Christian Social Party (Germany)

The party combined a strong Christian-right programme with progressive ideas on labour and tried to provide an alternative for disillusioned Social Democrat voters.

In December 1877, Adolf Stoecker, domestic chaplain at the court of Emperor Wilhelm I and board member of the Evangelical Church of the Prussian Union, together with the economist Adolph Wagner had founded the Central Association for Social Reform (Zentralverein für Sozialreform), dealing with injustice and poverty after the Industrial Revolution.

In the parliament, he acted as a DKP far-right, advocating the abolition of universal suffrage and intriguing against the policies of Chancellor Otto von Bismarck until his resignation in 1890.

Stoecker was even able to include some antisemitic remarks in the DKP's 1892 party manifesto, but when the Conservatives became worried with the over-tones in his messages (although they were more targeted at Reform Judaism than orthodox Judaism)[1] the Christian Socials were forced from the coalition in 1896 and approached to the antisemitic German Social Party.

The group separated itself again, emerging as the Christian Social People's Service (Christlich-Soziale Volksdienst) in 1929 after the business magnate Alfred Hugenberg had become DNVP chairman.