Zabern Affair of 1913
Zabern Affair of 1913
a clash between the German military authorities and the residents of the Alsatian town of Zabern (now Saverne), which had been annexed by Germany in 1871.
The Zabern affair revealed the strong dissatisfaction of the town’s inhabitants with the policy of forced prussianization. The immediate cause of the clash, which occurred on Nov. 7, 1913, was a German officer’s insulting the national feelings of the people. In response to repressive measures taken by the military authorities against the angry citizens of Zabern, protest demonstrations were held in Alsace; the Landtag of Alsace-Lorraine declared its protest as well in January 1914. On Dec. 4, 1913, the German Reichstag, by a vote of 293 to 54, reprimanded the imperial chancellor, T. von Bethmann-Hollweg, who had defended the military authorities. The Zabern affair and the events associated with it reflected the severe political crisis that had developed in Germany.