TN-Emblem (1928)

Technische Nothilfe 1919-1945: Disputed Precursor of the THW

When researching the topic of the "Technische Nothilfe" (TN, literally "Technical Emergency Aid", but better transcribed as "Technical Emergency Corps"), my initial focus was that of the civil defense. However, after short time I became aware that the origins of the TN were in a completely different area: the defense against politically motivated wildcat strikes in vital enterprises.

The further that I researched through the literature and investigated the archives, the more it became clearer to me that the meaning of the TN in the Weimar Republic was thus far not understood and was not appreciated in a satisfactory historical perspective. Die Technische Nothilfe in der Weimarer Republik For example, nowhere was the question asked of Why, and in What Manner, could this intended short-lived interim solution organization of the revolution time of 1918/19 evolve into an organization spanning not only the entire eventful epoch of the Weimar Republic, but also that of the "Third Reich" and existing until 1945. Even more astonishing is that in 1950, during the Federal Republic, that the TN's founder, Otto Lummitzsch, rebuilt the organization in a similar form under the name "Technisches Hilfswerk" (THW, "Technical Relief Organization"), is astonishing. Furthermore the TN's level of interaction of the local groups and the behavior of the regional TN representatives in their relations to national authorities were still disregarded in historical studies.

All of this was reason enough for me to dedicate my Graduate Work (Doctoral Dissertation) to the Technische Nothilfe in the Weimar Republic, which I researched from 1998 and which in 2006 was published as a book. On these pages, in addition, is a small foretaste for all who would like to know more about my work and my book.

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