Alfred Fellisch (1 June 1884 – 4 March 1973) was a German Social democrat and

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

politician. He was

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

minister of economics both in the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

and in postwar

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

and briefly Minister President of the

Free State of Saxony Free may refer to: Concept * Freedom, having the ability to do something, without having to obey anyone/anything * Freethought, a position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism * Emancipate, to procure ...

(1923–1924). Fellisch was born in

Fraustadt Wschowa (pronounced , german: Fraustadt) is a town in the Lubusz Voivodeship in western Poland with 13,875 inhabitants (2019). It is the capital of Wschowa County and a significant tourist site containing many important historical monuments. His ...

Province of Posen The Province of Posen (german: Provinz Posen, pl, Prowincja Poznańska) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1848 to 1920. Posen was established in 1848 following the Greater Poland Uprising as a successor to the Grand Duchy of Posen, w ...

, German Empire (Wschowa, Poland), his father was a butcher. He attended primary school and was trained as a glovemaker, a profession he exercised until 1912. In 1912 and 1913 he attended the Social Democratic Party school in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

and started to work for the ''Volksstimme'' ("People's Voice") newspaper in

Chemnitz Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the 28th largest city of Germany as well as the fourth largest city in the area of former East Germany a ...

in 1913. In 1914 he became a member of the SPD party executive of

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. From 1914 to 1921 Fellisch was the chairman of the young workers organization in Chemnitz. In 1919 he became a member of the town council of Chemnitz and worked as a secretary of the Social Democratic fraction in the

Saxon Parliament The Landtag of Saxony (german: Sächsischer Landtag), also known in English as the Saxon State Parliament, is the legislature of the Free State of Saxony, one of Germany's sixteen states. It is responsible for legislation, control of the govern ...

. He ran unsuccessfully in the Reichstag election of 1920 in the district 33.Sozialdemokratische Parlamentarier in den deutschen Reichs- und Landtagen 1876-1933
Fellisch served as Saxon Minister of economics from May 1921 to January 1924 and, after the dismissal of

Erich Zeigner Erich Zeigner (17 February 1886, in Erfurt – 5 April 1949, in Leipzig) was a German politician. He was Prime Minister of the German state of Saxony during the attempted communist uprising of 1923. In August 1921 Zeigner was Minister of Justi ...

by German President Friedrich Ebert, Minister President from 31 October 1923 to 4 January 1924. From 1924 to 1933 he was the head of the regional administration (Amtshauptmann) of Annaberg. Following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the

Soviet Military Administration in Germany The Soviet Military Administration in Germany (russian: Советская военная администрация в Германии, СВАГ; ''Sovyetskaya Voyennaya Administratsiya v Germanii'', SVAG; german: Sowjetische Militäradministrat ...

appointed him as "Regierungsrat" in Stollberg and "Landrat" of the

Annaberg district Annaberg is a former district in Saxony, Germany. It was bounded by (from the south and clockwise) the Czech Republic and the districts of Aue-Schwarzenberg, Stollberg and Mittlerer Erzgebirgskreis. Its colors are pink, green, and blue. History ...

. With the merger of the Social Democrat Party and the

Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (german: Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, , KPD ) was a major political party in the Weimar Republic between 1918 and 1933, an underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and a minor party in West German ...

in the

Soviet occupation zone The Soviet Occupation Zone ( or german: Ostzone, label=none, "East Zone"; , ''Sovetskaya okkupatsionnaya zona Germanii'', "Soviet Occupation Zone of Germany") was an area of Germany in Central Europe that was occupied by the Soviet Union as a c ...

he became a member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany in April 1946. From May 1946 to March 1948 Fellisch was Secretary of State of economy and economic planning of Saxony. He followed

Fritz Selbmann Friedrich Wilhelm "Fritz" Selbmann (29 September 1899 – 26 January 1975) was a German Communist politician and writer who served as a member of the national parliament (Reichstag) during 1932/33. He spent the twelve Nazi years first in pris ...

, who became deputy chairman of the

German Economic Commission The German Economic Commission (german: Deutsche Wirtschaftskommission; DWK) was the top administrative body in the Soviet Occupation Zone of Germany prior to the creation of the German Democratic Republic (german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik). ...

, as Minister of economy and economic planning of Saxony from April 1948 to September 1949. From 1949 until his retirement in 1952 he was the director of the Saxon State Library. Fellisch died on 4 March 1973 in

Radebeul Radebeul ( hsb, Radobyle) is a town (''große Kreisstadt'') in the Elbe valley in the district of Meißen (district), Meißen in Saxony, Germany, a suburb of Dresden. It is well known for its viticulture, a museum dedicated to writer Karl May ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fellisch, Alfred 1884 births 1973 deaths People from Wschowa Politicians from the Province of Posen Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians Independent Social Democratic Party politicians Ministers-President of Saxony Ministers of the Saxony State Government Members of the Landtag of Saxony