The Modrow government refers to the final socialist government of the
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
**G ...
(GDR), which was led by
Socialist Unity Party (SED) official
Hans Modrow
Hans Modrow (; born 27 January 1928) is a German politician best known as the last communist premier of East Germany.
Taking office in the middle of the Peaceful Revolution, he was the ''de facto'' leader of the country for much of the winter ...
from November 1989 until East Germany's first democratically elected government took power on 18 March 1990.
Background
Spurred on by the liberal policies of
Glasnost and
Perestroika in the Soviet Union, and
Mikhail Gorbachev's apparent tolerance of liberal reforms
in other countries in the
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist repub ...
, protests began to spread in the German Democratic Republic in 1989. This culminated in a large increase in citizens escaping from the country during the summer of 1989 after Hungary dismantled its portion of the Iron Curtain. At the same time opposition to the incumbent SED was growing - on 9 October 1989, for example, 70,000 people took part in a demonstration in Leipzig calling for free elections and other democratic rights which had been denied to East German citizens since the founding of the GDR. On 18 October 1989
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 posts ...
was ousted as leader by his Politburo as a result of his unwillingness to confront the societal problems which had led to the mass exodus and political protest. The relatively youthful
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 Secretary ...
who was chosen as successor proved to be ineffective, and on 9 November 1989 the
Berlin Wall was opened, becoming a symbol of the SED's complete loss of power. Within the first four days of the Wall's opening, 4.3 million people or 25% of the East German population had made the trip across the border to
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 ...
with many choosing to remain there to take advantage of the higher quality of life. Since 8 November a new Politburo had been in power when the previous one had unanimously resigned. Amongst the new members was former First Secretary of the SED in
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...
Hans Modrow. Despite the personnel change the new government was unable to bring stability to the situation, with increased absenteeism through emigration and citizens taking trips to West Germany placing higher pressure on the East German economy.
Formation
Round Table
As a result of the increasingly fragmented nature of the East German political landscape
Government of National Responsibility
Ministers
* Acting Foreign Secretary:
Harry Ott
* Chairman of the
State Council and Chairman of the
National Defence Council:
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 Secretary ...
(until 6 December 1989), thereafter
Manfred Gerlach
* Chairman of the State Planning Commission:
Gerhard Schürer
Gerhard Schürer (14 April 1921 – 22 December 2010) was a leading politician in East Germany.
Between 1963 and 1989 he was a member of the powerful Central Committee of the country's ruling SED (party). He also served, between 1965 and 198 ...
[Childs p.103]
* Deputy Chairpersons:
Christa Luft,
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 l ...
and
Peter Moreth
Peter Moreth (28 July 19414 February 2014) was a German politician of the East German satellite party LDPD. He was a member of the Volkskammer from 1986 to March 1990 and member of the State Council of East Germany from 1986 to November 1989. ...
* General of the
People's Police: Lothar Arendt
* Head of the
Office for National Security:
Wolfgang Schwanitz
* Minister for Economic Questions: Christa Luft
* Minister for Work and Wages:
Hannelore Mensch
*
Ministers Without Portfolio:
Wolfgang Ullmann,
Rainer Eppelmann
Rainer Eppelmann () (born 12 February 1943 in Berlin), is a German politician. Known for his opposition in the German Democratic Republic, he became Minister for Disarmament and Defense in the last cabinet. He is now a member of the CDU.
The ...
,
Sebastian Pflugbeil,
Gerd Poppe Gerd or GERD may refer to:
* Gerd (given name), a list of people with the given name or nickname
* Gerd (moon), a moon of Saturn
* Gerd Island, South Orkney Islands, Antarctica
* Gastroesophageal reflux disease, a chronic symptom of mucosal damage ...
,
Walter Romberg
Walter Romberg (27 December 1928 – 23 May 2014) was a German politician and finance minister of East Germany.
Early life and education
Romberg was born in Schwerin on 27 December 1928. From 1947 he studied physics and mathematics. He held a D ...
,
Tatjana Böhm,
Klaus Schlüter and
Matthias Platzeck
Matthias Platzeck (born 29 December 1953) is a German politician. He was Minister President of Brandenburg from 2002 to 2013 and party chairman of the SPD from November 2005 to April 2006.
On 29 July 2013 Platzeck announced his resignation fr ...
* Secretary of State:
Wolfgang Rauchfuß
See also
*
Die Wende
The Peaceful Revolution (german: Friedliche Revolution), as a part of the Revolutions of 1989, was the process of sociopolitical change that led to the opening of East Germany's borders with the West, the end of the ruling of the Socialist Unity ...
*
German Reunification
References
{{German cabinets
Government of East Germany
1989 establishments in East Germany
1990 disestablishments in East Germany
Historic German cabinets