Spartacist uprising

Spartacist uprising
	Part of the German Revolution of 1918–1919
	; Soldiers on the Brandenburg Gate during the Spartacist uprising
Date	5–12 January 1919
Location	Berlin, Germany
Result	Government victory
Belligerents
Council of the People's Deputies Freikorps;	Communist Party of Germany Spartacus League; Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany
Commanders and leaders
Friedrich Ebert; Gustav Noske	Karl Liebknecht ; Rosa Luxemburg
Strength
3,000 Freikorps	;
Casualties and losses
17 killed; 20 wounded	130–180 killed
	150–196 total deaths, including an uncertain number of civilians

The Spartacist uprising (German: Spartakusaufstand), also known as the January uprising (Januaraufstand), was an armed uprising that took place in Berlin from 5 to 12 January 1919. It occurred in connection with the November Revolution that broke out following Germany's defeat in World War I. The uprising was primarily a power struggle between the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) led by Friedrich Ebert, which favored a social democracy, and the Communist Party of Germany (KPD), led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg, which wanted to set up a council republic similar to the one established by the Bolsheviks in Russia. In 1914 Liebknecht and Luxemburg had founded the Marxist Spartacus League (Spartakusbund), which gave the uprising its popular name.

The revolt was improvised and small scale and quickly crushed by the superior strength of government and paramilitary troops in what became known as Bloody Week.^[3] The death toll was roughly 150–200, mostly among the insurgents. The most prominent deaths were those of Liebknecht and Luxemburg, who were executed extrajudicially, almost certainly with the approval of the leaders of the provisional SPD-led government.^[4]^[5] The party's involvement hampered its position throughout the life of the Weimar Republic, although quashing of the uprising did allow elections for the National Assembly to take place as scheduled on 19 January. The Assembly went on to write the Weimar Constitution that created the first functioning German democracy.

^ Jones 2016, p. 197.
^ Jones 2016, p. 196–199.
^
- Schwartzwald, Jack L. (2022). Europe on the Path to Self-Destruction: Nationalism and the Struggle for Hegemony, 1815-1945. McFarland. p. 288. ISBN 978-1-4766-4685-5.
- Weill, Claudie (2003). "Women in the German Revolution: Rosa Luxemburg and the Worker's Councils". In Fauré, Christine (ed.). Political and Historical Encyclopedia of Women. Routledge. pp. 267, 270. ISBN 1579582370.
- Shirer, William L. (1990). Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany. Simon & Schuster. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-671-72868-7.
^ Gietinger 1995, p. 111.
^ Haffner, Sebastian (1991). Die deutsche Revolution 1918/1919 (in German). Munich: Knaur. pp. 153–154. ISBN 978-3426038130.

[FOOTNOTEJones2016197-1] Jones 2016, p. 197.

[FOOTNOTEJones2016196–199-2] Jones 2016, p. 196–199.

[3] 
Schwartzwald, Jack L. (2022). Europe on the Path to Self-Destruction: Nationalism and the Struggle for Hegemony, 1815-1945. McFarland. p. 288. ISBN 978-1-4766-4685-5.

Weill, Claudie (2003). "Women in the German Revolution: Rosa Luxemburg and the Worker's Councils". In Fauré, Christine (ed.). Political and Historical Encyclopedia of Women. Routledge. pp. 267, 270. ISBN 1579582370.

Shirer, William L. (1990). Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany. Simon & Schuster. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-671-72868-7.

[4] Schwartzwald, Jack L. (2022). Europe on the Path to Self-Destruction: Nationalism and the Struggle for Hegemony, 1815-1945. McFarland. p. 288. ISBN 978-1-4766-4685-5.

[5] Weill, Claudie (2003). "Women in the German Revolution: Rosa Luxemburg and the Worker's Councils". In Fauré, Christine (ed.). Political and Historical Encyclopedia of Women. Routledge. pp. 267, 270. ISBN 1579582370.

[6] Shirer, William L. (1990). Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany. Simon & Schuster. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-671-72868-7.

[FOOTNOTEGietinger1995111-4] Gietinger 1995, p. 111.

[5] Haffner, Sebastian (1991). Die deutsche Revolution 1918/1919 (in German). Munich: Knaur. pp. 153–154. ISBN 978-3426038130.

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