German-Baltic Party
The German -Baltic Party in Estonia ( DBPE, Estonian Engelsk - Balti erakond ) was the party of the German minority in by Estonia of 1918 until 1935.
History
After the collapse of the empire formed in the Government of Estonia on 24 February 1918, the Provisional Government, which was based until November 1918 on German troops. After the capitulation of the German Reich these troops were withdrawn. There was a freedom struggle of Estonians against Soviet Russia. This ended with the defeat of the Red Army and the Treaty of Dorpat, in which the Soviet Union had to recognize the independence of Estonia.
In response to the withdrawal of the German troops, and in preparation for the election of Asutav Kogu ( the Constituent Assembly or Constituent Assembly so Constituent Assembly ) was formed on 27 November 1918 the German party in Estonia (Estonian Saksa Erakond Eestimaal ). After the Estonian War of Independence, they changed its name to German -Baltic Party in Estonia ( Engelsk - balti Erakond ).
The party was conceived as a collection of party Baltic German minority in the young Estonian democracy. She remained the only party of Germans in the Republic of Estonia. The Germans had for centuries formed the educated and wealthy upper class in Estonia. This also influenced the party, the old landed aristocracy represented with its large estates and prosperous middle class. The nature of these clients according to conservative positions were represented. Major politicians in the party were, among others Axel de Vries, Werner Hasselblatt and Carl von Schilling.
Great success of the party was the law in 1925 by the Riigikogu, the Estonian Parliament, adopted on the cultural autonomy. It was internationally one of the most liberal laws minority during the interwar period. In addition to the German Balts it was also true for Russians, Swedes and Jews. 1926 also received the Germans, who had been dispossessed of land reform in 1919, a compensation. He was certainly below the actual value of the land.
1929 joined the German Baltic and Estonian Swedes an electoral alliance. In the parliamentary elections in 1929 and 1932 two Baltic German and a Swedish Member of Parliament each were elected to parliament.
1933 attempted Nazi groups to infiltrate the party. The Estonian government stepped in, the internal party elections invalidated and enacted a ban on political Nazi groups.
1934 by President Konstantin Pats proclaimed a state of emergency and dissolved parliament ( Riigikogu ). On March 5, 1935, the parties were in Estonia including the German -Baltic Party in Estonia occupied by a disqualification and dissolved de facto.
After the German - Soviet non- aggression pact of August 1939, the Estonian Soviet sphere of interest zusprach, and the subsequent relocation of the German Balts " Heim ins Reich ", as it was in Nazi propaganda, ended the political history of the Germans in Estonia.
Election results
As of 1929, the German -Baltic party formed in Estonia a common electoral bloc with the party of the Swedish minority, as they had in 1926 with two deputies reached no faction strength.