Anti-Fascist Leader Cults and the Image of Fascism: Willi Münzenberg and the Campaign for Ernst Thälmann’s Liberation, 1933–1939

Description

When Ernst Thälmann, the leader of the German Communist Party (KPD) was imprisoned by the Nazis in 1933, a long lasting campaign for his release was orchestrated by Willi Münzenberg from Paris. In the process, Thälmann was constructed into an international anti-fascist symbol and cult figure. Paradoxically, as Thälmann was not killed until 1944, he became a living martyr figure that could be used for various political objectives.

The aim of the presentation is to analyse how the Thälmann campaign was linked up to anti-fascist efforts to delegitimise the Nazi regime, and fascism more generally, as an illegitimate and murderous movement. Through the construction of personalised anti-fascist leader and martyr cults Münzenberg found an effective way to mobilise international solidarity campaigns for the working class victims in the Third Reich. What makes Thälmann’s case historically interesting is the length of his imprisonment and the longevity of the campaign for his liberation. The Thälmann cult was thus variously combined with a whole set of other imprisoned anti-fascists in Germany, such as Dimitrov, Torgler, Carl von Ossietzky, Edgar André, and other less known figures. It therefore opens up the possibility to explore how Thälmann as a cult figure evolved during the 1930s. The paper will contribute to the wider understanding of how the image of fascism was shaped in interwar Europe through the anti-fascist movement.

Additionaldescription

Paper presented in the panel "Cult and Counter-Cult: Stalinism, Anti-Fascism and the Communist Cult of the Individual"

Period	9 Nov 2018
Event title	Historical Materialism: Annual Historical Materialism Conference
Event type	Conference
Conference number	15
Location	London, United KingdomShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International