Mihkel Martna

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Mihkel Martna (born September 5 July / September 17, 1860 greg. In Paimpere, then Veltsa municipality, today rural municipality Koonga , Pärnu County , Estonia ; † May 23, 1934 in Tallinn ) was an Estonian politician and journalist. He was one of the founders of Estonian social democracy.

Life and politics

Mihkel Martna learned the painting trade in Tallinn after completing school. In the 1880s he came into contact with Marxist and socialist ideas, which he was one of the first Estonians to actively take up. He worked closely with Estonian newspapers such as Postimees and Sakala and also promoted the Estonian national movement. In 1903 Martna founded the left-wing newspaper Uudised together with the socialist Peeter Speek in Tartu . The first social democratic organization in Estonia was grouped around this circle.

Mihkel Martna took part in the Russian Revolution of 1905 . Persecuted by the tsarist authorities, he lived in exile from 1906 to 1917 , including in Switzerland , Germany and Finland .

Martna founded the Estonian Social Democratic Labor Party ( Estonian Eesti Sotsiaaldemokratlik Tööliste Party ) in 1907 with other Estonian socialists such as August Rei and Karl Ast as a split from the Russian socialists and was a leading member of the left wing. Martna was also known as the party's leading theorist.

Before Estonian independence was proclaimed on February 24, 1918, he was a member of the provisional parliament of the Estonian Governorate , then in 1919/20 a member of the Constituent Assembly of the Republic of Estonia ( Asutav Kogu ) and a member of the Estonian Parliament ( Riigikogu ) for five terms . Martna played a significant role in Estonian politics in the interwar period . In 1919 Martna was the Republic of Estonia's first official diplomatic representative for Germany. In the same year he achieved the recognition of Estonian sovereignty by the Second International . From 1929 to 1934 Martna was the Estonian Deputy Speaker of the Parliament. In 1930 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Tartu . He died in Tallinn in 1934.

Mihkel Martna is buried today in the Tallinn Forest Cemetery.

Aftermath

In 2001 the Mihkel Martna Foundation ( Mihkel Martna Fond ) was set up. In addition to dealing with Martna's political and theoretical legacy, the foundation endeavors to contribute to the spread of left-wing social democratic values ​​and ideas.

Works (selection)

  • CR Jakobson (1903)
  • Punased aastad Eestis (1907, under the pseudonym M. Jürisson)
  • Külast (1914)
  • 8-tunniline tööpäev (1924)
  • Mälestused iseseisvuse võistluspäevil (Memoirs, two volumes: 1927 and 1930)
  • Tallinna sündmusi 1905 yes 1906 (1930)

Secondary literature

  • Olaf Kuuli: Mihkel Martna. Eesti vasakpoolse sotsiaaldemokraatia teerajaja / Mihkel Martna. Pioneer of social democracy in Estonia. Tallinn 2007

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Eesti elulood. Tallinn: Eesti entsüklopeediakirjastus 2000 (= Eesti entsüklopeedia 14) ISBN 9985-70-064-3 , p. 280
  2. ↑ http://www.estemb.de/static/files/014/dipsuhete_algus.pdf
  3. ↑ http://register.muinas.ee/pdetail01.asp?mo_id=1165  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / register.muinas.ee  
personal data
SURNAME Martna, Mihkel
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Estonian politician and journalist
DATE OF BIRTH September 17, 1860
PLACE OF BIRTH Paimpere, then Veltsa Municipality, now Koonga Rural Municipality , Pärnu County , Estonia
DATE OF DEATH May 23, 1934
Place of death Tallinn