Arbeiter und Soldat

Arbeiter und Soldat, whose title translates as “Worker and Soldier,” was an underground German-language political magazine produced in occupied France during the Second World War. It was associated with the French Trotskyist organization Parti Ouvrier Internationaliste and addressed German military personnel stationed in or passing through France. The publication sought to persuade soldiers to oppose Nazism and to recognize the class and political dimensions of the war rather than remain loyal to the Nazi state. The magazine occupied a particularly difficult ideological position. It was uncompromisingly hostile to fascism and the Nazi regime, but it did not endorse the Western Allies. In keeping with its Trotskyist politics, it characterized the Allied powers as imperialist and presented an internationalist revolutionary alternative to both Nazi rule and the established governments opposing Germany. This stance distinguished it from liberal, nationalist, or pro-Allied resistance publications. Arbeiter und Soldat was edited by Martin Monath, a Jewish exile from Berlin who had become active in the French Trotskyist movement. Monath and his collaborators operated under conditions of extreme danger. The German occupation authorities and the French Milice aggressively pursued resistance networks and the clandestine far-left press, while the Gestapo targeted political opponents, Jewish people, and other groups associated with anti-Nazi activity. Producing and distributing a publication intended for German soldiers therefore exposed its participants to arrest, imprisonment, torture, and execution. Despite the repression, six issues appeared between 1943 and 1944. Its limited run reflects the practical constraints of underground publishing rather than a conventional commercial publishing strategy: circulation figures, print quantities, distribution networks, and financial information are not established in the available reference material. The publication should consequently be understood as a resistance-era political organ and historical document, rather than as a modern consumer brand or continuing media business. The original publication ceased with the end of its wartime underground context. Its historical significance later prompted archival and translation work. In August 2008, surviving issues were republished in English, making the archive more accessible to readers unable to consult the original German-language material. A further English translation was included in a biography of Martin Monath published in October 2019. These later editions preserved and interpreted the magazine as evidence of Trotskyist resistance activity, anti-fascist agitation, and political opposition among or directed toward German soldiers during the occupation of France.

Arbeiter und Soldat was a clandestine political magazine created in France during the Nazi occupation in the Second World War. Its title means “Worker and Soldier.” The publication was produced for German soldiers and was connected with the Parti Ouvrier Internationaliste, a French Trotskyist organization. Its purpose was to challenge the political loyalty of German military personnel and encourage opposition to fascism from an internationalist and revolutionary perspective. The magazine’s politics were distinct from those of publications that supported the Western Allies or framed the conflict primarily as a national struggle between Germany and the Allied states. Arbeiter und Soldat fiercely opposed the Nazi regime and fascism, but it also refused to support the Western Allies, describing them as imperialist powers. The resulting message combined anti-Nazi agitation with a Trotskyist critique of all established imperialist governments. Its intended readership—German soldiers operating in occupied France—made the publication both politically unusual and exceptionally risky to produce. Martin Monath, a Jewish exile from Berlin, served as the magazine’s editor. His background and political activity placed him in danger from both Nazi persecution and the broader repression of clandestine left-wing organizing. During the occupation, the Gestapo and the French Milice worked to suppress resistance organizations and the far-left press. Underground publishers had to work covertly, and anyone involved in writing, printing, transporting, or distributing such material risked severe punishment. Six issues of Arbeiter und Soldat were published between 1943 and 1944. The available reference material does not establish exact publication dates for each issue, print runs, circulation totals, printers, or the full list of contributors. It does, however, document the magazine’s continued appearance despite the intense repression of the clandestine political press. Its short publication history was tied to the wartime occupation and the exceptional conditions under which the Trotskyist group operated. The original magazine was not a continuing commercial title. Following the end of the occupation and the wartime underground setting, it became primarily a historical source. In August 2008, the archive of surviving issues was republished in English. This archival republication made the publication’s political arguments and documentary record available to a wider audience. In October 2019, another English translation was included in a biography of Martin Monath, further connecting the magazine to the study of its editor and of anti-Nazi Trotskyist resistance. Arbeiter und Soldat is therefore best classified as a historical underground periodical rather than a conventional consumer-facing brand. Its importance rests on its role in anti-fascist resistance, its attempt to communicate revolutionary politics to German soldiers, its refusal to align with the Western Allies, and the risks faced by those who produced it under occupation.

• 2019

  Further translation published with a Martin Monath biography

  [1]Arbeiter und Soldaten.wikipedia.org

  An English translation was included in a biography of editor Martin Monath published in October 2019.

• 2008

  Surviving archive republished in English

  [1]Arbeiter und Soldaten.wikipedia.org

  The archive of extant issues was made available in an English republication in August 2008.

• 1944

  Six-issue wartime run concluded

  [1]Arbeiter und Soldaten.wikipedia.org

  Six issues had been published by 1944 despite repression by the French Milice and the Gestapo.

• 1943

  First issues published clandestinely

  [1]Arbeiter und Soldaten.wikipedia.org

  Arbeiter und Soldat began appearing as an underground publication for German soldiers in occupied France under the auspices of the Parti Ouvrier Internationaliste.

A clandestine Trotskyist, anti-fascist publication aimed at German soldiers, combining opposition to Nazism with a rejection of support for the Western Allies, which it regarded as imperialist.

• Clandestine political magazine · 1943

  Arbeiter und Soldat

  A German-language underground magazine produced in occupied France for German soldiers. It opposed fascism and the Nazi regime while maintaining a Trotskyist position that rejected support for the Western Allies, portraying them as imperialist. Six issues appeared between 1943 and 1944 under conditions of severe political repression.

• Archival republication · 2008

  English archival edition

  An English republication of the surviving Arbeiter und Soldat archive issued in August 2008. It provided access to the historical publication for readers who could not consult the original German-language issues.

1. 1Arbeiter und Soldaten.wikipedia.org