Bourgeois women of the world unite!

The establishment of the Federation of German Women’s Associations (BDF)

Aiming to widen girls’ access to education, improve women’s working conditions and generally improve the lives of women, a gathering of various women’s groups in Berlin on 29 March 1894 decided to found an umbrella organisation to unite their various energies. Reflecting the forced apoliticality of women in Prussia and seeking to establish broad appeal, the new organization pursued only moderate aims. This meant that although it was prepared to accept women from the working classes, it excluded socialists.

The BDF soon gained influence and reached a membership of over one million. It disbanded in 1933 in order to prevent it from being taken over by the women’s movement of the NSDAP.