Führer

(Fuehrer when an umlaut is not used) is a proper noun meaning "leader" or "guide" in the German language. The IPA transcription of the standard German pronunciation is , but in English it is usually pronounced . It is mainly used in English for Nazi Germany's absolute ruler, Adolf Hitler. Though the word remains common in German, it does come with some social stigma attached, and under Hitler was part of the title of many positions in the various (para)military and governmental organizations of Germany.

Historic Nazi titles

State & Party Leader Hitler

Führer was the title granted by Chancellor Hitler to himself by law, as part of the process of Gleichschaltung, following the death of the last Reichspräsident of the Weimar Republic, Paul von Hindenburg, on August 2, 1934. The new position, fully named Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and Chancellor of the (Third) Reich), unified the offices of President and Chancellor, formally making Hitler Germany's Head of State as well as Head of Government respectively; in practice, the Dictator of the Nazi Third Reich. Nazi Germany cultivated the Führerprinzip (leader principle), and Hitler was generally known as just der Führer ("the Leader"). One of the Nazis' most-repeated political slogans was ''Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer' - 'One people, One empire, One leader'.

For military matters, Hitler used the style Führer und Oberster Befehlshaber der Wehrmacht ('Leader and Supreme Commander of the Wehrmacht'), until that addition was dropped in May 1942 by decree of the Führer. The style of the Head of State for use in foreign affairs was Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and National Chancellor) until July 28, 1942, when it was changed to Führer des Grossdeutschen Reichs ('Leader of the Greater German Nation').

(Para)Military usage of the word Führer

Führer has been used as a military title (compare Latin Dux) in Germany since at least the 18th century. Ironically, given the context of the word to refer to Adolf Hitler as supreme ruler of Germany, in the context of a company sized military subunit in the German Army, the term "Führer" referred to a commander lacking the qualifications for permanent command. For example, the commanding officer of a company was titled "Kompaniechef" (literally, Company Chief in English), but if he did not have the requisite rank or experience, or was only temporarily assigned to command, he was officially titled "Kompanieführer." Thus operational commands of various military echelons were typically referred to by their formation title followed by the title Führer, in connection with mission-type tactics used by the German military. The term Führer was also used at lower levels, regardless of experience or rank; for example, a Gruppenführer was the leader of a squad of infantry (9 or 10 men). Aside from this generic meaning, "Gruppenführer" was also an official rank title for a specific grade of general in the Waffen SS. The word Truppenführer was also a generic word referring to any commander or leader of troops, and could be applied to NCOs or officers at many different levels of command.

Under the Nazis, the title Führer was also used in paramilitary titles (see Freikorps). Almost every Nazi paramilitary organization, in particular the SS and SA, had Nazi party paramilitary ranks incorporating the title of Führer.

Equivalent historic titles

Hitler's choice for this (in German unprecedented) political title was, like much of the early symbolism of Nazi Germany, modelled after Benito Mussolini's Fascist Italy, which impressed Hitler until it proved its military incompetence. Mussolini's chosen nickname il Duce ("the Leader") was widely used, though unlike Hitler he never made it his official title. Note that the Italian word duce (unlike the German word Führer) is no longer used as a generic term for a leader, but almost always refers to Mussolini himself.

Remarkably different authoritarian political leaders in various official positions assumed, formally or not, similar titles -- in their own languages, as nationalism dictates -- suggesting to speak for the nation itself, justifying more than ordinary exercise of power. Such titles used by nationalist heads of state and/or government during the Second World War include:

el Caudillo de España (self-styled "the Leader of Spain") general Francisco Franco Bahamonde, Jefe de Estado (Chief of State) and Prime Minister. He was the only one who stayed comfortably in power after winning his extremely bloody civil war, and remained neutral during World War II.
Vodca ("Leader") monsignor Jozef Tiso, from 1942 self-styled, in Slovakia, President 1939 - 1945 (acting to 26 October 1939). There was a Serbian Nationalist precedent, the style Vozhd in the uprising against the Ottomans, meaning Chief (from 26 December 1808, Supreme Chief 14 February 1804 - 3 October 1813 Karadjordje (George Petrovic), b. 1762 - d. 1817).
Poglavnik Nezavisne Drzave Hrvatske (Leader of the Independent State of Croatia) Ante Pavelic, in power in Croatia 10 April 1941 - 6 May 1945
Vidkun Quisling, Fører ("leader", "guide"), Minister-president of the Nazi puppet government in Norway, and, after Reichskommissar Josef Terboven, the highest official in occupied Norway, reporting directly to Hitler.
Conducător ("leader"), a title used by Ion Antonescu in Romania.

Other 'leaders' of contemporary nationalist political groups who never achieved power:

Capitanul 'The Captain' Corneliu Zelea Codreanu of the "Iron Guard" in Romania.
El Jefe 'The Chief' Jorge González von Marées of the Chilean Nacistas (Spanish word for "Nazis"), who failed a coup d'état in 1932
Vozhd 'Leader' Konstantin Rodzaevsky of the Russian Fascist Party, only active in exile in Manchuria, most admired Mussolini but saw action only in the anti-Communist service of the Japanese Empire.
the American Führer Fritz Kuhn.
Chief William Dudley Pelley of the Silver Legion.
Adrien Arcand, self-proclaimed Canadian Führer
Netaji (Leader) Subhas Chandra Bose of the Indian National Army in British India tried to seize independence from the British Empire by arms while the British Forces were engaged against the Axis Powers, but failed.
Tindis or Tandis (leader of a confederation of barangays) used by the Sakdalista Party leader Benigno Ramos during the Commonwealth of the Philippines (from 1935, under US sovereignty).

In areas occupied by the Axis powers, some states or ethnic-cultural communities aspiring to national self-determination found they were not handed real power by their victorious German allies as they had hoped. Their nationalist leaders, too weak to gain control independently, were simply used as pawns.

Such Nazi collaborators include De Leider "leader" Staf De Clercq of the VNV (Flemish National League) in Flanders (the Dutch-speaking northern majority of Belgium), who had dreamed of a 'Diets' nation uniting Flanders, the Netherlands and Frans-Vlaanderen (the French part of historic Flanders, united with Belgium into one military occupation zone and Reichskommissariat). Even when the Germans decided in December 1944, after the allied breakthrough, to carve up Belgium, leaving only bicultural capital Brussels under the Reichskommissar, the post of Landsleider van het Vlaamsche Volk ('Land leader of the Flemish people') of the new Reichsgau (integral 'Germanic' part of the Reich, in this case merely on paper) (Flandern, Vlaanderen in Dutch; capital Anwerp) went to another collaborating party, Devlag, in the person of Jef Van de Wiele (1902 - 1979), 15 December 1944 - 1945, in exile in Germany as the Allied controlled all Belgium since september 1945; meanwhile in the francophone south of Belgium, partially reconquered by German troops (December 1944 - January 1945), the equivalent post of Chef du Peuple Wallon ('Leader of the Walloon People') at the head of the Reichsgau Wallonien, went to Léon Degrelle (in exile in Germany) of the rather Belgicist Rex party

Later parallels

The use of the word "leader" to denote a position of absolute political power was not invented by the Nazis, and it did not end with their defeat in World War II. Many leaders have continued to use such titles as part of maintaining a personality cult, including Başbuğ (commander) Alparslan Türkeş of the Turkish Nationalistic Front.

The same style was sometimes followed by leaders with nationalist inclinations elsewhere in the political spectrum. This is especially true of rulers or Marxist 'dictatures of the proletariate'; thus Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il of North Korea, who are both historically and geographically far removed from any European influence, use the titles Great Leader and Dear Leader, respectively. In Romania, communist party leader and president Nicolae Ceauşescu even had the same title, Conducător (Romanian for leader!), as earlier marshall Ion Antonescu.

On the other hand, Turkmenbashi (Türkmenbaşy in Turkmen), which means "Head of the Turkmens") is a unique, paternalistic and national title assumed from 22 October 1993 by the former last communist party leader and present leader of the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (the country's only political party) Saparmurat Niyazov for himself as president for life of the Republic of Turkmenistan, three years after its independence by the dismemberment of the Soviet Union.

Modern usage of the word Führer

Due to its excessive use in Nazi Germany, the term Führer is not popular in modern Germany. Anführer, with a slightly more tangible meaning than Führer, is now more common as a literal translation of "leader", while Führer itself is almost exclusively used in composites, e.g. Lok^*führer (engine driver), Zugführer (railway guard), Flugzeugführer (aircraft pilot), Bergführer (mountain guide), Führerschein (driver's license), Spielführer (team captain), Mannschaftsführer (teamster), Fremdenführer (tourist guide), Geschäftsführer (director), Führerstand (driver's cab), and so on. The word Leiter can also be used as a substitute, though it is somewhat ambiguous (its other meaning is ladder). Also, in the hit anime/manga Full Metal Alchemist, the head of the military is referred to as the Führer. During the Apollo era (1967-1975), the German-American engineer Guenther Wendt, who served as the leader of the launch pad "close out" crew, was nicknamed by the Kennedy Space Center personnel as "Führer of the Pad."

Sources and references

(incomplete)

WorldStatesmen

Gourt Home::Gourt :: Führer