Bavarian Soviet Republic

A socialist republic proclaimed in Bavaria in 1919 amid the German Revolution. It was defeated within weeks by government troops and right-wing paramilitary forces.

German Revolution of 1918–1919: A wave of uprisings that ended the German monarchy and established a republic after World War I. Its upheaval toppled Bavaria’s monarchy and opened the path to competing revolutionary governments.
Workers' council: An elected or delegated body representing workers in political or workplace decisions. Workers’ and soldiers’ councils supplied the republic’s claimed basis of political authority.
Freikorps: Right-wing paramilitary formations composed largely of veterans, active in Germany after World War I. Freikorps units supplied much of the force used to retake Munich.
Russian Revolution: The revolutions of 1917 that overthrew Russia’s monarchy and brought the Bolsheviks to power. The Bolshevik seizure of power inspired the communist phase of Bavaria’s experiment.
Kingdom of Bavaria: A German kingdom that existed from 1806 until its monarchy fell in 1918. The republic emerged after revolution ended this kingdom’s rule.
Eugen Leviné: A Russian-born German communist who led the second phase of the Bavarian Soviet Republic in April 1919. He directed the communist government after the first council republic collapsed.
Munich: The capital of Bavaria and the principal setting of the Bavarian Soviet Republic in 1919. The republic’s government and decisive fighting were centered in Munich.
German Social Democratic Party: A German political party founded in the nineteenth century that supported parliamentary democracy and led the early Weimar government. Its parliamentary approach clashed with the council republic’s revolutionary claim to power.
Kurt Eisner: A socialist journalist and politician who led Bavaria’s November 1918 revolution and became its first republican minister-president. His government preceded the Soviet republic and shaped the crisis that brought it about.
Ernst Toller: A German playwright and revolutionary who briefly led the first Bavarian council republic in April 1919. His socialist-led council government preceded Leviné’s communist administration.

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