beyme

Klaus von Beyme (born July 3, 1934 in Saarau , Schweidnitz district , Lower Silesia ; † December 5 or December 6, 2021 in Heidelberg ) was a German political scientist and from 1974 until his retirement in 1999 professor at the Institute for Political Science of the Ruprecht Charles University of Heidelberg . He researched, taught and published on political theories, ideologies, parties and systems, especially from a comparative perspective. His textbooks on the political system of the Federal Republic of Germanyand the political theories of the present are authoritative standard works.

Life

His parents, Wilhelm von Beyme (1901–1968) and Dorothee von Rümker (1906–1997), were landowners in Silesia and later hoteliers. After graduating from high school in Celle in 1954 , Beyme initially trained as a publishing bookseller from 1954 to 1956. From 1956 he first studied law, sociology and history. After four semesters, he switched from law to political science. He studied until 1961 at the University of Heidelberg , the University of Bonn , the Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich , the University of Paris and the Lomonossow University . The extraordinary study place in Moscow (1959–1960) resulted from the life story of Beymes, who had learned Russian at the adult education center and successfully applied for the student exchange. From 1961 to 1962 Beyme was a Research Fellow at the Russian Research Center at Harvard University and assistant to Carl Joachim Friedrich . In 1963 he was awarded a Dr. phil. PhD . In 1967 he completed his habilitation in Heidelberg.

Then Beyme was a full professor at the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen (1967–1973). In July 1971 he served there for a week as rector of the university. In 1972 he was offered a professorship at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main . From 1973 to 1975 he was chairman of the German Association for Political Science .

After all, Beyme was a full professor at Heidelberg University from 1974 to 1999 and headed the Institute for Political Science. From 1982 to 1985 he was President of the International Political Science Association , 1983 to 1990 member of the Research Council at the European University Institute in Florence, 1985 visiting professor at the École libre des sciences politiques in Paris, 1979 visiting professor at Stanford University (California), 1987 ff Member of the Academia Europaea , 1989 visiting professor at the University of Melbourne . From 1990 to 1993 he was a member of the board of the commission for research into social and political change in the new federal states ; from 1999 Beyme was retired .

Beyme was married to Maja von Oertzen (born October 28, 1935 in Rostock ), daughter of the Upper Government Council and lawyer Detlof von Oertzen and Viktoria, née von Blücher. From the age of 24 von Beyme was a member of the SPD . He died in December 2021 at the age of 87.

Works

Beyme's introduction to the political theories of the present appeared from 1972, his textbook on the political system of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1979 in numerous editions. Both have been translated into different languages ​​and have shaped generations of political science students.

Beyme has received numerous awards for his scientific work, including: In 1995 he was an honorary member of the Humboldt University of Berlin , in 1998 the University Medal of the University of Heidelberg and in 2001 an honorary doctorate from the University of Bern . He was also a member of the Academia Europaea and the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences . In 2008 he was honored with the Schader Prize .

A study published in 1998 found that von Beyme was ranked 10th among the world's most important political scientists - and as the only German. Beyme's extraordinary importance for the subject was also evident at the German level. 41 percent of the surveyed scientists named him as the most important representative of political science in Germany. He was in second place when asked about the most important specialist representatives with regard to their “professional-political significance”. Again, most of the respondents believed that he had the best public reputation of any political scientist. Beyme was also to be found twice among the most important representatives of individual research fields: both in the subject area “ Political Theory , Political Philosophy and History of Ideas ” and in the subject area “ Comparative Political Science / System Comparison”.

On September 2, 2010, Beyme was honored with the honorary professorship of the Lomonossow University in Moscow for his “tremendous contribution to the development of political science in Europe and around the world” as well as for his longstanding work as a professor of political science at various universities around the world. In particular, the laudators said that he had rendered outstanding services to the development of relations between Lomonossow University and the universities in Germany. The award ceremony took place during a ceremony, to which the rector of Moscow University had invited, in the presence of the mayor of Moscow, Yuri Mikhailovich Luzhkov .

At his meeting in Tokyo on 14./15. In April 2012, the Executive Committee of the International Political Science Association (IPSA) decided that Klaus von Beyme would receive the Mattei Dogan Award for High Achievement in Political Science in recognition of his life's work . The award, endowed with US $ 5000, was presented at the XXII World Congress of Political Science (Madrid, July 8-12, 2012) by Jean-Pascal Daloz (Mattei Dogan Foundation) as part of a festive event at which Klaus von Beyme took part gave a lecture.

After reunification, Klaus von Beyme identified the East Berlin representative on the Executive Committee of the International Political Science Association, Karl-Heinz Röder , as a Stasi officer in the highest ranks.

Research priorities

A research focus was the comparative study of the systems of government in Europe , especially in the former Eastern Bloc . Beyme has published numerous publications in his areas of expertise such as “comparative political science”, “political theory” or “policy analysis” (cultural policy, art and politics, housing and urban development policy). He saw the higher education system in the United States as a model. His contributions to research into the history of the discipline of political science are also recognized, in particular to the history of comparative political science and one of its founding fathers, Carl Joachim Friedrich .

The history of architecture and art were among his passions. His works The Age of the Avant-garde. Art and Society 1905–1955 and The Fascination of the Exotic. Exotism, racism and sexism in European art take this into account. Klaus von Beyme's work on reconstruction (1987) combines political and aesthetic perspectives and relativizes the cliché of the special affinity between “conservative” architectural taste and fascist thinking by using examples such as Rudolf Hillebrecht , Roland Rainer or Friedrich Tamms to illustrate the successful post-war careers of NS- Architects illuminated.

He was a member of the board of trustees of the Carlo Schmid Foundation .

Books

• Federalism in the Soviet Union. Quelle & Meyer, Heidelberg 1964 (English short version in: Public Policy 1964).
• The presidential system of government of the United States in the doctrine of forms of rule. Müller, Karlsruhe 1967.
• The constituent power of the people. Mohr, Tübingen 1968, (Greek: Syntaktikh efoysia toy laoy , Ekdoseis, Athens 1987).
• History of Political Ideas - Problems of an Interdisciplinary Research Area. Mohr, Tübingen 1969.
• Interest groups in democracy. Piper, Munich 1969; 5th edition 1980, (Spanish: Los grupos de presión en la Democracia. Belgrano, Buenos Aires 1986).
• The political system of Italy. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 1970.
• The political elite in the Federal Republic of Germany. Piper, Munich 1971; 2nd edition 1974.
• From fascism to development dictatorship. Power elite and opposition in Spain. Piper, Munich 1971.
• The political theories of the present. Piper, Munich 1972; 8th edition, Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 2000, (Spanish: Teorías politicas contemporaneas. Instituto des estudios políticos, Madrid 1977), (serbokroat .: Suvremene politicke teorije. Stvarnost, Zagreb 1975), (Chinese: Dangdai zhengzhi lilun. Shangwu, Beijing 1990), (Polish: Wspólczesne teorie polityczne. Scholar, Warsaw 2005).
• Economy and Politics in Socialism. A comparison of the development in the socialist countries. Piper, Munich 1975, paperback edition 1977, (English: Economics and Politics within Socialist Systems. Praeger, New York 1982).
• Trade Unions and Labor Relations in Capitalist Countries. Piper, Munich 1977 (English: Challenge to Power. Trade Unions and Industrial Relations in Capitalist Countries. Sage, London 1980).
• Socialism or welfare state? Social policy and social structure of the Soviet Union in a system comparison. Piper, Munich 1977 (English short version in: International Political Science Review. 1981).
• The political system of the Federal Republic of Germany. Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 1979, 11th edition 2010 (VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Engl .: The Political System of the Federal Republic of Germany. St. Martin's Press, Aldershot Gower / New York 1983, Slovene .: Politični sistem Zvezne Republike Nemčije , Koper: Visokošolsko središče 2002).
• Parties in Western Democracies. Piper, Munich 1982; 2nd ed. 1984, (English: Political Parties in Western Democraties. St. Martin's Press, New York 1985), (Spanish: Los partidos políticos en las democracias occidentales , Siglo ventiuno, Madrid 1986; Italian: I partiti nelle democrazie occidentali , Zanichelli, Bologna 1987).
• The Soviet Union in world politics. Piper, Munich 1983; 2nd edition 1985, (English: The Soviet Union in World Politics , St. Martin's Press, New York 1987).
• Rebuilding. Architecture and urban development policy in both German states , Piper, Munich 1987.
• The comparison in political science. Piper, Munich 1988.
• Right Wing Extremism in Western Europe , Frank Cass Publishers, London 1988.
• Search for the capital. Capital functions in the conflict of interests between Bonn and Berlin , Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1991.
• Theory of Politics in the 20th Century. From modern to postmodern , Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1991; 3rd edition 1996, 4th edition 2007, (Span .: Teoría politíca del siglo XX. De la modernidad a la postmodernidad , Alianza, Madrid 1994).
• The political class in the party state , Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1993; 2nd edition 1995, (Spanish: La classe política en el Estado de partídos , Alianza, Madrid 1995), (Italian: Classe politica a partitocrazia , UTET, Turin 1997).
• System change in Eastern Europe , Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp 1994, (English: Transition to Democracy in Eastern Europe. MacMillan, London 1996), ( Korean : talsahoezu ue wa zese joenwhan , Seokang Dae Hak Kyoe Zalpanbu 2000).
• Transition to Democracy in Eastern Europe , Palgrave Macmillan, London 1996.
• The legislator. The Bundestag as a decision-making center. Westdeutscher Verlag, Opladen 1997, (English: Parliament as a Decision-Making Center. The Case of Germany , St. Martin's Press, New York 1998).
• Cultural policy between state control and social autonomy , Westdeutscher Verlag, Opladen 1998.
• The art of power and the counterpower of art , Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1998.
• The Legislator. German Parliament as a Center of Political Decision Making , Ashgate, Aldershot 1998.
• Parliamentary Democracy , Westdeutscher Verlag, Opladen 1999.
• Parliamentary Democracy. Democratization, Destabilization, Reconsolidation 1789–1999 , Macmillan, Basingstoke 2000.
• Parties in transition. From the people's parties to the professionalized voters' parties , Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 2000, 2nd edition 2002, ( Croat .: Transformacija političkih stranaka , Zagreb: Politička misao 2002).
• Political Theories in Russia 1789–1945 , Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 2001.
• Political Theories in the Age of Ideologies , Westdeutscher Verlag, Wiesbaden 2002.
• The age of the avant-garde. Art and Society 1905–1955 , CH Beck, Munich 2005.
• Federalism and Regional Awareness. An international comparison , CH Beck, Munich 2007.
• The fascination of the exotic. Exotism, Racism and Sexism in European Art , Fink, Munich 2008.
• History of political theories in Germany 1300–2000 , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2009.
• Comparative Political Science , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2010.
• Cultural Policy in Germany. From state culture funding to creative industries , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2012.
• From the post-democracy to Neodemokratie , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2013 (Engl .: From Post-Democracy to Neo-Democracy , Springer, Heidelberg 2018).
• Liberalism. Theories of Liberalism and Radicalism in the Age of Ideologies 1789–1945 , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2013.
• Conservatism. Theories of Conservatism and Right-Wing Extremism in the Age of Ideologies 1789–1945 , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2013.
• Socialism. Theories of Socialism, Anarchism and Communism in the Age of Ideologies 1789–1945 , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2013.
• Pioneer in the Study of Political Theory and Comparative Politics , VS Springer, Heidelberg 2014.
• On Politic Culture, Cultural Policy, Art and Politics , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2014.
• Religious communities, civil society and the state. On the relationship between politics and religion in Germany , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2015.
• The Russia controversy. An analysis of the ideological conflict between those who understand Russia and those who criticize Russia , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2016; 2nd edition 2018.
• Fragments of the memory of a social scientist , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2016.
• Rightwing Populism - An Element of Neodemocracy , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2018 ( Rightwing Populism. An Element on Neodemocracy , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2019).
• Berlin. From looking for a capital city to finding a capital city , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2019.
• Migration policy. About successes and failures , VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2020.

literature

• Steffen Kailitz : Klaus von Beyme. Nestor of German Political Science . In: Arno Mohr, Dieter Nohlen (Ed.): Political Science in Heidelberg. 50 years of the Institute for Political Science . Winter, Heidelberg 2008, ISBN 978-3-8253-5452-7 , pp. 252-255.
• Isabelle-Christine Panreck : Klaus von Beyme. A work biography. Springer VS, Wiesbaden 2021. ISBN 978-3-658-32913-6 .
• Gisela Riescher : Beyme . In: Ders. (Ed.): Political theory of the present in individual presentations. From Adorno to Young (= Kröner's pocket edition . Volume 343). Kröner, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-520-34301-0 , pp. 56-58.

Web links

• Literature by and about Klaus von Beyme in the catalog of the German National Library
• Works by and about Klaus von Beyme  in the German Digital Library

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b} Wolfgang Merkel : Obituary: Klaus von Beyme was a fascinating teacher and scholar. In: Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung . December 7, 2021, accessed December 7, 2021 . 
2. ^ Deutsches Adelsblatt (1997).
3. ↑ ^{a b} globetrotter and country child . In: ruprecht . No. 61 , July 5, 1999 ( online interview).
4. ^ Political sociology in tsarist Russia. Wiesbaden 1965.
5. ^ Habilitation thesis: The parliamentary systems of government in Europe .
6. ↑ Irmela Bauer-Klöden: Die Rektoren, 15. – 21. Century. Historical-statistical handbook of the University of Tübingen . Tübingen 2010, p. 186.
7. ^ Christian Graf von Krockow , Peter Lösche (Ed.): Parties in the crisis. The party system of the Federal Republic of Germany and the uprising of the will of the people. Munich 1986, p. 165.
8. ↑ Wolfgang Merkel: Klaus von Beyme was a fascinating teacher and scholar. In: Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung , October 7, 2021.
9. ^ Hans-Dieter Klingemann , Jürgen W. Falter : The German political science in the judgment of the specialist representatives. In: Michael Th. Greven (Ed.): Democracy - a culture of the West? Leske + Budrich, Opladen 1998, pp. 305–341 ( PDF; 3.9 MB ); see also Michael Schwarz: Heidelberg political scientists enjoy an excellent reputation. In: Information Service Science . April 13, 1999 ( online ).
10. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento from November 11, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
11. ^ Mattei Dogan Foundation .
12. ↑ Klaus von Beyme: Fragments of the memory of a social scientist , Wiesbaden 2016, p. 182; see also: Klaus von Beyme: The DVPW and the International Political Science Association. In: Jürgen W. Falter, Felix W. Wurm (Ed.): Political Science in the Federal Republic of Germany. 50 years DVPW , Wiesbaden 2003, p. 70 ff.
13. ↑ Abolishes the habilitation . In: The time . February 12, 1998 ( online conversation).
14. ↑ Klaus von Beyme: The German political science in international comparison. In: ders. (Ed.): Political Science in the Federal Republic of Germany. Development problems of a discipline (= political quarterly , special issue 17/1986), Opladen 1986, ISBN 3-531-11830-7 .