

Center Party [Zentrum] Election Poster (1930) Since its founding in 1870, the Center party represented the interests of political Catholicism across all strata of German society. While it rejected revolution as a political means, it did embrace the Republic and its constitution. Along with the SPD and the DDP, it formed the Weimar Coalition, and it was part of every government until 1932, forging alliances with parties across the political spectrum. The political orientation of the five Zentrum politicians who served as Reich Chancellor (Fehrenbach, Wirth, Marx, Brüning, and von Papen) also differed significantly. This election poster from the campaign for the 1930 Reichstag election depicts the Zentrum party as a bridge, leading its followers across the political abyss under the banner of Catholicism. Down in the chasm, “chaos, terror, and turmoil,” personified by the followers of the extreme left and right-wing parties (who are identified by the red flag and the swastika respectively), try to forge ahead. In the end, it was the KPD and especially the NSDAP, however, who emerged as the winners of the 1930 election. print version return to image list previous image next image

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