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37-515: After Schemm's death in 1935, the new leader, or Reichswalter , was Fritz Wächtler . This organization saw itself as "the common effort of all persons who saw themselves as teachers or wanted to be seen as educators, independently from background or education and from the type of educational institution". Its goal was to make the Nazi worldview and foundation of all education and especially of schooling. In order to achieve this it sought to have an effect on

74-655: A brilliant orator, there appeared the ungainly figure of the oratorically untalented and philistine Wächtler, whose dogged adherence to the Party line soon earned him the epithet ‘megalomaniac schoolteacher’. He rigorously put the increasingly draconian new laws into effect, above all those aimed at Jews and the churches, and as an outsider he made enemies in the area … Even Winifred Wagner , daughter-in-law of Richard Wagner, complained repeatedly about his misconduct to her friend Hitler. However, she also frequently tried to intervene with Hitler on behalf of Jewish friends for clemency. This

111-748: A district, but take on district responsibilities themselves, similar to the concept of independent cities . These are known as "urban districts" (German: kreisfreie Städte or Stadtkreise )—cities which constitute a district in their own right—and there are 106 of them, bringing the total number of districts to 400. As of 2016 , approximately 26 million people live in these 107 urban districts. In North Rhine-Westphalia , there are some cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants which are not urban districts, these being Recklinghausen , Gütersloh , Siegen , Paderborn , Bergisch Gladbach , Neuss and Moers . Nevertheless, these cities take over many district responsibilities themselves, although they are still part of

148-670: A fusion of a district-free town with its adjacent rural district: besides the Regionalverband Saarbrücken ( Saarbrücken regional association ), from 1974 until 2007 called "Stadtverband Saarbrücken" ( Saarbrücken town association ), there is the Hanover Region since 2001 and the Städteregion Aachen ( Aachen region of towns ) since 2009. Aachen, Hanover and Göttingen retain certain rights of an urban district ( Kreisfreie Stadt ); Saarbrücken has not explicitly determined

185-423: A larger rural district. Midsize towns can perform particular administrative functions of the district as well, especially to provide common services to the local citizens. The classification as "midsize" town is usually based on a town's registered population, but varies from state to state. A special type of rural districts includes the three Kommunalverbände besonderer Art ( Municipal unions of special kind ),

222-593: A mayor, in most greater cities usually by the Lord Mayor . Rural districts in some German states have an additional administrative committee called Kreisausschuss . This committee is generally led by the Landrat and includes a number of additional voluntary members. It takes over certain administrative functions for the district, following decisions of the district council. However, the exact role and regulations of this panel vary greatly between different states. The city where

259-526: A rivalry between them that would have dire consequences for Wächtler. The Gau capital of Bayreuth was home to the family of Richard Wagner and the site of the annual Bayreuth Festival , supported and regularly attended by Adolf Hitler . As such, its Gauleiter was considered a high-profile posting. Wächtler at the same time also succeeded Schemm as head of the National Socialist Teachers League (NSLB) and head ( Hauptamtsleiter ) of

296-455: A short period in 1938 he served as the acting Oberburgermeister of the city of Bayreuth. Unlike Schemm, Wächtler was an outsider to Bavarians and enjoyed no popularity among the residents of his Gau or among the Reich leadership. He was brutal with subordinates and prone to uncontrolled alcoholic outbursts in public. One assessment of his character stated: In place of the elegant, affable Schemm,

333-498: A similar provision in its legislation. According to common federal and state laws, the districts are responsible for the following tasks: Districts can perform additional functions, based on varying local laws in each region: All these tasks are carried out by local (municipal) authorities operating together. Urban districts have these responsibilities and also those of the municipalities. The district council (German: Kreistag , pronounced [ˈkʁaɪ̯sˌtaːk] )

370-477: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Fritz W%C3%A4chtler Fritz Wächtler (7 January 1891 – 19 April 1945) was a Nazi Party official and politician who served as the Gauleiter of the eastern Bavarian administrative region of Gau Bayreuth . Trained as a primary school teacher, he also became head of the National Socialist Teachers League (NSLB) in 1935. During World War II he held

407-419: Is an officer known as Landrat or Landrätin , who is responsible for the district's day-to-day administration and acts as its representative for official purposes. In parts of northern Germany, Landrat is also the name of the entire district administration, which in southern Germany is known as Kreisverwaltung or Landratsamt . In urban districts similar administrative functions are performed by

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444-522: Is likely why Wächtler, while not in Hitler's favor, remained untouched until 1945. Wächtler was involved in organizing the anti-Jewish Kristallnacht riots of 9–10 November 1938 in his Gau. The next day, the Reich leadership in Berlin ordered cessation of further property destruction because they feared the riots they had instigated would lead to more radical actions not under their control. Wächtler tried to use

481-476: Is the highest institution of a rural district and is responsible for all fundamental guidelines of regional self-administration. This council is elected directly every five years, except in Bavaria where it is elected every six years. Usually the administrative seat of a rural district is located in one of its largest towns. However, district council and administrative seat of some rural districts are not situated within

518-801: The Ortsgruppenleiter (Local Group Leader) there for the next two years. He also joined the Sturmabteilung (SA) becoming the SA- Führer for the Weimar-North district. From 1927 to 1932 he also became the Party Kreisleiter (District Leader) for Weimar-North. From 1928 to 1932 he served as the only Nazi member of the Kreisrat (District Council) in Landkreis Weimar. On 8 December 1929, Wächtler

555-736: The Gauleiter had dedicated a party district house. After seeing the condition of the school in Wegscheid , a new building was decided. In March 1939, when Wächtler spoke at the Passau Nibelungenhalle, the Donau-Zeitung reported an audience of 12,000. In April 1939, Wächtler purchased the Passau Haus, where Hitler had lived for two years. One year later, he donated it to the city of Passau. On 2 June 1942, Wächtler's Gau Bavarian Eastern March

592-456: The Nazi Seizure of Power in 1933, Sauckel was made Reichsstatthalter (Reich Governor) of Thuringia. Wächtler remained as education minister and, on 8 May 1933, was also named interior minister ; on 13 May he was also made deputy to the new minister president, Willy Marschler . Wächtler retained all these posts until 22 January 1936. As the powerful interior minister, he had control over all

629-546: The Gau near the former Czechoslovakian border, some 140 kilometers from Bayreuth. On 14 April, Bayreuth surrendered to the US 3rd Army without a fight. It is unclear whether communications difficulties prevented Wächtler from informing Führer Headquarters of his location, however his Deputy Gauleiter and longtime political rival Ludwig Ruckdeschel used the opportunity to contact Bormann and accuse Wächtler of desertion . On 19 April, Wächtler

666-708: The Main Office for Education in the Party Reichsleitung (National Leadership). From January 1936 he also was the Expert on All School Questions on the Party headquarters staff of Deputy Führer Rudolf Hess . In this position he had supervisory authority over the Reichsschule Feldafing , an elite Party leadership school. At the 29 March 1936 elections, Wächtler was returned as a Reichstag Deputy for electoral constituency 25, Niederbayern ( Lower Bavaria ). For

703-466: The death in their districts. A particularly heavy air raid took place on 11 April. With much of the city in ruins and only 200 irregular defenders left, Wächtler fled Bayreuth with his staff the next day as American forces approached. He reportedly left the bomb-ruined city in a convoy of “several lorries of food, spirits and cigarettes.” He set up offices at a hotel in Waldmünchen in the southern part of

740-462: The district proper, but in an adjacent district-free city. Most of those rural districts are named after this central city as well (e.g. Bamberg and Karlsruhe ). Moers is the biggest city in Germany (and at present time the only one with more than 100,000 inhabitants) that is neither an urban district, nor the district seat of its rural district. The highest administrative position of a rural district

777-619: The end of the war in November. During the war he received many decorations , including the Iron Cross , 2nd class. After discharge from the service, Wächtler returned to his teaching position in Vippachedelhausen, working as an educator until 1932. Wächtler joined the Nazi Party (membership number 35,313) on 26 April 1926. He founded the local branch of the Party in Vippachedelhausen, becoming

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814-467: The functions of a municipality and a Kreis ; such a city is referred to as a kreisfreie Stadt or Stadtkreis . (Land-)Kreise stand at an intermediate level of administration between each state ( Länder ) and the municipalities ( Gemeinden ) within it. These correspond to level-3 administrative units in the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS 3). Previously,

851-676: The honorary rank of SS - Obergruppenführer and was the Reich Defense Commissioner of Gau Bayreuth. Prone to alcoholic outbursts and unpopular with the local residents, he eventually ran afoul of Martin Bormann in a political intrigue. Wächtler was executed on orders from Führer Headquarters near the end of the war on 19 April 1945. Fritz Wächtler was born in 1891 in Triebes , in the Principality of Reuss-Gera (present-day Thuringia ),

888-452: The loss of influence, complained that the NSLB was essential for the war effort in long rambling memos to Bormann, to no avail. In 1945 Hitler declared the city of Bayreuth to be a fortress, which led to the destruction of over one third of the city by air raids. On 1 April 1945, Bormann issued a further order that all Gauleiters , Kreisleiters , and other NSDAP political leaders were to fight to

925-423: The office of the district's administration is located is called Kreisstadt ("district city"), or Kreishauptort ("district main community") if it is not a city. Often the district is named after its district city. Linguistically, any city within a district could be called a "Kreisstadt", especially those that aren't district-free to distinguish them from district-free cities. This term has to be distinguished from

962-504: The opportunity to force public school teachers to sign a personal oath that they would no longer teach any religious subjects. Highly unpopular, Rudolf Hess had to order the directive rescinded. From 1938, Wächtler's district became home to the Flossenbürg concentration camp and its many subcamps . In February 1939, the Donau-Zeitung reported about Wächtler's visit in Hauzenberg , where

999-484: The outbreak of World War I he was deployed to the western front . By August 1915 he had been promoted to Leutnant and served as the commander of a machine gun company with his original regiment and, later, Landwehr Infantry Regiment 7. In the spring of 1916 he was twice wounded in action and classified as unfit for front-line duty. However, in January 1918 he was returned to the front, serving there until discharged at

1036-704: The police and security apparatus of the State. Wächtler was elected a member of the Reichstag for electoral constituency 12, Thuringia, on 12 November 1933, and would remain a Reichstag deputy until his death. In November 1934, Wächtler joined the Schutzstaffel (SS-Number 209,058) as an SS- Oberführer . By the end of January 1936 he was promoted to the rank of SS- Brigadeführer , in April 1937 to SS- Gruppenführer and, finally, on 1 August 1944 to SS - Obergruppenführer . He

1073-515: The political viewpoint of educators, insisting on the further development of their spirit along Nazi lines. Organized mountain excursions in places called Reichsaustauschlager (Exchange Camps of the Reich) were perceived as helping in this purpose. The organization was dissolved in 1943 by the financial administration of the NSDAP. Final solution Parties This article related to Nazi Germany

1110-554: The seizure of the historic Bayreuth Festspielhaus for use in defense of the city. By 1945 his additional failure to send daily situation reports to Führer Headquarters brought him to the attention and suspicion of Martin Bormann , Hitler's powerful Secretary and head of the Nazi Party Chancellery . Bormann had previously ordered the closing of the National Socialist Teachers League (NSLB) on 17 February 1943, together with all its Gau offices across Germany. Wächtler, fearing

1147-585: The similar title Imperial Circle ( Reichskreis ) referred to groups of states in the Holy Roman Empire . The related term Landeskommissariat was used for similar administrative divisions in some German territories until the 19th century. The majority of German districts are "rural districts" (German: Landkreise , pronounced [ˈlantˌkʁaɪ̯zə] ), of which there are 294 as of 2017 . Cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants (and smaller towns in some states) do not usually belong to

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1184-651: The son of a watchmaker. He attended volksschule in Triebes and Erfurt , and between 1905 and 1911 he attended the Weimar Lehrerseminar , a special training academy for primary school teachers. After two years working as a teacher in Vippachedelhausen , he volunteered for military service in October 1913 as a "one-year volunteer" ( German : Einjährigfreiwilliger ) with Infantry Regiment 94, "Grand Duke of Saxony." On

1221-632: Was assigned to the staff of the Reichsführer-SS from April 1937 until his death. On 5 March 1935 the first Gauleiter of the Gau Bavarian Eastern March , Hans Schemm , died in an airplane crash. For an interim period the Gau was run by the Deputy Gauleiter Ludwig Ruckdeschel in an acting capacity. However, on 5 December Wachtler was appointed the permanent Gauleiter in place of Ruchdeschel. This would engender

1258-512: Was classified into Group I (Major Offender) resulting in the confiscation of his entire estate. Ruckdeschel was sentenced to 13 years in prison for several executions after the war, albeit not for that of Wächtler. Landkreis In 13 German states , the primary administrative subdivision higher than a Gemeinde (municipality) is the Landkreis or Kreis . Most major cities in Germany are not part of any Kreis , but instead combine

1295-624: Was elected as a member of the Landtag of Thuringia where he would serve until October 1933. From 1929 to 1932, he was the Business Manager and Training Officer for Gau Thuringia . Then on 15 June 1932, he was made the Organization Leader and Deputy Gauleiter there under Fritz Sauckel . On 26 August 1932, Wächtler was appointed Education Minister in the cabinet formed by Sauckel when he became Minister President of Thuringia. Following

1332-504: Was relieved of all his posts and expelled from the Party for cowardice and desertion. On orders from Führer Headquarters, Ruckdeschel appeared at the hotel with 35 SS troops, pronounced a death sentence and summarily executed Wächtler by firing squad . Ruckdeschel immediately replaced Wächtler as acting Gauleiter and Reich Defense Commissioner. A posthumous denazification proceeding was held in Ansbach , and on 17 February 1949, Wächtler

1369-559: Was renamed Gau Bayreuth , since due to Germany's territorial expansion it was no longer a borderland region . On 16 November 1942, Wächtler was appointed Reich Defense Commissioner ( Reichsverteidigungskommissar ) for his Gau, and in September 1944 he became the commander of the Volkssturm units in the Gau. It was in these positions that he came to realize the war would be lost. This attitude became apparent to his superiors when he prevented

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