WEST GERMANY’S FIRST CHANCELLOR: KONRAD ADENAUER (5 JANUARY 1876 TO 19 APRIL 1967)

 

History is the sum total of things that could have been avoided. - Konrad Adenauer

[PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.azquotes.com/quote/2331]

Konrad Adenauer
Chancellor of Germany (West Germany)
In office 15 September 1949 – 16 October 1963
President	Theodor Heuss Heinrich Lübke
Deputy	Franz Blücher Ludwig Erhard
Preceded by	Lutz von Krosigk (Leading Minister; 1945)
Succeeded by	Ludwig Erhard
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office 15 March 1951 – 6 June 1955
Preceded by	Lutz von Krosigk (1945)
Succeeded by	Heinrich von Brentano
Chair of the Christian Democratic Union
In office 21 October 1950 – 23 March 1966
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Ludwig Erhard
Mayor of Cologne
In office 4 May 1945 – 6 October 1945
Preceded by	Willi Suth
Succeeded by	Willi Suth
In office 13 October 1917 – 13 March 1933
Preceded by	Max Wallraf
Succeeded by	Günter Riesen
President of the Prussian State Council
In office October 1921 – 26 April 1933
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Robert Ley
Personal details
Born	Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer 5 January 1876 Cologne, Germany
Died	19 April 1967 (aged 91) Bad Honnef, West Germany (now Germany)
Political party	Centre Party (1906–1933) Christian Democratic Union (1945–his death)
Spouse(s)	Emma Weyer (1904–1916) Auguste Zinsser (1919–1948)
Children	8
Alma mater	University of Freiburg University of Munich University of Bonn

Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer (German pronun­cia­tion: [ˈkɔnʁaːt ˈhɛɐ̯man ˈjoːzəf ˈaːdəˌnaʊ̯ɐ]; 5 January 1876 – 19 April 1967) was a German statesman who served as the first post-war Chancellor of Germany (West Germany) from 1949 to 1963. He led his country from the ruins of World War II to a productive and prosperous nation that forged close relations with France, the United Kingdom and the United States. During his years in power West Germany achieved democracy, stability, international respect and economic prosperity ("Wirtschaftswunder", German for "economic miracle"). He was the first leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), a Christian Democratic party that under his leadership became one of the most influential parties in the country.

Adenauer, the Chancellor till age 87 was dubbed "Der Alte" ("the old man"). British historian Roy Jenkins says he was "the oldest statesman ever to function in elected office." He belied his age by his intense work habits and his uncanny political instinct. He displayed a strong dedication to a broad vision of market-based liberal democracy and anti-communism. A shrewd politician, Adenauer was deeply committed to a Western-oriented foreign policy and restoring the position of West Germany on the world stage. He worked to restore the West German economy from the destruction of World War II to a central position in Europe, presiding over the German Economic Miracle. He reestablished the German military (Bundeswehr) in 1955. He came to terms with France, which made possible the economic unification of Western Europe. Adenauer opposed rival East Germany and made his nation a member of NATO and a firm ally of the United States.

A devout Roman Catholic, he had been a leading Centre Party politician in the Weimar Republic, serving as Mayor of Cologne (1917–1933) and as president of the Prussian State Council (1922–1933).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konrad_Adenauer

OTHER LINKS:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Konrad-Adenauer

http://www.kas.de/wf/en/

http://www.kas.de/wf/en/71.3717/

http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Konrad_Adenauer

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/adenauer_konrad.shtml