How war was declared against Switzerland in 1919 - Historum

**Linschoten** · January 12th, 2011, 01:30 PM

This must be one of the oddest episodes in modern European history. How many peoiple know that a European nation declared war against Switzerland in 1919? Namely, the Bavarian Soviet Republic.

On the 7th November 1918, Bavaria was declared a free republic under a Social Democratic politician, Kurt Eisner; and after Eisner was assassinated by a right-wing nationalist in 1919, communists and anarchists took adavantage of the resulting disorder to establish a Soviet republic in Bavaria. A certain Dr Franz Lipp was appointed to be Foreign Minister, an unhappy choice since the good doctor had twice undergone cures in a mental institution, with not entirely successful results. He sent a cable to Lenin complaining that the deposed President of Bavaria had fled from Munich taking the key to the ministerial toilets with him. And then he declared war on Switzerland, and indeed Württemberg too, because they were unwilling to restock the Bavarian railway system with locomotives . "My dear colleague", he wrote to a fellow-minister, "I have declared war on Württemberg and Switzerland because those dogs have not immediately handed over the 60 locomotives to me on loan. I have no doubt that we will be victorious. Furthermore I will seek the blessing of the Pope, who is a good friend of mine, for this victory." But the initial, relatively moderate, Soviet government of which he was a member collapsed within six days, as hardline Communists took over, and even the thought of a Bavarian invasion of Switzerland and Württemberg was forgotten. The communist government lasted until the beginnig of May. I don't know what happened to Dr Lipp, maybe he went into exile in Switzerland.

The Soviet Republic seems to have got off to a bad start because the first proclamation that the government issued was that all cafés should close at 6 o'clock, and one can just imagine what the jovial citizens of Munich would have thought of that. The chief commissar Ernst Toller (a 25-year-old playwright) was so mobbed when he walked along the street that he beat a tactical retreat and extended the opening hours to 9 o'clock. There was then a run on the banks, and the Red Army, deciding that their barracks were not good enough, installed themselves in the schools, and everything declined into ever greater chaos until proper Communists displaced these 'bourgeois amateurs'.

The New York Times correspondent had this account of Dr Lipp: he is 'a man of 60 whose mind is so unstable that some years ago his friends endeavored to cure him by consigning him for a time to a lunatic asylum. He edited a Stuttgart paper for a while, but being involved in a charge of libelling the Kaiser, he escaped to Switzerland and subsequently appeared in Italy, where, having made his peace with the old German regime, he acted as a spy and informer for it. Before Italy entered the war he was especially active in endeavoring to bring about sabotage in various places there.' According to another account, it was the Pope to whom he addressed his complaint about the missing lavatory keys, in a long, lewd and rambling telegram addressed to 'Comrade Pope, Peter's Cathedral, Rome', and he merely informed Lenin that the proletariat of Upper Bavaria was now happily united.

**pikeshot1600** · January 12th, 2011, 01:37 PM

That is an odd story and I was never aware of it. I suppose one can understand why the Freikorps and the right wing were strong in Bavaria.

Melisende · January 12th, 2011, 01:38 PM

Interesting post - I had no idea.
So this took place pretty much after the war in Europe ended?

**jungleplanewreck** · January 12th, 2011, 01:44 PM

*Heads over to the 'something you've learnt recently' thread.*

No, seriously. That's interesting. Never had a clue about that.

**beorna** · January 12th, 2011, 01:58 PM

yes, it was a damned, bloody time down there in bavarian. I think it is very interesting, that Hitler was one of these "Rätesoldaten" untill he denunciated his comrades and changed the side.