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The Christian Social People's Service (German: Christlich-Sozialer Volksdienst, abbreviated CSVD) was a Protestant conservative political party in the Weimar Republic.
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Christian Social People's Service Christlich-Sozialer Volksdienst | |
|---|---|
| Leader | Wilhelm Simpfendörfer[1] |
| Founded | December 1929 |
| Dissolved | 1933[2] |
| Split from | German National People's Party |
| Ideology | Christian democracy Conservatism Political Protestantism |
| Political position | Centre-right to right-wing |
| Electoral alliance | Christian-National Bloc (1933)[a] |
| Colours | Blue Grey |
| Most seats in the Reichstag (1930) | 14 / 577 |
| |
The party's genesis lay in Adolf Stoecker's Christian Social party, which joined the German National People's party in 1918,[3] and effectively functioned as the parties labor wing.[4] The Christian social Franz Behrens wrote a substantial amount of the DNVP's 1918 platform, however the Christian socials failed to get the DNVP to endorse trade unions over company unions.[5] The ideological differences over labor rights came to a head when Alfred Hugenberg became leader in 1929 and attacked the employment insurance scheme, which encouraged the Christian socials to consider leaving the party.[6] At the time, the Christian socials represented the moderate tendency within the DNVP, as opposed to the radical nationalist leadership of Alfred Hugenberg.[7] These Christian socials formed the Christliche-soziale Reichsvereinigung [Christian-social Imperial Association], and would actively oppose Hugenberg.[8] What eventuated was a combined expulsion and resignation of the Christian socials,[9] and other conservative elements within the party.[10]
The CSVD drew from other political movements, such as the Christlicher Volksdienst (CVD, Christian People's Service), which dated back to 1924, and drew from Pietists and Christian Trade unions.[11][12] Another Protestant party was the EV (Evangelische Volksgemeinschaft), a Hessian party. Centrist party leaders urged the EV to join with the German-Hanoverian Party to found a Protestant peoples party that would form a vote sharing agreement with the Centre Party.[13] The EV would be absorbed by the CVD in 1929,[14] and the Christian Socials/Christian-social Imperial Association would join with the CVD to form the CSVD in December 1929.[9][15]
The CSVD was mainly supported by middle-class elements,[16] however, it did support the Christian trade unions, and was significantly supported by the league of Christian unions.[17] As a result of the theocratic currents in the parties Calvinist regions, the party supported state welfare, trade unions and workers participation in management.[17] Like the Centre party, the CSVD opposed Materialism, Atheism, Liberalism and Marxism. The party would embrace co-operation with the Centre party.[16] The CSVD was a cabinet party in the second, third and fourth Brunings ministries.[18]
The CSVD portrayed itself as a Protestant version of the Catholic Centre and was mainly supported by middle-class elements. The CSVD contested the 1930 and 1932 parliamentary elections; the party CSVD formed a joint parliamentary group with the Christian-National Peasants' and Farmers' Party in the Reichstag. After the Nazi take-over in 1933, the CSVD was dissolved.
The President of the Federal Republic of Germany Gustav Heinemann (1969–74) was a member of CSVD during the Weimar Republic.
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