Nordische Gesellschaft

The Nordic Society was a society founded in 1921 in Lübeck and resident who strove for economic and cultural relations in the Baltic region and to the " care of the Nordic idea ". The focus of their nationalist and racist ideology was the idea of ​​the " Nordic race " manifesting the Germanic- German cultural superiority.

Foundation

In the years after the German-Nordic trade and industry exhibition in Lübeck in 1896 developed several plans to improve cultural and economic relations (North) germany to Scandinavia. However, the basic idea was ( until September 11, 1921 1 ) resumed only after the First World War by the Nordic week. The most controversial poster of this event, created by the commercial artist Alfred Mahlau, shaped the city more advertising Lübeck until the 1960s. He had boldly shown a variety of fishing boats with red and black poles to a red Duckdalben moored. The poster was referred to in the press as bloody porcupine and the kingdom Kunstwart Edwin Redslob against it " as one of the best posters dissolved, which has found the last time" ..

The Nordic week in 1921 consisted of several events side by side with which the Hanseatic city break free from their isolation in a remote and wanted to remind them of their centrality in the Baltic region and re- build. The local crafts and the Lübeck industry presented themselves in a trade before the Holsten Gate. In St. Catherine's Church as a museum church were " Emil Nolde's religious images " shown, supplemented by religious sculpture in the nave of the church. In the choir of the church an exhibition on German and Scandinavian architects and was shown in the upper choir documents, seals and incunabula from its own holdings. The Behnhaus showed Lübeck Art and the Schabbelhaus art from Scandinavia. The program was complemented by music events and concerts as well as numerous lectures. Thomas Mann spoke of Goethe and Tolstoy, the art historian Johnny Roosval about relationships Lübeck art to Scandinavia. In the field of performing arts Hans Holtorf was the dance of death, the stage star Grete piece of gold gave a recital and Mary Wigman dance evening. In the same year, and in this context then was the Nordic Society.

Gleichschaltung and expansion

First, independent and politically non- bound was the Nordic Society, which until then had never had more than local significance, from the summer of 1933 into line and in June 1934 the Foreign Affairs Bureau of the NSDAP (APA ) was assumed. For the dissemination of its ideology and culture propaganda they organized events and next solstice celebrations as the highlight from 1934 annual Nordic Reich meetings. In addition to the headquarters, the Empire office in Lübeck, was last seen more than forty ( coinciding with the clans of the NSDAP ) trading posts throughout the empire. Besides this there existed connecting conductors in the capitals of the Nordic countries.

On 2 June 1934, took Hinrich Lohse, Gauleiter of the Nazi Party in Schleswig -Holstein, the Chairman of the company, a position which he held until 1945. Liaison to the APA Nordic Society was until 1938 Rosenberg's private secretary, Thilo von Trotha. For " Great Council " of this society included, in addition Lohse and von Trotha Heinrich Himmler, Alfred Rosenberg and Walther Darré.

In October 1935 Rosenberg wrote a report of its activities APA, from which it is apparent that he and Hinrich Lohse have pursued with the Nordic Society mainly political objectives with an international focus. The report can be found, among other things:

" Trade policy have been committed in my opinion, much more sins of omission and so the APA has deliberately restricted more to the cultural and political tasks. To this end, it has expanded its Nordic company, formerly small company is in these 2 years of support by the APA become a crucial switch of the entire German - Scandinavian relations. Its director ( Lohse ) is from A.P.A. determines the counting houses in all districts are led by the corresponding Gauleiter. With economic groups and other organizations and branches of the party, which have relations to Scandinavia out appropriate agreements have been made, so thatthe almost all traffic between Germany and Scandinavia today goes by the hand of the Nordic Society. "

Ever since the early days of the society here was Reich Managing Director Ernst Timm, who had to resign from that office in 1938 and was replaced by Hans -Jürgen Krüger, the former head of the organization. Nominal president was the mayor of Lübeck, Otto- Heinrich Drechsler. Artistic Advisory Board was Alfred Mahlau, the culture department was initially led by Alfred J. Domes, later by Heinrich Jessen.

1936 merged the Nordic Society with the Nordic Ring, an organization that was founded ten years ago by the Ministerial Hanno Konopacki - Konopath and especially the spread of racial theories of Hans FK Günther widmete.Die resulting DC circuit should fragmentation into many smaller prevent Nordic groups. This step also welcomed Günther, who had the " Nordic idea " constituted for a fixed term and actually previously advocated a simple Weggenossenschaft the representative of the Nordic movement.

Was dissolved, the Nordic Society until 1957.

Ideology

The Nordic Society pursued three main objectives:

The relations have been maintained including presentations by designated as " Nordic " thinkers, which, for example, in the company-owned German-Nordic House of Writers in Travemünde, a platform was provided. Furthermore, organized by the Nordic Society propaganda receptions, concerts, exhibitions and participated in the implementation of the German Nordland travel.

Publications

The most important socio own publication was the monthly journal The north. With the " Nordic Ring" their monthly 1936 race. Taken monthly journal of the Nordic movement. It was also the Nordic Society publisher of books, such as Dialogue between nations: Germany and the north and the north country Primer.