Alsace-Lorraine Regional Party

The Alsace-Lorraine Regional Party (German: Elsaß-Lothringische Landespartei) was a Catholic political party in the Imperial Province of Alsace-Lorraine, Germany in the early 1900s. The party was founded in March 1903.[1][2][3] It was the first Catholic political organization in Alsace-Lorraine. Léon Vonderscheer, a lawyer by profession, was the president of the party,[1] while Hauss was the party secretary.[3]

Not to be confused with Independent Regional Party for Alsace-Lorraine.

The party was founded in reaction to the advances of the SPD in Alsace-Lorraine.[1] However, following the formation of the regional party (Landespartei), different liberal factions regrouped to form a political party of their own to confront the Landespartei.[3]

The party won seven out of eleven Alsace-Lorraine seats in the 1903 election in the Reichstag.[2] In Kolmar, Preiss of the Landespartei was elected, defeating the People's Party leader Blumentahl. Blumentahl did however also contest the Strassburg constituency, where he defeated the Landespartei candidate Hauss (the party secretary).[3]

In Haut-Rhin, the party was supported by the newspaper Elsäßer Kurier whilst in Bas-Rhin it was supported by Unterländer-Kurier.[2]

In December 1905 Léon Vonderscheer joined the Reichstag group of the Centre Party, being the first Alsatian Catholic politician to do so.[1] In 1906 the party merged into the Centre Party, becoming its branch in Alsace-Lorraine.[2] The party did however retain a degree of independence towards the all-German Centre Party.[4] For example, their Reichstag deputies did not join the Centre Party faction en bloc.[5]

References
  1. Vogler, Bernard. L' Alsace. Dictionnaire du monde religieux dans la France contemporaine, 2. Paris: Beauchesne, 1987. p. 445
  2. Grasser, Jean-Paul. Une Histoire de l'Alsace. [S.l.]: J.-P. Gisserot, 1998. p. 88
  3. Eccard, Frédéric. L'Alsace sous la domination allemande. 1919. pp. 197-198
  4. Eccard, Frédéric. L'Alsace sous la domination allemande. 1919. p. 206
  5. Mayeur Jean-Marie. Baechler (Christian) - Le parti catholique alsacien, 1890-1939, Du Reichsland à la République jacobine., Revue française de science politique, 1984, vol. 34, n° 3, pp. 495-498.
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