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Gustav NoskeGerman politician, Social Democrat (in the party he belonged to the extreme right wing).
Date of Birth: 09.07.1868
Country:  Germany |
Content:
- Gustav Noske: A Controversial German Politician
- Suppression of Communist Uprisings
- Role in the Kapp Putsch
- Later Career and Nazi Persecution
- Post-War Return and Legacy
- Works by Gustav Noske
Gustav Noske: A Controversial German Politician
Early Life and Political CareerGustav Noske was born on July 9, 1868, in Brandenburg an der Havel. As a member of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), he aligned himself with its far-right wing.
Suppression of Communist Uprisings
In 1919, Noske served as Minister of Defense in the Weimar Republic. He commanded the Freikorps paramilitary units that ruthlessly put down communist and left-wing uprisings, leading to the executions of prominent figures such as Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. Noske infamously declared, "I am not ashamed of the responsibility for having had to be the bloodhound."
Role in the Kapp Putsch
Following the communist uprisings, Noske's attempts to disband the Freikorps, including the notorious Erhardt Brigade, triggered the Kapp Putsch in 1920. His perceived leniency towards the putschists led to his dismissal as Minister of Defense by President Friedrich Ebert.
Later Career and Nazi Persecution
In 1920, Noske became the Supreme President of Hanover. As a Social Democrat, he was removed from his position by the Nazis in 1933. During the 1944 Nazi persecution following the assassination attempt on Hitler, he was arrested and imprisoned at the Fürstenberg-Havel camp.
Post-War Return and Legacy
After the war, the newly formed SPD rejected Noske's return to politics. He published several works, including "Von Kiel bis Kapp," recounting his experiences during the German Revolution. Gustav Noske died on November 30, 1946, in Hanover, leaving behind a controversial legacy as a ruthless suppressor of communist movements and a figure implicated in the Kapp Putsch.
Works by Gustav Noske
Kolonialpolitik und Sozialdemokratie (1914)Kriegsfahrten durch Belgien und Nordfrankreich (1914)
Von Kiel bis Kapp (1920)
Erlebtes aus Aufstieg und Niedergang einer Demokratie (1947)
