Hans Zehrer

Between 1929 and 1933, Zehrer edited a leading nationalist journal, Die Tat, and formed the right-wing "Tat Circle", stated to have had a considerable influence on public opinion. He disliked National Socialism, Communism, and the Weimar Republic, but is stated to have initially believed that the National Socialists could be manipulated to create his new envisioned society. However, he later revised this, tried to split the left-wing and right-wing parts of the NSDAP and then in 1933 supported a coup d'état by the Reichswehr and General der Infanterie Kurt von Schleicher to prevent Hitler taking power. After Hitler took power, he had to resign as editor.

Hans Zehrer (pseud. Hans Thomas; 22 June 1899 – 23 August 1966) was a German journalist and part of the Conservative Revolutionary movement.

Biography

Zehrer was born in Berlin to a postal official. In 1917, Zehrer enlisted as a soldier and remained so after the First World War. He took part in the Kapp Putsch of 1920. He studied medicine, history and theology at the University of Berlin, but had to drop out for economic reasons. However, he remained an active member of the Corps Silingia student fraternity and an avowed Corps student throughout his life.

From 1923 to 1929, he was editor of the paper the Vossische Zeitung. His political thinking was influenced by Arthur Moeller van den Bruck; he also admired Vilfredo Pareto and Henri de Man. He became an editor of Die Tat in 1930, which under his direction saw its circulation grow dramatically. To prevent coming under control of the NSDAP, Zehrer introduced a varied group of writers to the magazine, like Gregor Strasser and Kurt von Schleicher.

With Hitler in power in 1934 (Strasser and Schleischer being murdered in the Night of the Long Knives) Zehrer relinquished himself from editorial duties (Zehrer was married to a Jewish woman until 1938) and retired to the island Sylt. Zehrer returned to Berlin and became the manager of the Stalling publishing house in 1938.

From the end of 1943 to 1945 Zehrer was a soldier in the Luftwaffe, but saw no active service. In 1946 he briefly worked for the then British controlled Die Welt. He was chief editor of the Sonntagsblatte from 1948 to 1953, after which he became chief editor at Die Welt (taken over by Axel Springer in that year). He also was a columnist for the Bild-Zeitung.

Death

Zehrer died in his hometown of Berlin in 1966.

Family

Wife Erika Zehrer, née Billmann (b. 23 October 1918; d. 6 March 1985), was born at the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress near Koblenz. She was the daughter of the officer and later head of the Berlin military school Otto Billmann. She was Zehrer's second wife and died in Prien am Chiemsee in 1985 at the age of 67. She was considered Zehrer's right-hand woman at work, his only confidante and his best friend. During his time as editor of the Sonntagsblatt in Hamburg and as editor-in-chief of the Welt, she was always at his side in an advisory capacity. After his death, she moved to Bavaria and managed his inheritance in Prien am Chiemsee.

Awards and decorations (excerpt)

• Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany on 13 September 1965

External links

• Hans Zehrer as a Neoconservative Elite Theorist by Walter Struve, The American Historical Review, Vol. 70, No. 4 (Jul., 1965), pp. 1035–1057.

In German

• Erinnerung an Hans Zehrer (Archive II)