The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (german: Christlich-Demokratische Union Deutschlands, CDU) was an

East German 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 ...

political party founded in 1945. It was part of the National Front with the

Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (german: Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, ; SED, ), often known in English as the East German Communist Party, was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germ ...

(SED) and a

bloc party Bloc Party are an English rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler), Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards), Justin Harris (bass guitar, keyboards, saxophones, backing vocals) and Louise Bartle (d ...

until 1989. It contested the free elections in 1990 as an arm of the West German Christian Democratic Union, into which it merged after

German reunification German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...

later that same year.

Party politics

The CDU was originally very similar to its West German counterpart. Like the West German CDU, its support came mostly from devout

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Co ...

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

. However, it was a little more left-leaning than the West German CDU. Its first chairman was Andreas Hermes, who had been a prominent member of the Centre Party during the

Weimar Republic The German Reich, commonly referred to as the Weimar Republic,, was a historical period of Germany from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is also r ...

and a three-time minister. He fled to the West in 1946 and was replaced by Jakob Kaiser, another former Centre Party member and a leading member of the

resistance movement A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objective ...

during World War II. Kaiser had been a prominent member of the Centre's left wing, and favoured nationalisation of heavy industries and a land distribution programme suggested by the Communists. However, his criticism of the Communists resulted in him being pushed out in 1947 in favour of the more pliant

Otto Nuschke Otto Nuschke (23 February 1883 – 27 December 1957) was a German politician. Nuschke was born in Frohburg in the Kingdom of Saxony. In 1910 he was elected General Secretary of the liberal Progressive People's Party (''Fortschrittliche Vol ...

, a former member of the

German Democratic Party The German Democratic Party (, or DDP) was a center-left liberal party in the Weimar Republic. Along with the German People's Party (, or DVP), it represented political liberalism in Germany between 1918 and 1933. It was formed in 1918 from the ...

(DDP). Nuschke and his supporters gradually pushed out those CDU members who were not willing to do the Communists' bidding. This culminated at the Sixth Party Congress in 1952, at which it formally transformed itself into a loyal partner of the Communists. At this gathering, it declared itself "a Socialist party without any limitations" in accordance with the new line of "Christian realism". In the 22 "Theses on Christian Realism", the CDU committed itself to the "Socialist reorganisation of Society" (1st edition, 1951). Emphasising the "exemplary realisation" of

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

's "teaching on building a new, better social order" in the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

, it was declared that Socialism offered at the time "the best opportunity for the realisation of Christ's demands and for exercising the practical Christianity". The programme also asserted the CDU's support for the working class' leading role in establishing socialism, a development which the party regarded from its 6th Congress onward as "historically necessary and consistent". Its deputies, like all other East German parties, consistently voted for the government's proposals in the Volkskammer. The only exception was the vote on 9 March 1972 vote on the abortion law, when there were 14 'nays' and 8 absentees among the CDU deputies. After Nuschke's death,

August Bach August Bach (30 August 1897 – 23 March 1966) was an East German Christian Democratic politician. August Bach was born in Rheydt. From 1915 to 1918 he served in German army. After the War he studied History at the University of Berlin. He ...

, another former DDP member, led the party for the remainder of the 1950s. In 1966 long-time general secretary Gerald Götting was elected chairman. Götting, who was chairman of the Volkskammer (and ''de facto'' vice president of the GDR) from 1969 to 1976, carried on and elaborated the pro-government line. Götting remained chairman and an SED ally until

Erich Honecker Erich Ernst Paul Honecker (; 25 August 1912 – 29 May 1994) was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1971 until shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. He held the post ...

was deposed in favour of

Egon Krenz Egon Rudi Ernst Krenz (; born 19 March 1937) is a German former politician who was the last Communist leader of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) during the Revolutions of 1989. He succeeded Erich Honecker as the General Secreta ...

in October 1989. On 2 November 1989, Götting was deposed by inner party reformers. In December 1989

Lothar de Maizière Lothar de Maizière (; born 2 March 1940) is a German Christian Democratic politician. In 1990, he served as the only premier of the German Democratic Republic to be democratically elected freely and fairly by the people. He was also the last ...

, a lawyer and deputy chairman of the Evangelical Church Synod of East Germany, was elected chairman. From that point on the party deposed (and later expelled) its former top figures, and became the strongest proponent of speedy reunification with

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. In March 1990, the CDU became the main element of the Alliance for Germany, a centre-right coalition. It won the first (and as it turned out, only) free general election and became the biggest party in the People's Chamber. In April de Maizière became Prime Minister of the GDR, heading a grand coalition that immediately set about reuniting the country with the West. In August 1990, the

Democratic Awakening Democratic Beginning (german: Demokratischer Aufbruch) was an East German political movement and political party that was active during the Revolutions of 1989 and in the period leading up to the German reunification. While it was a relatively ...

, a minor member of the governing coalition, merged into the East German CDU. The merger brought Democratic Awakening spokeswoman and future

Chancellor of Germany The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany,; often shortened to ''Bundeskanzler''/''Bundeskanzlerin'', / is the head of the federal government of Germany and the commander in chief of the ...

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Op ...

into the party. In October 1990, the East German CDU merged into the West German CDU.

Newspaper

The official newspaper of the party was ''Neue Zeit'', published by Union: Verlag.

International relations

The CDU maintained close relations with other Christian democratic parties in the Soviet bloc. Relations with the state-sponsored and -controlled Catholic

PAX Association The PAX Association () was a pro-communist Catholic organization created in 1947 in the People's Republic of Poland at the onset of the Stalinist period. The association published the ''Słowo Powszechne'' daily for almost fifty years between 19 ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

and the

Czechoslovak People's Party Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) ** First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) ** Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak R ...

(CSL) were especially close. There were some contacts with individual members of the Italian

Christian Democracy Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism. It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...

party (DC), the Belgian Christian People's Party (CVP) and Christian Social Party (PSC) and the Dutch Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA). Although the East German CDU and its West German counterpart were often at odds with each other, they maintained official relations. The East German Christian Democrats also had close relations with the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

.Peter Joachim Lapp ''Die "befreundeten Parteien" der SED'', 1988, p. 103

Chairmen

General secretaries

East German CDU politicians

* Else Ackermann * Sabine Bergmann-Pohl (Last Head of State of the

GDR 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 ...

) * Dieter Helm (later became the parliamentary leader for the CDU in the Landtag of Brandenburg) * Emil Fuchs (Theologian) * Karl Grobbel (co-founder of the Berlin Conference of European Catholics) * Hubertus Guske (General Secretary of the Berlin Conference of European Catholics) * Ernst Lemmer (co-chairman of the CDU in 1947) *

(deputy spokesperson of

's government and the united Germany's first female

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

) * Herbert Schirmer (Minister of Culture 1990) * Max Sefrin (Deputy Prime Minister) * Luitpold Steidle (Minister of Health Care) * Heinrich Toeplitz (Supreme Court of the

) * Heinz Winkler (Minister of Reconstruction)

Electoral history

References

External links

Christlich Demokratische Union of the GDR from ''chronik der wende''
{{Authority control Peaceful Revolution Organizations of the Revolutions of 1989 Political parties in East Germany Political parties established in 1945 Political parties disestablished in 1990 Defunct political parties in Germany Defunct Christian political parties Christian socialist organizations Christian democratic parties in Germany 1945 establishments in Germany 1990 disestablishments in Germany Centrist parties in Germany