Otto Lange (politician)

Otto Lange (born September 12, 1878 in Lüttringhausen near Remscheid / Westphalia ; † February 6, 1953 in Wiesbaden ; complete by order of the Wiesbaden District President of August 27, 1945: Otto Lange de Brünn ) was a German politician, mayor of Nastätten ( district Sankt Goarshausen / Rhine Province ) and Weißwasser / Upper Lusatia .

Life

Lange's parents were Julius Lange and his wife Julie, b. Bechem. He married Klementine Kneib in 1909 and had his son Lothar on May 10, 1911 in Nahstätten.

Act

Mayor in Weißwasser

After Lange was mayor in Nahstätten, Goarshausen / Rhine Province, for a few years, he applied for the post of mayor of the industrial community of Weißwasser, which at that time was in the Prussian province of Silesia , and was unanimously elected from 184 applicants. He took office on October 16 of that year. In the period after the First World War he saw that the procurement and rationing of food and its fair distribution was the most important task with which the misery of the mostly wage-dependent population could be alleviated. By dividing the community into welfare districts, the use of voluntary helpers and the establishment of community shops and kitchens , it was possible to support the needy, which gave him a high reputation among the population. In the eventful and restless years of the young Weimar Republic from 1918 to 1923, he campaigned to steer social changes in an orderly manner. As a member of the majority social democracy , he managed to secure a certain political stability for the place through an alliance with the workers 'and soldiers' council and representatives of the bourgeoisie, organized in the German Democratic Party .

Long pursued an active policy against the NSDAP , prevented them from demonstrations by prohibiting assembly. In the local elections in 1929, the NSDAP was not given a seat in the local council and until 1933 the democratic forces had an absolute majority in the local council. To defend the republic, he set up a protective group that he trained on handguns. With annual celebrations on the occasion of the Constitution Day on August 11th, he wanted to win young residents in particular to commit to democracy.

Through a variety of job creation measures , he brought a large part of the unemployed in the community into wages and bread, so that the need during the global economic crisis was limited. With cheap loans he was able to create the long-planned, at the time modern and still existing sewage system in Weißwasser. Through his function within the Prussian Rural Community Association, he was able to bring additional funds into the rural community, with the help of which the housing shortage could be reduced considerably and the infrastructure expanded. He made his experiences known in association publications.

Participation in legislation and in associations

Already after the First World War, Lange was a leader in the unification of various Prussian community associations and the republican orientation of the newly created Association of Prussian rural communities , and since 1921 its elected chairman. In 1922 the Reichsverband Deutscher Landgemeinden also elected him as 2nd chairman and in 1925 as 1st chairman. In these functions he made his contribution to the enforcement of the democratic legal system against conservative attempts at restoration . The focus of his work was citizen-oriented self-government and a fundamental tax reform. Lange demanded sufficient funding from the municipalities to enable them to fulfill their social tasks. With the law on the dissolution of manor districts in 1927, he succeeded in lengthy negotiations to assert the interests of the communities against feudal privileges. He was also involved in the 1927 Unemployment Insurance Act . His associations developed a number of initiatives to eradicate unemployment during the Great Depression, but these were completely blocked by the Briining government . The Nazi government later made use of this preparatory work.

In March 1933, the Nazis expelled him from his mayor's office as a “ November criminal ”, which was subsequently to be legalized by the law for the restoration of the civil service . For a long time, the comrades of the KPD , who tried to disrupt the democratic process by means of populist motions and organized noisy appearances, and whom he countered just as aggressively, were insulted and fought against as " social fascists ".

After the Second World War

As an opponent of communism , a return to Weißwasser was not possible in 1945. Lange offered his services to the regional council in Wiesbaden. There he worked his way up from speaker to government director and played a key role in building democratic local structures.

In his obituary in 1953 it was stated that with the death of Lange, German local politics lost one of its most capable representatives.

Works

• The organization of rural communities and their importance. In: Der Heimatdienst 1928, pp. 377–378.
• Local law for white water. Edited by mayor Otto Lange, Weißwasser, o. J. (1928).
• Foreword and collaboration in: Wilhelm Pfeiffer: The welfare and youth welfare - a guide , Berlin Landgemeindeverlag 1929. ( DNB 577324896 )

literature

• Negotiation report on the merger of the Prussian Rural Community Association with the Prussian Rural Community Conference to form the Prussian Rural Community Association (on March 18/19, 1922). In: Der Deutsche Landgemeindetag , No. 8 (2) of April 22, 1922, Berlin. Berlin State Library Sign. 134764090 4-Gt 13590.
• History of the Prussian Rural Association. In: Göb, Joseph: The communities in state and society. Siegburg 1966, pp. 15-138.
• Göb, Joseph: 50 years of German local politics. Cologne 1966.
• Böttcher, Oskar: The municipal top-level associations. In: Journal of Local Services. Berlin 1932 (XXII), No. 16/17 of September 10, 1932.
• Otto Lange. In: Lebensbilder - Personalities of Upper Lusatia. Issue 12 articles on local history.

swell

• Latest news for Weißwasser and the surrounding area 1914–1933, u. a.
• Hessian Main State Archive Wiesbaden Dept. 650 No. 9781
• Landesarchiv Berlin : Finding aid No. 30, Sign. B Rep. 142-05, No. 4, 6 16, 27, 30, 37, 57, 68, 510, 520, 527.
• City archive Remscheid: Certificate of descent from Clementine Lange
• Registry office Wiesbaden Reg. 438/1953, identification cards for Otto Lange and Klementine Lange
• Wiesbaden Courier of February 9, 1953: Obituary, obituary notice.
• City archive Weißwasser:
  • Administrative files No. 36, 67, 68, 86, 93, 103, 108, 109, 110, 116, 117, 118, 120, 121, 131, 138, 166, 179 a, 185.
  • Protocol books of the rural community of Weißwasser 1914–1933

Web links

• Werner Schubert: Otto Lange ( Memento of 3 August 2013 Web archive archive.today ) in the Biographical Dictionary of Oberlausitz of Oberlausitzischen Society of Sciences , 12 February 2007