Erich Mückenberger (8 June 1910 – 10 February 1998) was a German

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

politician. He began his political career in the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together w ...

(SPD). He became a member of the

Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (, ; SED, ) was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from the country's foundation in 1949 until its dissolution after the Peaceful Revolution in 1989. It was a Mar ...

(SED) when the

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

branches of SPD and the

Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (, ; KPD ) was a major Far-left politics, far-left political party in the Weimar Republic during the interwar period, German resistance to Nazism, underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and minor party ...

merged after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Mückenberger was one of the most high-ranking former Social Democrats in the

German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

and held several positions in the SED.

Early life and political activism

Mückenberger spent his childhood in

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

. He later worked there as a machine-fitter apprentice. In 1924 he joined the Social Democratic youth organization. In 1927 he became a SPD member. Mückenberger became an activist of its paramilitary wing, '' Reichsbanner''. After the National Socialist takeover, he engaged in underground resistance against the new regime. In 1935 he was arrested and sent to the

Sachsenhausen concentration camp Sachsenhausen () or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a German Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used from 1936 until April 1945, shortly before the defeat of Nazi Germany in May later that year. It mainly held political prisoners t ...

. He was released after several months. In 1938 he was again arrested and was put in jail for ten months. In 1942 he was drafted to the German military and sent to the frontline. He was an English

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

from April to August 1945.

Political career in the GDR

After returning home in 1945, Mückenberger again became active in the SPD. Through the merger of SPD and KPD in the

Soviet Occupation Zone The Soviet occupation zone in Germany ( or , ; ) was an area of Germany that was occupied by the Soviet Union as a communist area, established as a result of the Potsdam Agreement on 2 August 1945. On 7 October 1949 the German Democratic Republ ...

, Mückenberger became a SED member. He became First Secretary of the SED Party District Organization in

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

in 1948. Mückenberger then served as First Secretary of the

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

Party District Organization of SED 1949–1952. As the Thuringia District was divided along the geographic reorganization of the

, Mückenberger became First Secretary of the

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

Party District Organization (one of the districts created out of the Thuringia organization). He remained as the First Secretary of the Erfurt SED District until 1953. Mückenberger became a candidate member of the

politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the highest organ of the central committee in communist parties. The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in socialist and Islamist parties, such as the UK Labour Party's NEC or the Poli ...

of SED in 1950. He was one of four former SPD members that were represented in the SED politburo. In July 1953 he was included in the Central Committee secretariat. He remained in the CC secretariat until January 1963. He became a full politburo member in July 1958. Mückenberger became First Secretary of the

Frankfurt/Oder Frankfurt (Oder), also known as Frankfurt an der Oder (, ; Marchian dialects, Central Marchian: ''Frankfort an de Oder,'' ) is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Brandenburg after Potsdam, Cottbus and Brandenburg an der Havel. With a ...

Party District Organization of SED in 1961. He stepped down in 1971 and was replaced by the then Second Secretary Hans-Joachim Hertwig. In the same year, he was appointed as the Chairman of the influential SED Central Control Commission, the party organ regulating party memberships. In 1978, he was elected chairman of the German-Soviet Friendship Society. In 1980, he was elected as the head of the SED parliamentary group in the ''

Volkskammer The Volkskammer (, "People's Chamber") was the supreme power organ of East Germany. It was the only branch of government in the state, and per the principle of unified power, all state organs were subservient to it. The Volkskammer was initia ...

'' (the national parliament of the GDR). Mückenberger remained in the SED politburo until November 1989. During his political life, Erich Mückenberger participated as a speaker in the remembrance events for the liberation of the

Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; 'beech forest') was a German Nazi concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Nazi Germany, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within the Altreich (pre-1938 ...

at the National Memorial of the GDR.

Later life

Mückenberger was expelled from the Socialist Unity Party of Germany/Party of Democratic Socialism (SED-PDS) on 21 November 1990. Following the

German reunification German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...

, Mückenberger was put on trial for shootings at the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...

, a process that Mückenberger himself dubbed as ' victors' justice'. Mückenberger was allowed to withdraw from the trial in 1996, due to ill health.

Works

* ''Die politische Massenarbeit im Dorf und die nächsten Aufgaben der Landwirtschaft.'' Berlin 1954. * ''Kommunisten werden im Kampf erzogen.'' Berlin 1980. * ''Der Menschheit ein Leben in Frieden.'' Ausgewählte Reden und Aufsätze, Berlin 1985.

References