Franz Matt
Franz Matt ( born September 9, 1860 in Offenbach an der Queich, Pfalz; † August 4, 1929 in Munich) was a German jurist and politician ( BVP ). As Bavarian Minister of Education and Deputy Prime Minister, he was instrumental in defining the Bavarian cultural policy in post-revolutionary Bavaria from 1920 to 1926 and enforced.
Life
Franz Matt was the son of the Palatine District School Superintendent Wendelin Matt and his wife Magdalena, nee Starck. He attended elementary school in his birthplace of Offenbach at the Queich and high school in Speyer, after which he studied law at the Ludwig- Maximilians- University of Munich and Leipzig. In Munich, the young man was a member of the Catholic Student Association KDSt.V. Aenania Munich in the CV, and later the KDSt.V. Gothia Würzburg and the K.D.St.V. Markomannia Würzburg in the CV. In 1922 he was among those who made the KDSt.V. Aenania Munich leaked and the K.D.St.V. Trifels Munich founded. After receiving his doctorate in 1879 Franz Matt has held numerous offices in the Bavarian civil service. 1898 he was appointed District Officer ( District ) in bow. In March 1908, the appeal was entered in the Bavarian Ministry of Culture, where he took over the Department of Catholic cult and teacher training colleges. As Secretary of State Ministry of Culture and school matters, he finally saw the overthrow of the Bavarian monarchy. The cooperation with the new Minister of Culture proclaimed by Kurt Eisner Bavarian Republic, Johannes Hoffmann ( SPD), proved to be extremely difficult, as Franz Matt refused to Hoffmann's education reforms.
Matt then became involved in the newly founded Bavarian People's Party and in 1920 - after the resignation of John Hoffmann as prime minister - appointed by the new non-party Prime Minister Gustav von Kahr to the Minister of Education.
The Palatinate has pursued a comprehensive course correction in the education policy in the subsequent period and reformed the entire higher education in Bavaria. Although he was also responsible for the Bavarian arts policy, but there were no pulses in art matters from him. Matt created the preconditions for a new regulation for the relationship between state and church. The Concordat of 1924 with the Holy See as well as the agreements with the protestant churches are mainly due to the single-minded policy of Matt. The Concordat has completed its time for Bayern - with minor changes - is still valid today.
During the Hitler putsch of 9 November 1923, when, Prime Minister Eugen was of Knilling with two ministers in the hands of the insurgents, Franz Matt important as deputy prime minister with a hull - Cabinet precaution to Regensburg, in order to safeguard the legitimate government. Even in Munich, he issued a directed call to the people against the " Prussians Ludendorff " who has contributed, according to the Frankfurter Zeitung of August 5, 1929, essentially to overcome the coup attempt. The spread of the Nazis believe that Matt had received the message of Hitler coup during a dinner with Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber and the Papal Nuncio Eugenio Pacelli, the future Pope Pius XII. , Was denied by the Minister as soon as possible ( Schmidt, pp. 74f. ).
After several strokes Matt had to give up on October 11, 1926 for health reasons his ministerial office, and retired from politics. In parting, he wrote Prime Minister Heinrich Held: "With exemplary loyalty and devotion and with a rare work force you have 38 years served the country and carried on in all your positions Excellent. " Even the social-democratic " Munich Post" hit bye the Minister conciliatory tone: "We were always a sharp opponent of the Minister of Education, Matt. But we leave him with the recognition that he was as a man open and honest character. " ( Schmidt, p 30).
Matt has been involved in the Catholic lay movement, and was founder of the "Palatine Society for the Advancement of Science ". He has received several honorary doctorates and numerous accolades, the highest, the Grand Cross of St. Gregory the Pontifical was. Various publications describe him as "the father of the Bavarian Concordat ". Matt Francis is buried at the North Cemetery in Munich.