The Kienthal Conference (also known as the Second Zimmerwald Conference) was held in the Swiss village of Kienthal, between April 24 and 30, 1916. Like its 1915 predecessor, the Zimmerwald Conference, it was an international conference of socialists who opposed the First World War.
Background
The conference had been called by an Enlarged Session of the International Socialist Commission (ISC) in February 1916. The reasons for a second conference included the opposition that the International Socialist Bureau was putting up against the Zimmerwald movement, the opposition of the bourgeois nationalists and the "gradually maturing plans for peace".Olga Hess Gankin and H.H. Fisher eds, The Bolsheviks and the First World War: the origins of the Third International Stanford University Press, 1940 p.376
Delegates
The following delegates participated in the conference:Gankin and Fisher pp.407-8
Entente countries Serbian Social Democratic Party - Triša Kaclerović Anti-war opposition within the French Socialist Party - SFIO - Pierre Brizon, Jean Pierre Raffin-Dugens, Alexandre Blanc, Henri Guilbeaux (editor of Demain) Italian Socialist Party - Oddino Morgari, Costantino Lazzari, Elia Musati, Giuseppe Modigliani, Giacinto Serrati, Camillo Prampolini, Enrico Dugani Portuguese Socialist Party - Edmondo Peluso
Russian Empire Central Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Workers Party (Bolsheviks) - Vladimir Lenin, Gregory Zinoviev, Inessa Armand Organization Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Workers Party (Mensheviks) - Julius Martov, Pavel Axelrod Socialist-Revolutionary Party - Mark Natanson (using the pseudonym Bobrov), Vlasov, Savelev Regional Presidium of the Social Democracy of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania- Karl Radek, Mieczyslaw Bronski, Bronislaw Stein Main Presidium of the Social Democracy of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania - Adolf Warski Polish Socialist Party – Left - Lapinski
Neutral countries Swiss Social Democratic Party - Fritz Platten, Ernst Nobs, Paul Graber, Agnes RobmannGankin and Fisher p.408 Additionally, the Swiss party had delegated Hermann Greulich and Friedrich Studer, however the Italian party rejected Greulich because he was allegedly involved in a plan to have a wealthy American finance the parties anti-war propaganda during May 1915, when Italy was about to enter the war. Studer also did not attend the Conference.
Central Powers Anti-war opposition within the Social Democratic Workers Party of German Austria - Franz KoritschonerGankin and Fisher p.408 The official account of the conference the Austrian was not represented, despite Zinoviev mentioning him. Anti-war opposition within the Social Democratic Party of Germany - Adolph Hoffman, Hermann Fleisher of the "Ledebour-Haase" group, Bertha Thalheimer, Ernst Meyer of the Internationale group, and Paul Frölich of the Bremen Radical group.
International The ISC was represented by - Robert Grimm, Charles Naine, Oddino Morgari and Angelica Balabanoff. Socialist Youth International - Willi Münzenberg
A number of delegates named by groups in Great Britain, the Netherlands, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania, Sweden, Norway and by the General Jewish Labour Bund in Lithuania, Poland and Russia were unable to attend. Additionally, the Revolutionary Socialist League of the Netherlands had transferred its mandate to Radek and the Social-Democracy of the Lettish Territory had transferred its mandate to Zinoviev.Gankin and Fisher p.426 A Lithuanian group around the magazine Social-Democratas in London tried to affiliate with the Zimmerwald Left and authorized Jan Antonovich Berzin to sign a draft manifesto of left-wing delegates for them, but he had already transferred his mandate to Zinoviev and their vote was "lost".Gankin and Fisher pp.411-2 A member of the Independent Labour Party was present as a "guest".Gankin and Fisher p.408
The beginning of the Conference
The delegates met at the small Swiss village of Kienthal at the foot of the Blüemlisalp from April 24 to 30, 1916.Gankin and Fisher p.407 Portuguese delegate Edmondo Peluso gave a very detailed account:
The spacious dining room of the Hotel Baren was transformed into conference chamber. The presidents chair was in the center and, as behooved an international conference, the Presidium consisted of a German, a Frenchmen, an Italian and a Serb. Two tables for the delegates were placed on either side and perpendicularly to the presidents table. These the right and the left, exactly as in parliaments. The Italian delegation, being very numerous, took their seats at another table in front of the president.Gankin and Fisher p.409
The conference began with a speech by Robert Grimm, chairman of the ISC, on the work of the Commission. In order to save time it was decided that oral reports would only be heard by delegates of Germany and France.Gankin and Fisher pp.413-4 Hoffman gave the first report, representing Germany. Pierre Brizon began his speech with the statement "Comrades, though I am an internationalist, I am still a Frenchman...I will not utter one word, nor will I make any gesture which might injure France, France, the land of the Revolution" He then turned to Hoffman and told him to inform Kaiser Wilhelm that France would gladly exchange Madagascar for the return of Alsace-Lorraine. Brizons speech lasted several hours, was interrupted by him drinking coffee and eating and included at least two attempts to physically assault him. Finally, he declared that he would vote against all war credits - which brought forth a great applause - and then added "but only once hostile troops leave France" which resulted in the second of the aforementioned assault attempts. He then offered a text of a draft manifesto that included, among other things, all of the criticisms that were being made against him and the French opportunists. None of the controversy around Brizons speech was reported in the official proceedings of the conference, but is recorded in the memoirs of Guilbeaux.Gankin and Fisher pp.409-10
Documents
Unlike the first conference, the manifesto did not engender much controversy and the text presented by Brizon as modified by a Commission was accepted unanimously.Gankin and Fisher pp.410, 417 The manifesto stated that the war was caused by imperialism and militarism and would only end when all countries abolished their own militarism. While repeating the Zimmerwald Conferences condemnation of bourgeois governments, parties and press, it also criticized the social patriots and bourgeois pacifists and stated categorically that the only way wars would end was if the working class took power and abolished private property.Gankin and Fisher pp.418-21
International Socialist Bureau
The major debate revolved around resolutions on the proletarian "peace policy" and the attitude toward the International Socialist Bureau, particularly in the event of its reconvening. With respect to the latter, three opinions emerged at the beginning of debate: the view of the Zimmerwald Left that the ISB was entirely discredited and focus should be on laying the groundwork for a Third International, though they did not rule out the possibility of attending the ISB in order to "tear the masks from their social chauvinist faces"; the view of some, like Pavel Axelrod, who wished for the Zimmerwaldists to try and win over more of the elements within the ISB, and therefore did not advocate calling a meeting of the Bureau, but did not rule out participation; and a tendency represented by the Italians that claimed the ISB could be "conquered" if reconvened with the participation of South African, Japanese, Australian and even Indian delegates, and therefore advocated calling a meeting of the Bureau.Gankin and Fisher pp.416-417, 442-446
A commission was elected to try to settle the issue. The commission consisted of Pavel Axelrod, Adolf Hoffman, Constantino Lazzari, Lenin, Charles Naine, Adolf Warski and an unnamed "German of the Internationale group".Gankin and Fisher p.446 Two drafts came out of this commission. The majority endorsed by Axelrod, Hoffmann, Lazzari, and Naine called for the meeting of the ISB so that a new Executive Committee could be elected from socialists of the neutral countries; that all sections of the International expel members who entered into cabinets of belligerent countries; that all parliamentary representatives of sections of the International vote against war credits; civil peace be broken and class struggle resumed; and all sections should use "all means" to hasten a peace without annexations or indemnities on the basis of national self-determination.Gankin and Fisher pp.428, 446
After debate in the conference a vote was taken: 10 votes for the majority report of the commission; 12 for the minority report of the Zimmerwald Left; a new draft introduced by Lapinski, 15; another draft by Hoffman favoring calling the Bureau, 2; a draft by Serrati "approximately the same as the majority report" 10; and a draft by Zinoviev, 19. After this poll the resolutions were handed back to the commission, which now included Zinoviev and Nobs. This commission hammered out a compromise based on Lapinkis draft. Zinoviev called it the "Lapinski-Zinoviev-Modigliani draft...with amendments" and noted that the Italians gave an ultimatum reserving individual parties the right to call for a session of the Bureau. Though the official report claimed that the vote in favor of this resolution was unanimous, Zinoviev claimed in his report that Axelrod abstained and Dugoni voted against.Gankin and Fisher p.447
The final document condemned the Executive Committee of the ISB for not carrying out the resolutions of past Socialist Congresses; not calling a session of the Bureau despite demands for it from various parties; having the Chairman of the ISB (Emile Vandervelde) serve in a belligerent cabinet, thus making the ISB a tool of an "imperialist coalition"; its amicable relations with "social patriotic" parties and opposition to the Zimmerwald movement. The resolution did note, however, that under the pressure of the "growing indignation of the masses" the Executive Committee was examining the possibility of holding a session of the ISB. A session called under these circumstances, however, might be made to serve the interest of either or both imperialist coalition. Therefore, the resolution demanded the Zimmerwald parties to "watch carefully all the activities of the Executive Committee of the International Socialist Bureau". The resolution further stated that the International could recover its political power only if it liberated itself from imperialist and chauvinist influences and resumed class struggle and mass action. If a plenum of the ISB should be called those Zimmerwaldist parties participating had to use the opportunity to expose the real intentions of the social patriots, while reaffirming the fundamental principles of the International. Two annexes provided for a meeting of the Enlarged Committee of the ISC should a plenary session of the ISB be called, to discuss joint action by the Zimmerwaldists. A second reaffirmed each individual parties right to call a session of the ISB on its own volition.Gankin and Fisher pp.426-428
Peace Policy