Eugen Bircher (17 February 1882 – 20 October 1956) was a Swiss politician and military leader who became associated with a pro-German position in the inter-war years.
Bircher came to prominence in the army where he rose to the rank of colonel, the highest used in Switzerland in peacetime. In 1934 he was promoted to Major General (Commander of 4., later 5. Division). Together with Federal Counselor Rudolf Minger he was a leading promoter of Swiss armament and preparedness between 1934 and 1939. Bircher published a lot of medical, political and military books and articles.
An opponent of immigration he formed during "Landesgeneralstreik" the Schweizerischer Vaterländischer Verband, SVV in 1919 as a militia and semi-secret society to support his viewpoint. The group became influential amongst army officers in the years following the First World War. The position as leader of SVV was boosted by Bircher's spells as president of the Swiss Officers Society (1931-7) and editor of the official Swiss Army newspaper (1934–42).[1] An influential figure in society, Bircher numbered the federal councillors Marcel Pilet-Golaz, Giuseppe Motta, Eduard von Steiger, Philipp Etter, Walther Stampfli and Ernst Wetter amongst his close political associates.[2]
Bircher sought a close relationship between Switzerland and Nazi Germany and it has even been alleged that he funded Adolf Hitler in his early years (although no conclusive evidence has as yet been provided),[3] and his biographer rejects this claim outright. He also organized medical corps for the Eastern Front on the pretext of anti-communism.[4]
Medical career
Bircher was a physician (Chief Surgeon 1917 - 1932, Director 1932/34 of "Kantonsspital Aarau") by trade and in the 1920s published several ground-breaking papers detailing arthroscopy procedures on the knee. Bircher is often considered the inventor of arthroscopy of the knee,[5] although the Japanese surgeon Masaki Watanabe receives primary credit for using arthroscopy for interventional surgery. After diagnosing torn tissue through arthroscopy, Bircher used open surgery to remove or repair the damaged tissue. Initially, he used an electric Jacobaeus thoracolaparoscope for his diagnostic procedures, but later became devoted to double-contrast radiography for diagnostics.[6] Bircher gave up endoscopy in 1930, and his work was largely neglected for several decades.
Sources
Daniel Heller, Eugen Bircher, Arzt, Militär, Politiker, NZZ Zürich 1988.
^Swiss Doctors with the Yugoslavian Resistance 2007-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
^Böni T (1996). "[Knee problems from a medical history viewpoint]". Ther Umsch (in German). 53 (10): 716–23. PMID 8966679.
^Kieser CW, Jackson RW (2003). "Eugen Bircher (1882-1956) the first knee surgeon to use diagnostic arthroscopy". Arthroscopy. 19 (7): 771–6. doi:10.1016/S0749-8063(03)00693-5. PMID 12966386.
January 21, 2023
eugen, bircher, february, 1882, october, 1956, swiss, politician, military, leader, became, associated, with, german, position, inter, years, born, 1882, february, 1882aaraudied20, october, 1956, 1956, aged, citizenshipswissoccupationphysicianknown, forarmy, o. Eugen Bircher 17 February 1882 20 October 1956 was a Swiss politician and military leader who became associated with a pro German position in the inter war years Eugen BircherBornEugen Bircher 1882 02 17 17 February 1882AarauDied20 October 1956 1956 10 20 aged 74 CitizenshipSwissOccupationPhysicianKnown forArmy officer politicianPolitical partyParty of Farmers Traders and Independents Schweizerischer Vaterlandischer VerbandContents 1 Military and political career 2 Medical career 3 Sources 4 ReferencesMilitary and political career EditBircher came to prominence in the army where he rose to the rank of colonel the highest used in Switzerland in peacetime In 1934 he was promoted to Major General Commander of 4 later 5 Division Together with Federal Counselor Rudolf Minger he was a leading promoter of Swiss armament and preparedness between 1934 and 1939 Bircher published a lot of medical political and military books and articles An opponent of immigration he formed during Landesgeneralstreik the Schweizerischer Vaterlandischer Verband SVV in 1919 as a militia and semi secret society to support his viewpoint The group became influential amongst army officers in the years following the First World War The position as leader of SVV was boosted by Bircher s spells as president of the Swiss Officers Society 1931 7 and editor of the official Swiss Army newspaper 1934 42 1 An influential figure in society Bircher numbered the federal councillors Marcel Pilet Golaz Giuseppe Motta Eduard von Steiger Philipp Etter Walther Stampfli and Ernst Wetter amongst his close political associates 2 Bircher sought a close relationship between Switzerland and Nazi Germany and it has even been alleged that he funded Adolf Hitler in his early years although no conclusive evidence has as yet been provided 3 and his biographer rejects this claim outright He also organized medical corps for the Eastern Front on the pretext of anti communism 4 Medical career EditBircher was a physician Chief Surgeon 1917 1932 Director 1932 34 of Kantonsspital Aarau by trade and in the 1920s published several ground breaking papers detailing arthroscopy procedures on the knee Bircher is often considered the inventor of arthroscopy of the knee 5 although the Japanese surgeon Masaki Watanabe receives primary credit for using arthroscopy for interventional surgery After diagnosing torn tissue through arthroscopy Bircher used open surgery to remove or repair the damaged tissue Initially he used an electric Jacobaeus thoracolaparoscope for his diagnostic procedures but later became devoted to double contrast radiography for diagnostics 6 Bircher gave up endoscopy in 1930 and his work was largely neglected for several decades Sources EditDaniel Heller Eugen Bircher Arzt Militar Politiker NZZ Zurich 1988 References Edit Alan Morris Schom A Survey of Nazi and Pro Nazi Groups in Switzerland 1930 1945 Archived 2012 05 10 at the Wayback Machine Schom op cit Scheck Raffael 1999 Swiss Funding for the Early Nazi Movement Motivation Context and Continuities The Journal of Modern History University of Chicago Press 71 4 799 doi 10 1086 235359 ISSN 1537 5358 JSTOR 10 1086 235359 Swiss Doctors with the Yugoslavian Resistance Archived 2007 10 08 at the Wayback Machine Boni T 1996 Knee problems from a medical history viewpoint Ther Umsch in German 53 10 716 23 PMID 8966679 Kieser CW Jackson RW 2003 Eugen Bircher 1882 1956 the first knee surgeon to use diagnostic arthroscopy Arthroscopy 19 7 771 6 doi 10 1016 S0749 8063 03 00693 5 PMID 12966386 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Eugen Bircher amp oldid 1076978837, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
