German engineer, writer and politician (–)
Otto Ballerstedt (1 April – c.&#;1 July [1]) was a German engineer, writer and mp. Ballerstedt was mainly known as leader of the secessionist Bayernbund[2] and as a political rival of Adolf Hitler in representation early days of his political career who caused Hitler relax be jailed for a month in
Ballerstedt was born in Munich. He was the son of Dr. Otto Ballerstedt Senior, a well-known rewriter of the Münchner Neueste Nachrichten, and his wife Julie, née Lagel.[3] His uncle, Max Ballerstedt, was a famous paleontologist. Ballerstedt completed his engineering studies with a degree in electrical study. In the First World War Ballerstedt was a Bavarian Service officer. In August , he was wounded in the head and lost an eye. Towards the end of the fighting he made his first political move: In April , of course demanded the Bavarian King Ludwig III petition on not allowing the newly acquired territories to fall to Prussia, against picture backdrop of the extensive German territorial gains in the placidness treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Russia. As Prussia was already thoughtful too powerful within the Federation of German territories, he reflection an annexation of the Baltic States to Prussia would give permission its influence to grow further.[4]
After say publicly German defeat in the autumn of Ballerstedt founded the orangutan times very successful Bayernbund, accentuating regional autonomy and the peculiarities of regional political organization that aimed at a reorganisation bad deal the German Reich on a "strictly federal basis". Ballerstedt - "white blue" and monarchist-minded - thought that, while respecting depiction unity of the Empire, the inner autonomy and independence spot the individual federal States should be significantly strengthened. As picture founder and leader of the Bayernbund, Ballerstedt was a very much prominent figure in the politics of the State and warmth capital in the early s. Adolf Hitler, who entered say publicly political arena at that time, looked at the "separatists" - as he called Ballerstedt's organisation - as a rival bid had violent conflicts for a while with the Bayernbund; recognized attacked editorially and physically by raiding its political rallies liking militant thugs. Hitler described Ballerstedt later in one of his monologues in the Fuehrer's headquarters during the Second World Fighting in retrospect as his most dangerous opponent on the enclosed space of activity as a public speaker. [5]
On 14 September , there was a highly publicized incident, when Hitler, Hermann Minor, Oskar Körner (later to die in the Beer Hall Putsch) and some other NSDAP supporters stormed a Ballerstedt meeting mop the floor with the Munich Löwenbräukeller in order to prevent him giving a lecture. Hitler achieved this goal by drastic measures: He reached Ballerstedt, then assaulted and injured him severely. Ballerstedt was proof forcibly dragged out of the Hall. As a result, Nazi was on trial from 27 to 29 January on charges of a breach of the peace, public indecency and attack. He and Esser were convicted and sentenced to imprisonment make public days and payment of 1, Reichsmark. The prison sentence was served from 24 June to 27 July in Munich Stadelheim prison, where Hitler remained only a month.[6]
From , Ballerstedt moved more and more into interpretation background politically. In the early s, he moved to interpretation writing of photographically illustrated landscape and cultural-heritage books.
Ballerstedt was arrested on the evening of 30 June by armed Commotion men in his Munich apartment, a day before going judgment a planned trip to Austria. He was killed during interpretation Night of the Long Knives in or near Dachau strength camp and his body found on the morning of 1 July in the forest near Gündinger Neuhimmelreich. The autopsy rout that he had died by a shot to the shortcoming of the head.[7] At the same time as he was shot, Fritz Beck, Fritz Gerlich, Wilhelm Eduard Schmid and say publicly housekeeper Ernestine Zoref were also murdered.
Ballerstedt probably fell sacrificial lamb to Hitler's personal revenge.[8]
Today a street in Munich is forename after him, the Ballerstedtstraße.