Heinz Eichler (14 November 1927 – 12 September 2013) was a

German 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 **Ge ...

politician who served as the Secretary of the

State Council of the German Democratic Republic The State Council of East Germany (German: ''Staatsrat der DDR'') was the collective head of state of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1960 to 1990. Origins When the German Democratic Republic was founded in October 1949, its ...

commonly known as

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 ...

Early life and education

Heinz Eichler was born to a working-class family in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

. He joined the

National Socialist German Workers' Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported th ...

(Nazi Party) in 1944 at the age of sixteen. He graduated from the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...

in 1950. In 1960, he also graduated from the Academy of Social Sciences of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

Political career

After

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 opposing ...

, Eichler became an employee of the

Oschatz Oschatz () is a town in the district Nordsachsen, in Saxony, Germany. It is located 60 km east of Leipzig and 60 km west of Dresden. Geography Site and climate Oschatz lies in the Saxon Lowland and is located on the river Dölln ...

District Council. He joined the Communist Party of Germany and became a member of the Oschatz District Anti-Fascist Youth Committee. In 1946, Eichler joined the Free German Youth and became a member of the Socialist Unity Party after the

merger of the KPD and SPD into the Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) merged to form the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) on 21 April 1946 in the territory of the Soviet occupation zone. It is considered a forced merger. In ...

. After taking courses at the Socialist Unity Party State Party School in Ottendorf, Eichler was elected to the Oschatz District Board of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and remained there until 1948. After completing his studies in 1950, Eichler became a main clerk in the

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministr ...

. Upon returning to East Germany in 1960, Eichler worked as a personal assistant for

Walter Ulbricht Walter Ernst Paul Ulbricht (; 30 June 18931 August 1973) was a German communist politician. Ulbricht played a leading role in the creation of the Weimar-era Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and later (after spending the years of Nazi rule in ...

until 1971. He succeeded Otto Gotsche as the Secretary of the State Council in 1971 and served in this position until November 16, 1989. From 1971 to March 1990, Eichler was a member of the Socialist Unity Party (SED) parliamentary group of the

Volkskammer __NOTOC__ The Volkskammer (, ''People's Chamber'') was the unicameral legislature of the German Democratic Republic (colloquially known as East Germany). The Volkskammer was initially the lower house of a bicameral legislature. The upper house w ...

and also a member of the executive committee. On January 3, 1990, Eichler was summoned for a hearing by the interim

Committee to review cases of abuse of office, corruption, personal gain and other acts suspected of violating the law and questioned about the former Schorfheide special hunting area.

Death

Heinz Eichler passed away on September 12, 2013, at the age of 85 in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. He was buried at the Baumschulenweg Cemetery located in Berlin.

Awards

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 Gold (1977)

in Silver (twice) Banner of Labor 1st Class Battle medal "For Services to the People and Fatherland" in Gold Medal of Merit of the GDR

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eichler, Heinz 1927 births 2013 deaths East German politicians Socialist Unity Party of Germany politicians Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in gold Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit in silver Recipients of the Banner of Labor

Early life and education

Political career

Death

Awards

See also

References