As a result of the end of World War I and the German revolution of 1918–1919, an insurrectionary movement inspired by communism formed workers' and soldiers' councils in several cities of Alsace–Lorraine from November 8 to November 22, 1918. The red flag was thus hoisted atop Strasbourg Cathedral.
The councils dissolved themselves in the face of advancing French troops moving towards cities evacuated by the German authorities following the signing of the Armistice. The entry of General Henri Gouraud's 4th Army into Strasbourg on November 22, 1918 brought an end to the uprisings in the region, which was then reattached to France. Unlike the revolutions in the Bavarian Soviet Republic, Hungarian Soviet Republic, and Czechoslovakia, this revolutionary episode did not lead to the creation of a genuine soviet republic.
During its brief existence, the movement facilitated a political transition between the collapse of the German Empire and the establishment of French administration in the departments of Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, and Moselle.
Overview
In the wake of the German Revolution, councils of workers and soldiers () formed in Mulhouse on November 9 and in Colmar and Strasbourg on November 10, in parallel to other such bodies set up in the general revolutionary atmosphere of the expiring Reich and in imitation of the Russian equivalent soviets. Under the Empire of 1871–1918, the territory constituting the Reichsland (or Imperial Province) of Alsace–Lorraine was administered directly by the imperial government in Berlin. It was granted some measure of autonomy in 1911. Similarly, the Kaiser was also the local sovereign of the land, so that Kaiser Wilhelm II's abdication on November 9 involved the fall of the monarchy both at the national and at the regional level, with a consequent legal power vacuum. In this chaotic situation the Landtag proclaimed itself the supreme authority of the land with the name of Nationalrat and the Soviet of Strasbourg claimed the foundation of a Republic of Alsace-Lorraine, while the pro-bourgeoisie Majority German Social Democratic Party Reichstag representative for Colmar Jacques Peirotes announced the establishment of the French rule, asking Paris to send troops quickly.
While the workers' and soldiers' councils disbanded themselves with the departure of the German troops between November 11-17 the arrival of the French Army stabilized the situation: French troops put the region under military occupation and entered Strasbourg on November 21. The MSPD led the National Council, which proclaimed the return of Alsace to France on December 5, even though this process did not gain international recognition until the signature of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919.
The Alsace-Lorraine Republic of Councils (or Alsace-Lorraine Soviet Republic; ; ; ; Moselle Franconian/) was a short-lived Soviet republic created during the German Revolution at the end of World War I in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, which had been part of Germany since 1871. But it was never a genuine council republic like the Bavarian Soviet Republic, because there was no organised resistance against the French occupation to defend the revolutionary council movement in Alsace-Lorraine, which, anyhow, exposed the movement's internal weaknesses.
Disquiet had spread amongst Alsatian soldiers, the Spartacist propaganda was popular on the Western Front, particularly in early 1918, and some soldiers were USPD members themselves, and this was one of the originals of the subsequent revolutionary movements. There was an insurrection by Alsatian troops at the Beverloo Camp on May 12, 1918.
In October 1918, the Imperial German Navy, whose surface ships had largely remained in port after the Battle of Jutland (1916), was ordered to leave port to fight the British Royal Navy. However, the naval troops refused to obey, leading to a sailors' mutiny at Kiel. The mutineers took over the main military port and were quickly joined by workers and the trade unions. The revolution spread quickly across Germany, overthrowing the monarchy within a few days. At that time, about 15,000 Alsatians and Lorrainers had been incorporated into the Imperial Navy. Several of them joined the insurrection and decided to rouse their homeland to revolt.
On November 8, the proclamation of a Bavarian Soviet Republic was aired in Strasbourg, the capital of Alsace. Inspired by this, thousands of demonstrators rallied on the Place Kléber, the main square in Strasbourg, to acclaim the first insurgents returning from northern Germany. A train controlled by insurgents was blocked on the Kehl bridge, and a loyal commander was ordered to shoot at the train. One insurgent was killed, but his fellows took control of the city of Kehl. From Strasbourg, the revolution spread throughout Alsace and Lorraine, and similar Soviets were established in Haguenau, Mulhouse, Sélestat, Colmar, Metz, and other cities.
The insurgent seamen established the Soldiers' Council of Strasbourg, and took control of the city. A council of workers and soldiers was then established, with the brewery workers' union leader presiding over it. Red flags flew all over the city, including on the spire of the cathedral. An amnesty was declared, and freedom of the press was proclaimed. Factory workers went on strike, demanding higher wages; the Soviets (councils) raised wages by decree against the opposition of the factory owners. The Social Democratic Party leader in Strasbourg, Jacques Peirotes, then asked the French generals to send in their troops to restore order.
Eleven days later, France occupied and incorporated Alsace-Lorraine. French soldiers under the command of General Henri Gouraud entered the suburbs of Strasbourg on November 22, 1918. Strikes were terminated by force, and agitators were arrested. The streets named "Rue du 22 novembre" in Strasbourg and Mulhouse commemorate the return of Alsace to France. The region lost its recently acquired autonomy and reverted to the centralised French system as the départements of Moselle and Haut and Bas-Rhin.
The situation until 1914
Under the terms of the Treaty of Frankfurt of 10 May 1871, following the Franco-Prussian War, the territories that France ceded to the German Empire formed the "Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine" (), which was considered the common property of the twenty-five states making up the German federal state. In practice, Alsace-Lorraine was directly under the authority of the Imperial Crown and enjoyed a special status within the Empire: the territory was governed by the federal authority, represented in the region by a senior officer based in Strasbourg, initially called the Oberpräsident, later the Statthalter ('Governor').
From 1874, the German Constitution was applied to Alsace-Lorraine, whose population was represented by deputies in the Reichstag, the lower chamber of the federal parliament in Berlin. Laws concerning the Reichsland were voted on by the Bundesrat, the upper chamber. The region was divided into three districts (Lorraine, Lower Alsace, and Upper Alsace), each with its own assembly, or Bezirkstag. These three assemblies appointed the members of the regional delegation of the Reichsland in Strasbourg, the Landesausschuss, which, in 1874, initially had only an advisory role. Still, they were granted legislative and financial powers under the supervision of the Bundesrat in 1877.
On 31 May 1911, the federal authorities granted a regional constitution to the Reichsland, which was thereafter considered a fully-fledged German state and granted greater autonomy. The Landesausschuss was replaced by a now-elected assembly, the Landtag, or "regional parliament", which sat in the Alsace-Lorraine Diet Palace. Despite the existence of these representative bodies, real power in Alsace-Lorraine remained in the hands of the Imperial German Army, as revealed by the Saverne Affair in 1913.
World War I in Alsace-Lorraine
Diplomatic tensions in Europe during the summer of 1914 prompted Emperor Wilhelm II to proclaim a "state of imminent war danger" () on 31 July, placing German civil power under the control of the military authorities. As early as 1 August, these authorities suspended individual liberties, press freedom, and the rights of assembly and association. On the same day that Germany entered the war, a state of siege was declared across its territory, marking the beginning of a military dictatorship driven by fear of treason.
In Alsace-Lorraine, the German authorities banned French-language newspapers and imposed repressive measures, including purges, arrests, and deportations. Those suspected of sympathising with France were arrested and interned in various fortresses throughout the German Empire. At the same time, over 380,000 Alsatians and Lorrainers were conscripted into the German army, including 16,000 in the Imperial German Navy, to fight against the Triple Entente, including France. France, for its part, was driven by a desire to reclaim the "lost provinces" of Alsace-Lorraine and by a spirit of revenge against Germany dating back to 1871.
The first French offensives were launched in Upper Alsace and the Moselle region of Lorraine, aiming to quickly capture Mulhouse, Morhange, and Sarrebourg — all in vain. While the Battle of the Frontiers ended in a German victory, the situation in the Vosges stabilised by the end of 1914. The war became bogged down in this part of the Western Front. Neither the Battle of Hartmannswillerkopf nor that of Liège brought about any major changes to the regional front, despite the thousands of casualties on both sides.
Projects of autonomy and neutrality Following the setbacks suffered by the German army in France and Belgium during the summer of 1918, the political situation in Germany began to shift in the autumn. With an Entente victory appearing likely, the German government announced autonomy for Alsace-Lorraine in an attempt to retain the region within the Empire. The aim was to grant the Reichsland the status of a federated state, similar to the twenty-five other German states.
In September 1918, the staff of Army Group Albrecht von Württemberg founded the Alsatian Bund, an association intended to promote German influence in Alsace against the aspirations of francophile Alsatians hoping for reunification with France.
On 8 October 1918, the Mayor of Strasbourg, Rudolf Schwander, was summoned to Berlin and offered the post of Statthalter; he took office on 14 October. Karl Hauss, head of the Alsatian-Lorraine Centre Party parliamentary group in the Landtag, was appointed Staatssekretär (State Secretary) on 19 October and tasked with forming a regional government. By appointing both a Protestant and a Catholic, the German federal government hoped to address religious sensitivities in the region. However, this move provoked the wrath of Eugène Ricklin, nicknamed the "Lion of the Sundgau" and president of the second chamber of the Landtag. On 23 October, Ricklin addressed the Reichstag in Berlin to oppose the autonomy project, arguing that it was merely an attempt to transform the Reichsland into a federated state that would remain part of the German Empire. In his view, the future of the region was an international matter, exceeding the bounds of Germany and needing to be decided at the forthcoming peace conference — in which he likely hoped to play a role.
The autonomy project ultimately failed due to the refusal of several Alsatian-Lorraine parties to join the government formed by Schwander and Hauss. From 1 November, the two were left to manage only day-to-day affairs. Hauss agreed to this role on the condition that he would not be obliged to act in support of keeping Alsace-Lorraine within the Empire. As the autonomy plan collapsed, the German federal government shifted its strategy to promoting neutrality for Alsace-Lorraine — that is, neither German nor French — invoking the principle of self-determination.