Koch-Weser, Erich

(1875-1944)

   politician; served as Reichsminister and chairman of the DDP. Born in Bremerhaven, he studied law and political science, completing state exams and becoming Burgermeister of Delmenhorst in 1901. Serving concurrently in the Oldenburg assembly, he was appointed Bremerhaven s city director in 1909 and then served Kassel during 1913-1919 as Oberburgermeister. A left-wing National Liberal, he admired Friedrich Nau-mann* and championed abolition of Prussia s* three-class voting system.

   In November 1918 Koch helped found the DDP, which he represented in the National Assembly* and during 1920-1930 in the Reichstag.* With exceptional intelligence and knowledge of municipal administration, he soon established a commanding position in the DDP. He was named Interior Minister in October 1919 and held office until May 1921, serving under Gustav Bauer,* Hermann Müller,* and Konstantin Fehrenbach* (he was also Müller's Vice Chancellor). While in office, he endeavored to abolish the duality between national and state governments, especially as it existed between Prussia and the Reich. Upon leav-ing office, he established a legal practice in Berlin.*

   In 1924 Koch succeeded Carl Petersen* as DDP chairman. His demanding style and his inclination to sharp opinions earned him many opponents. Although he was within the DDP s right wing on most issues, he remained committed to compromise with the SPD. Yet when he ventured a Great Coalition* in Decem-ber 1925, the effort was foiled by the SPD. Koch (to denote his voting district, he added Weser to his name in April 1925) became Justice Minister in June 1928 when Müller formed his own Great Coalition. Aiming at a comprehensive reform of criminal law, he was compelled to resign his portfolio in April 1929 when the Center Party* demanded a larger role in Müller's cabinet.

   Koch was alarmed at his Party s failure to hold an electorate, and his anxiety increased from 1928 over general political developments. When efforts miscar-ried to merge with the DVP, he courted Artur Mahraun of the Jungdo.* In mid-1930 Koch and Mahraun announced the DStP, an amalgam of the DDP and the Jungdo s political arm. The merger agreement revealed that Koch would be Reichstag faction leader while Mahraun became Party leader. But Koch had reconciled neither his colleagues nor the Party membership to the arrangement. The Reichstag elections of September 1930 brought the DStP a mere 3.8 percent of the vote and twenty deputies. In October the merger collapsed when old-line Democrats blocked Koch s election as faction leader while demanding a Party platform unacceptable to Mahraun. With Jungdo s secession reducing the DStP faction to fourteen, Koch resigned as both Party leader and Reichstag deputy. Deprived in 1933 of a thriving legal practice (Koch had Jewish ancestry), he emigrated to Brazil.

   REFERENCES:Benz and Graml, Biographisches Lexikon; Chanady, "Erich Koch-Weser"; Larry Jones, German Liberalism; NDB, vol. 12.