Reichsstatthalter
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The Reichsstatthalter (German: [ˈʁaɪçsˌʃtathaltɐ], Reich lieutenant) was a title used in the German Empire and later in Nazi Germany.
Statthalter des Reiches (1879–1918)
The office of Statthalter des Reiches (otherwise known as Reichsstatthalter) was instituted in 1879 by the German Empire for the areas of
1 October 1879 – 17 June 1885 | Edwin von Manteuffel (1809–1885) |
17 June 1885 – 5 November 1885 | Karl von Hofmann (acting) (1827–1910) |
5 November 1885 – 29 October 1894 | Chlodwig zu Hohenlohe-Schillingfürst (1819–1901) |
5 November 1894 – 31 October 1907 | Hermann zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg (1832–1913) |
21 November 1907 – April 1914 | Karl von Wedel (1842–1919) |
1 May 1914 – 14 October 1918 | Johann von Dallwitz (1855–1919) |
22 October – 12 November 1918 | Rudolf Schwander (1868–1950) |
Nazi Germany
During the
Two weeks after the passage of the
- appointing and dismissing the state minister-president
- dissolving the state parliament and calling new elections
- issuing and announcing state laws
- appointing and dismissing important state agents and judges
- granting amnesty
In Prussia, the largest of the German states, Hitler took direct control by appointing himself as Reichsstatthalter.[citation needed] However, he delegated his authority to Hermann Göring, who had been installed as Minister President of Prussia without an election. The Prussian provinces were administered by an Oberpräsident, usually the local Gauleiter.
Law on the Reconstruction of the Reich (1934)
The
Reich Governors Law (1935)
The Reich Governors Law (Reichsstatthaltergesetz) of 30 January 1935 formally designated the Reich Governors as the representatives of the Reich government, tasked with watching over the execution of Hitler's political guidelines. They received the authority to "inform" the provincial authorities about these guidelines, as well as the measures necessary to fulfill them. In practice, the Führerprinzip meant that this "information" amounted to an order.
The Reichsstatthalter were now also empowered to take over all functions of state government, and also appointed the mayors of all towns and cities with populations fewer than 100,000. This had the effect of giving the Reich Interior Ministry near-complete control over local government. The Interior Minister directly appointed the mayors of all cities with populations greater than 100,000 (though Hitler reserved the right to appoint the mayors of Berlin and Hamburg himself if he deemed it necessary), and as mentioned above, the Reich Governors were responsible to him.
Anschluss
After Austria's Anschluss ("union") with Germany, its last pre-Anschluss Chancellor, Arthur Seyss-Inquart, became its first Reichsstatthalter and Führer der Österreichischen Landesregierung (Leader of the Austrian State Government) from 15 March 1938 to 30 April 1939. Also, Josef Bürckel was appointed Reichskommissar für die Wiedervereiningung Österreichs mit dem Deutschen Reich (Reich Commissioner for Reunification of Austria with the German Reich) from 23 April 1938 to 31 March 1940. At that point, each constitutive Land (with some differences in borders, e.g., Burgenland was partitioned away) was placed under the administration of its own Reichsstatthalter.
Statthalter district | Seat | Incumbent | Date of Appointment[1] |
---|---|---|---|
Anhalt Brunswick (Braunschweig) |
Dessau | Wilhelm Friedrich Loeper Fritz Sauckel (acting) Rudolf Jordan |
5 May 1933 29 November 1935 19 April 1937 |
Baden | Karlsruhe | Robert Heinrich Wagner | 5 May 1933 |
Bavaria (Bayern) | Munich | Franz Ritter von Epp | 10 April 1933 |
Hamburg | Hamburg | Karl Kaufmann | 16 May 1933 |
Hesse (Hessen) | Darmstadt | Jakob Sprenger | 5 May 1933 |
Lippe Schaumburg-Lippe |
Detmold | Alfred Meyer | 16 May 1933 |
Mecklenburg-Schwerin Mecklenburg-Strelitz Lübeck |
Schwerin | Friedrich Hildebrandt | 26 May 1933 |
Oldenburg Bremen |
Oldenburg | Carl Röver Paul Wegener |
5 May 1933 27 May 1942 |
Prussia (Preußen) | Berlin | Adolf Hitler Hermann Göring (acting) |
25 April 1933 30 January 1935 |
Saxony (Sachsen) | Dresden | Martin Mutschmann | 5 May 1933 |
Thuringia (Thüringen) | Weimar | Fritz Sauckel | 5 May 1933 |
Württemberg | Stuttgart | Wilhelm Murr | 5 May 1933 |
Statthalter district | Seat | Incumbent and Dates in Office[1] |
---|---|---|
Sudetenland | Reichenberg | Konrad Henlein: 1 May 1939 – May 1945 |
Wartheland | Posen | Arthur Greiser: 21 October 1939 – 23 February 1945 |
Danzig-West Prussia (Danzig-Westpreußen) | Danzig |
Albert Forster: 26 October 1939 – 2 April 1945 |
Carinthia (Kärnten) | Klagenfurt | Adriatisches Küstenland , i.e. the North Adriatic Littoral)
|
Lower Danube (Niederdonau) | Vienna | Hugo Jury: 1 April 1940 – 8 May 1945 |
Salzburg | Salzburg | Friedrich Rainer: 1 April 1940 – 29 November 1941 Gustav Adolf Scheel: 29 November 1941 – 4 May 1945 |
Styria (Steiermark) | Graz | Siegfried Uiberreither: 1 April 1940 – 8 May 1945 |
Tyrol-Vorarlberg (Tirol-Vorarlberg) | Innsbruck | when integrated into Tyrol) |
Upper Danube (Oberdonau) | Linz | August Eigruber: 1 April 1940 – 5 May 1945 |
Vienna (Wien) | Vienna | Josef Bürckel: 1 April 1940 – 10 August 1940 Baldur von Schirach: 10 August 1940 – 12 April 1945 |
Lorraine ) |
Saarbrücken | Josef Bürckel: 11 March 1941 – 28 September 1944 Willi Stöhr: 29 September 1944 – 21 March 1945 |
See also
- Statthalter
References
- ^ ISBN 3869414189.
- Alsace-Lorraine at worldstatesmen.org.