Ernst Wulf (3 October 1921 – 2 October 1979) 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 ...

farmer and political activist who served as chairman of the

Peasants Mutual Aid Association The Peasants Mutual Aid Association (german: Vereinigung der gegenseitigen Bauernhilfe, VdgB) was an East German mass organization for peasants and farmers, later also gardeners. It was founded in the 1945–1946 period and was a participant in t ...

, a mass organization within the National Front, from 1964 to 1979. During the reign of the

Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, Wulf was a member of the

Reich Labour Service The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major organisation established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate it with Nazi ...

, and fought in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

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 ...

, before being captured. After the war, he worked in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

for two years before moving to his home town, in the newly created

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

. He joined the

SED sed ("stream editor") is a Unix utility that parses and transforms text, using a simple, compact programming language. It was developed from 1973 to 1974 by Lee E. McMahon of Bell Labs, and is available today for most operating systems. sed wa ...

and became noted in the country for his contributions to agricultural output. He was a candidate for the Central Committee of the party in 1958.Siegfried Kuntsche: Wulf, Ernst. In: Wer war wer in der DDR? 5. Ausgabe. Band 2, Ch. Links, Berlin 2010, . In 1960, he was elected deputy chairman of the

VdgB The Peasants Mutual Aid Association (german: Vereinigung der gegenseitigen Bauernhilfe, VdgB) was an East German mass organization for peasants and farmers, later also gardeners. It was founded in the 1945–1946 period and was a participant in t ...

, and in 1964 he became chairman, a post he would hold until his death in 1979.

Awards and honours

Master Builder A master builder or master mason is a central figure leading construction projects in pre-modern times (a precursor to the modern architect and engineer). Historically, the term has generally referred to "the head of a construction project in the ...

(1952) *

Patriotic Order of Merit The Patriotic Order of Merit (German: ''Vaterländischer Verdienstorden'', or VVO) was a national award granted annually in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was founded in 1954 and was awarded to individuals and institutions for outstanding ...

in Bronze (1959) *

Order of Karl Marx The Order of Karl Marx () was the most important order in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). The award of the order also included a prize of 20,000 East German marks. The order was founded on May 5, 1953 on the occasion of Karl Marx's 135t ...

(1969)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wulf, Ernst 1921 births 1979 deaths People from Vorpommern-Rügen People from the Free State of Mecklenburg-Schwerin Members of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany Peasants Mutual Aid Association members German Army personnel of World War II German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in bronze Reich Labour Service members