Rüdiger Lautmann:
Preußisch-deutscher Militarismus und Homophobie
Rüdiger Lautmann:
Prussian-German Militarism and Homophobia
English abstract
Rüdiger Lautmann examines the influence of militarism on homophobia at the time of the German Empire. The development of Prussia was dominated by an aggressive and destructive militarism that shaped the entire society and was accompanied by a particular image of manhood: the ideal of the officer and the soldier. The domestic policies of the German Empire were geared towards strengthening the power of the Kaiser, building up the nation and suppressing socialist tendencies. The advancing militarization of German society also stimulated a discussion of men desiring men. Homosexuality was seen as an omnipresent threat to men in general. Even within their own debates, homosexuals became split into "masculinist" and "feminist" camps. The homophobic panic seen around the year 1905 did not just strip high-ranking military staff and imperial advisors of their offices – according to Lautmann, it also played a part in steering politics down a path that ultimately led to World War I, in that the homophobic campaign helped to cut off moderating voices, leaving the Kaiser among the warmongering factions. Even after the end of the imperial period, Prussian-German militarism would continue exerting a disastrous influence.