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((Use dmy dates|date=October 2017))
((short description|1920 general strike in Germany))
((refimprove|date=January 2021))
((Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Ruhr uprising
| width             = 
| partof            = the reactions to the [[Kapp Putsch]],<br>[[Revolutions of 1917–1923]] and<br>[[Political violence in Germany (1918–1933)]]
| image             = Rote Ruhrarmee 1920.jpg
| image_size        = 280px
| caption           = Members of the Ruhr Red Army in [[Dortmund]]
| date              = ((ubl|((start and end dates|1920|3|13|1920|4|12|df=yes)) | (((ageymwd|month1=3|day1=13|year1=1920|month2=4|day2=12|year2=1920))) ))
| place             = [[Ruhr]], Germany
| coordinates       = 
| map_type          = 
| map_relief        = 
| latitude          = 
| longitude         = 
| map_size          = 
| map_marksize      = 
| map_caption       = 
| map_label         = 
| territory         = 
| result            = Government victory
| status            = 
| combatants_header = 
| combatant1        = ((flagicon image|Flag_of_Germany_(3-2_aspect_ratio).svg)) [[Weimar Republic]]
*((flagicon image|War_Ensign_of_Germany_(1921–1933).svg)) [[Reichswehr]]
*[[Sicherheitspolizei (Weimar Republic)|Security Police]]
((flagicon image|War_Ensign_of_Germany_(1903–1919).svg)) [[Freikorps]]
| combatant2        = ((flagicon image|Socialist red flag.svg)) [[Ruhr Red Army]]
*[[Communist Party of Germany|KPD]]
*[[Communist Workers' Party of Germany|KAPD]]
*[[Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany|USPD]]
*[[Social Democratic Party of Germany|SPD]]
*[[Free Workers' Union of Germany|FAUD]]
| commander1        = ((flagicon image|War_Ensign_of_Germany_(1921–1933).svg)) [[Oskar von Watter]]
| commander2        = ((flagicon image|Socialist red flag.svg))  Workers' councils
| units1            = 
| units2            = 
| strength1         = Unknown
| strength2         = 50,000
| casualties1       = 604 killed and missing
----'''Reichswehr:'''<br/>208 killed<br/>123 missing<br>'''Freikorps:''' 273 killed<br>'''Police:''' Unknown
| casualties2       = 1,000+ rebels killed
| casualties3       = 
| notes             = 
| campaignbox       = 
))
((Campaignbox Political violence in Germany))
The '''Ruhr uprising''' (((lang-de|link=no|Ruhraufstand))) or '''March uprising''' (''Märzaufstand'') was a [[left (politics)|left-wing]] workers' revolt in the [[Ruhr]] region of [[Weimar Republic|Germany]] in March 1920. It initially took place in support of the call for a [[general strike]] issued by the [[Social Democrat]] members of the [[Weimar Republic#Years of crisis .281919.E2.80.931923.29|German government]], the unions, and other parties in response to the right-wing [[Kapp Putsch]] of 13 March 1920.

Communists and other socialists in the Ruhr had previously laid plans for "winning political power by the [[dictatorship of the proletariat]]" in the event of a general strike but after the collapse of the Kapp Putsch, the German government sent in the [[Reichswehr]] (the German army) and right-wing [[Freikorps]] to crush the ongoing insurgency of the estimated 50,000 members of the "[[Red Ruhr Army]]". This involved considerable brutality and [[summary execution]]s of prisoners. An estimated 1,600 people were killed.

==Origins==
As the [[Treaty of Versailles]] came into force on 10 January 1920, the German government had to drastically reduce the headcount of its regular armed forces, and dissolve paramilitary units such as the right-wing ''[[Freikorps]]''. Consequently, the German ''Reichswehrminister'' (defence minister) [[Gustav Noske]] ordered the dissolution of the Freikorps ''Marinebrigaden'' "[[Marinebrigade Ehrhardt|Ehrhardt]]" and "Loewenfeld".<ref name="Noske">((cite web|url=http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/biografien/NoskeGustav/index.html|title=Biografie Gustav Noske (German)|publisher=Deutsches Historisches Museum|access-date=12 June 2013))</ref> 

The highest-ranking general of the Reichswehr, [[Walther von Lüttwitz]], refused to comply. He contributed to what became known as ''[[Kapp Putsch]]'', or ''Lüttwitz-Kapp-Putsch'', an effort by military and right-wing forces to overthrow the elected government and restore the monarchy.<ref name="Noske"/> On 13 March 1920, the right-wing ''Marinebrigade Ehrhardt'' led by von Lüttwitz marched into [[Berlin]], occupied the government buildings, and installed [[Wolfgang Kapp]] as new chancellor, calling for a return of the monarchy. To restore order, Noske  asked [[Hans von Seeckt]], who at the time was the head of the ''[[Truppenamt|Truppenamt im Reichswehrministerium]]'', to order the regular army, the "Transitional [[Reichswehr]]", to put down the putsch. Von Seeckt and the other senior commanders, with the exception of General [[Walther Reinhardt]], refused and the government was forced to flee from Berlin. 

Since the ministerial bureaucracy did not cooperate with the Kapp government, however, the latter could not govern effectively. On the very day of the putsch, the Social Democratic members of the government and [[Otto Wels]], head of the SPD, signed a call for a [[general strike]] to topple the putschists. It was supported by the ''[[Allgemeiner Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund]]'' (ADGB) led by [[Carl Legien]], the ''Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Angestellte'' (AfA) and the ''Deutsche Beamtenbund''.<ref name="Strike">((cite web|url=http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/weimar/innenpolitik/generalstreik/index.html|title=Der Generalstreik 1920 (German)|publisher=Deutsches Historisches Museum|access-date=12 June 2013))</ref> Separately, the [[Communist Party of Germany|KPD]], [[Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany|USPD]] and the [[German Democratic Party|DDP]] also called for a strike. Although protests by conservative groups including the Reichswehr soon caused the ''Reichsregierung'' to distance itself from this call to strike, the general strike of around 12 million workers helped bring about the putsch's collapse on 17 March 1920.<ref name="Putsch">((cite web|url=http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/weimar/gewalt/kapp/index.html|title=Der Militärputsch 1920 (Lüttwitz-Kapp-Putsch)(German)|publisher=Deutsches Historisches Museum|access-date=12 June 2013))</ref>

==Strike and uprising in the Ruhr region==
[[Image:Ruhraufstand 1920 002.jpg|thumb|300px|Map showing the path taken by the "Red Ruhr Army", 17–23 March 1920.]]
((more citations needed|section|date=June 2013))
The first demonstrations against the putsch were in the Ruhr region on 13 March 1920. For example, in [[Bochum]], 20,000 people turned out. Whilst the [[Kapp Putsch]] was in progress in Berlin, on 14 March 1920, in [[Elberfeld]] a meeting of representatives of the [[Communist Party of Germany]] (KPD), the [[Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany]] (USPD), and the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]] (SPD) was held. The left-wing workers' parties decided on a spontaneous alliance against the putschists. The SPD, USPD and KPD drafted a joint appeal to "winning political power by the [[dictatorship of the proletariat]]".

As a consequence of this appeal and in the context of the general strike, some workers' organisations attempted to seize state power on a regional scale. Across the Ruhr area, spontaneously formed local "Executive Councils" took over political power. These were dominated mostly by the USPD, with the KPD also participating. The anarcho-syndicalist [[Free Workers' Union of Germany]] (FAUD) was also represented. Worker-soldiers were deployed, who controlled the cities.

The [[Red Ruhr Army]], whose strength was estimated at approximately 50,000 members judging by the number of rifles that were later confiscated, prevailed over government forces in the area in a very short time.

On 17 March 1920, units of the Red Ruhr Army near [[Wetter (Ruhr)|Wetter]] attacked an advance party of the ''[[Freikorps Lichtschlag]]'' under Hauptmann Hasenclever. When asked, he had identified himself as a supporter of the new Kapp government. The workers took the enemy force's weapons, captured 600 Freikorps members, and occupied [[Dortmund]].<ref name="C1920"/> On 20 March 1920 in [[Essen]], a Central Committee (''Zentralrat'') of the [[Workers' council]]s was formed, the latter being in the process of taking power in parts of the Ruhr.<ref name="C1920"/> Another central organ was in [[Hagen]]. The uprising possessed no common leadership nor a common political program, although turning ownership of important industries over to the workers was an important issue.<ref name="March">((cite web|url=http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/weimar/innenpolitik/maerzaufstand/index.html|title=Der Märzaufstand 1920(German)|publisher=Deutsches Historisches Museum|access-date=12 June 2013))</ref>

==After the defeat of the Kapp Putsch==
((more citations needed|section|date=June 2013))
The general strike was officially declared as having ended on 22 March by the unions (ADGB), the USPD and the KPD after additional concessions by the government of chancellor [[Gustav Bauer]]. These included the dismissal of ''Reichswehrminister'' Noske, as well as changes to social and economic policies. General Reinhardt also resigned. [[Otto Gessler]] succeeded Noske; von Seeckt became ''Chef der Heeresleitung''. The demands by the USPD that a socialist workers' government be installed to prevent a move of Germany to the right were rejected.<ref name="Strike"/><ref name="C1920"/>

The legitimate government, newly returned to Berlin, issued an ultimatum on 24 March, demanding that the workers' councils put an end to the strike and the uprising by 30 March (later extended to 2 April); the councils did not comply with this. On 25 March, the government of Gustav Bauer resigned and on 26 March ''Reichspräsident'' [[Friedrich Ebert]] appointed [[Hermann Müller (politician, born 1876)|Hermann Müller]] as the new chancellor.<ref name="C1920">((cite web|url=http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/1920/index.html|title=Chronologie 1920 (German)|publisher=Deutsches Historisches Museum|access-date=12 June 2013))</ref>
 
The attempt to settle the conflict at the negotiating table in the [[Bielefeld Agreement]] failed, ultimately due to the unauthorized actions of the regional military commander, [[Oskar von Watter]].

The consequence was the renewed proclamation of a general strike. More than 300,000 miners joined this (they represented about 75% of the work force in mining). The communist uprising brought [[Düsseldorf]] and Elberfeld into the hands of the communists. Until the end of March, the whole Ruhr area was taken.

Those involved in the uprising, who were often Great War veterans, were paid wages from the workers' councils. They often operated in small groups, traveling by bicycle. They attacked ''[[Wesel citadel|Zitadelle Wesel]]'' on 24 March, but here the Ruhr Army suffered its first defeat.

The structure of the Ruhr Army was, like the political demands and positions of the different workers' councils, very heterogeneous and subject to frequent changes. In general, there was a strong difference among workers in the East and West. The USPD-dominated eastern Ruhr area organised and armed earlier, but it did not support a continuation of armed action against the newly restored federal government. On the other hand, the mobilization was slower in the trade union-dominated western Ruhr area, but continuation of the uprising in the later stages found greater support here.

On 2 April 1920, government Reichswehr units marched into the Ruhr area to suppress the uprising.<ref name="C1920"/> This force also contained units that had supported the putsch only days previously, such as the ''Marinebrigade von Loewenfeld'' and the ''Marinebrigade Ehrhardt''.<ref name="Putsch"/>

==Bloody suppression==
[[Image:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-029-31, Bürgerkrieg, Möllen.jpg|thumb|200px|Members of the Reichswehr and shot members of the Red Ruhr Army, 2 April 1920, [[Möllen (Voerde)|Möllen]] near Duisburg]]
With the support of the federal government, the uprising was suppressed by General Watter, approaching from the north. Based in [[Münster]], his staff led the civil war in the Ruhr area. Units of the Reichswehr and ''Freikorps'' successfully suppressed the Red Ruhr Army. 

The fighting was followed by death sentences and mass executions. Those found to be carrying weapons at the time of their arrest were shot, including the wounded. On 3 April 1920, Reichspräsident Ebert forbade these summary executions. On 12 April 1920, General von Watter forbade his soldiers from engaging in "unlawful behaviour". By this point, however, the rebellion was over. The actions of both sides in the fighting have been described as showing "a maximum of cruelty".<ref name="March"/>

On 5 April, a large part of the Ruhr Army fled before the Reichswehr to the region [[occupation of the Rhineland|occupied]] by the [[French Army]]. In response to the Reichswehr presence in the Ruhr, which contravened the Treaty of Versailles, the French occupied towns such as [[Frankfurt]], [[Hanau]] and [[Darmstadt]] on 6 April.<ref name="C1920"/>

The Reichswehr stopped only at the river Ruhr. The British occupation forces were threatening to occupy the [[Bergisches Land]] due to the breach of the Versailles Treaty. By 8 April, the Reichswehr controlled all of the northern Ruhr area.<ref name="C1920"/>

By the end of the fighting, the Reichswehr had lost 208 dead and 123 missing,<ref>Winkler, HA (2006) ''Germany: The Long Road West'', Vol 2 OUP, Oxford, p.371</ref> and ''Freikorps'' about 273 lives. An estimated 1,000 workers were killed. A memorial to the Ruhr Uprising was later commissioned and installed in [[Hagen]].

==See also==
* [[Cuno strikes]]
* [[Hans Marchwitza]]
* [[History of the Ruhr District]]
* [[Wilhelm Zaisser]]

((Commons category|Ruhr Uprising))

== References ==
((reflist|2))

==Bibliography==
* Waite, Robert G L. ''Vanguard of Nazism'', 1969, W W Norton & Co

((Authority control))
[[Category:Politics of the Weimar Republic]]
[[Category:Labor history]]
[[Category:Labor in Germany]]
[[Category:20th-century revolutions]]
[[Category:Aftermath of World War I in Germany]]
[[Category:1920 in Germany]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1920]]
[[Category:20th century in North Rhine-Westphalia]]
[[Category:Ruhr]]
[[Category:Military operations involving Germany]]
[[Category:Rhine Province]]
[[Category:Province of Westphalia]]
[[Category:Revolutions of 1917–1923]]
[[Category:Kapp Putsch]]
[[Category:Massacres in 1920]]
[[Category:Massacres in Germany]]

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