Reich Ministry for Reconstruction
The Reich Ministry for Reconstruction was a ministry during the Weimar Republic . The central task of the Reich authorities was to carry out the economic reparations of the Versailles Treaty . The ministry was established on November 7th, 1919 with a decree of Reich President Friedrich Ebert and dissolved on May 24th, 1924 with another decree of Ebert.
Brief description of the tasks
The Reich Ministry for Reconstruction was an authority during the Weimar Republic. It consisted exclusively of subordinate Reich authorities that were removed from the areas of responsibility of other Reich ministries. The ministry itself only formed the ultimate decision-making body and monitored the work of the affiliated bodies.
The term "Ministry of Reconstruction" referred to the tasks of the new authority. During 1919 German plans existed for direct participation in the reconstruction of the areas in Belgium and France devastated by the trench warfare of the First World War . German workers and companies were supposed to reduce the German reparations burden through direct reconstruction work and deliveries of building materials and at the same time bring about a rapprochement with France. These plans failed and Germany only supplied reparations such as building materials, furnishings, industrial plants and especially coal.
The remnants of the German merchant fleet , almost half lost through enemy action and confiscation during the First World War , were almost completely ceded to the Allied and Associated Powers in the course of the extension of the armistice and the Versailles Treaty. As early as 1917, the Reich leadership had decided to replace the war losses after the war in order to make it easier for Germany to return to the world market . The Reich Ministry for Reconstruction took over the institutions and organizations created for the reconstruction of the merchant fleet.
Germany was only slightly destroyed during the First World War. The consequences of the fighting over East Prussia had largely been eliminated during the war. Major damage from isolated air strikes remained the exception. The internal German reconstruction effort was the integration and compensation of hundreds of thousands of Germans abroad who poured into Germany as refugees or displaced persons - referred to as "displaced" in the parlance at the time - after the end of the war in 1918. This included Germans from the areas ceded by Germany such as Alsace-Lorraine , Eupen-Malmedy , Posen , West Prussia and the colonies , as well as a large number of Germans interned around the world during the war and deported to Germany after the war. The refugees and displaced persons had to be adequately compensated for their losses in complex procedures in order to enable them to make a fresh start in Germany. These tasks were assigned to the Reich Ministry for Reconstruction.
As a result of the German dismantling and other thefts during the First World War, Germany had to return the stolen goods after the war. Hundreds of thousands of tons of machines and materials had to be dismantled, packed and transported in Germany. Extensive logistics and organization were developed for this purpose. During the First World War, extensive financial obligations arose between Germany and its enemies. These concerned private capital movements. For example, the outbreak of World War I prevented the repayment of loans due to capital controls. At the end of the war these obligations had grown to billions of gold marks. A settlement procedure for claims and debts was therefore laid down in the Versailles Treaty, the implementation of which was entrusted to the Ministry of Reconstruction.
During the First World War, enemy assets were confiscated and companies were liquidated in Germany. After the end of the war, these processes had to be reversed and the victims compensated. These transactions were transferred to the Ministry. The ministry took over the budget, the staff and the premises of the Reichskolonialamt , which, as the central colonial administration department, drove the liquidation of the German colonial empire.
structure
The Reich Ministry for Reconstruction was housed in the former seat of the Reich Colonial Ministry at Wilhelmstrasse 62. The building was demolished after the end of the Second World War. The following authorities have been assigned to the Ministry:
| Surname | Set up | Dissolved |
|---|---|---|
| Reich Compensation Commission (affiliated in 1919) | April 26, 1915 | March 31, 1922 |
| Reich Commissioner for the Liquidation of Foreign Enterprises (affiliated in 1919) | September 24, 1916 | March 31, 1923 |
| Trustee for Enemy Property (affiliated in 1919) | April 19, 1917 | September 29, 1923 |
| Reich Committee for the Reconstruction of the Merchant Fleet (affiliated in 1919) | November 7, 1917 | August 25, 1923 |
| Reich Commissioner to carry out reconstruction work in the destroyed areas | ||
| Reich Return Commission | ||
| German Coal Commission in Essen | ||
| Reichsausgleichsamt | ||
| Reich and State Commissioner for the investigation of riot damage in Upper Silesia | ||
| Reich Commissioner for Foreign Damage | ||
| Reich Compensation Office for War Damage | ||
| German War Burden Commission |
Department heads
| Surname | Taking office | Term expires | Political party |
|---|---|---|---|
| Otto Gessler | October 25, 1919 | March 27, 1920 | German Democratic Party |
| Walther Rathenau | May 10, 1920 | October 26, 1921 | German Democratic Party |
| Heinrich Albert | March 29, 1923 | August 12, 1923 | independent |
| Robert Schmidt | August 13, 1923 | November 3, 1923 | Social Democratic Party of Germany |
Between 1920 and 1924 State Secretary Gustav Müller repeatedly ran the business of the Reich Ministry for Reconstruction, as often no Reich Minister was appointed.
Web links
literature
- Dirk Hainbuch: The Reich Ministry for Reconstruction 1919 to 1924. The settlement of the First World War: reparations, war damage removal, compensation for victims and the reconstruction of the merchant fleet. (= Civilizations & History, Volume 46). Peter Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2016. Review