National Defense Council of the GDR
The National Defense Council of the GDR (NVR) was formed by law on February 10, 1960 as the highest state body on issues of national defense and mobilization planning from leading representatives of the SED and the armed organs of the GDR .
history
The predecessor of the NVR, the Security Commission at the Politburo of the SED , met for the first time on July 6, 1954. With the law of February 10, 1960, the National Defense Council of the German Democratic Republic was formed, to which the Security Commission at the Politburo of the SED was transferred. On February 11, 1960, Wilhelm Pieck appointed the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the SED and First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the GDR, Walter Ulbricht , as the first chairman of the NVR, as President of the GDR “at the suggestion of the People's Chamber” . The first meeting of the NVR took place on March 16, 1960.
On September 12, 1960 - five days after Pieck's death - the Council of State took the place of the President as a collective successor body in accordance with the law on the formation of the Council of State of the German Democratic Republic . Section V of the constitution of the GDR , which has been amended as a result, stipulates in Article 106 that the State Council has the task of confirming "basic orders" of the NVR and appointing NVR members.
The NVR further consolidated Walter Ulbricht's claim to political leadership within the party. It consisted of the chairman and at least twelve members, who during the existence of the NVR were always members of the Central Committee of the SED and mostly also members of the Politburo . Subordinate organs of the NVR were the district and district operations managements, the chairmen of which in turn were the first secretaries of the SED district managements.
According to the constitution of the GDR of 1968 , the National Defense Council was the unrestricted governing body of the state for the state of defense with legislative and executive powers. According to Article 50 of the Constitution of 1968, the People's Chamber elected the chairman of the National Defense Council, who could "be recalled by the People's Chamber at any time". The chairman of the National Defense Council would have assumed supreme command in the event of war.
On June 24, 1971, the People's Chamber elected the new First Secretary of the Central Committee of the SED Erich Honecker "unanimously" as chairman of the NVR.
After Honecker's resignation, the Volkskammer elected Egon Krenz as the new NVR chairman on October 24, 1989 . Krenz received 8 votes against and 17 abstentions in this election. Krenz resigned on December 6, 1989 from his offices as State Council Chairman and NVR Chairman. On the same day, by a decision of the State Council, all NVR members were relieved of their functions. This ended the history of this body, until the Volkskammer elections on March 18, 1990 , the tasks of the NVR were carried out directly by the State Council, from then until the end of the GDR on October 3, 1990, there was no longer any official assignment of this task.
The protocols of the NVR played a role in the historical and legal reappraisal of the history of the GDR; they were cited in particular in the wall rifle trials . Some members of the National Defense Council were tried in 1992 at the Berlin Regional Court . Honecker, Mielke, Stoph, Keßler, Streletz and Albrecht were accused of the manslaughter of several Berlin Wall victims who, as members of the NVR between 1961 and 1989, ordered the expansion of the border systems around West Berlin and the barriers to the Federal Republic, in particular with self-firing systems .
tasks
The NVR was responsible for developing the military concept of the GDR according to political specifications and in accordance with the military planning of the United High Command of the Warsaw Pact member states . He was also responsible for compliance with the constitutional and other principles of national defense and for the state of emergency, increasing the combat strength and strengthening the operational readiness of the National People's Army and other armed forces, the operational preparation of the country as well as the preparation of the population, the state apparatus, the entire industry and economy on national defense and the expansion of the armaments industry. Other main tasks included the patriotic education of the population, all military propaganda, the enlightenment of the enemy and his intentions, planning to ensure state security against counterrevolutionary actions and planning of measures to defend against imperialist aggression, including mobilization or Partial mobilization.
Members
| Surname | Life dates | From | To | Central Committee of the SED | Politburo | Ranks of service, function during their NVR membership |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hans Albrecht | 1919-2008 | 1972 | 1989 | 1954 candidate, 1963 member | No | 1. Secretary of the SED district leadership in the Suhl district |
| Alois groom | 1916-2007 | 1963 | 1972 | 1958–1989 member | No | 1. Secretary of the district leadership of the SED in the district of Erfurt |
| Horst Brünner | 1929-2008 | 1986 | 1989 | 1976 candidate, 1986–1989 member | No | Since 1987 Colonel General, Deputy Minister for National Defense and Head of the Main Political Administration (PHV) of the National People's Army (NVA) |
| Friedrich Dickel | 1913-1993 | 1963 | 1989 | 1967–1989 member | No | Since 1984 Army General, Minister of the Interior and Chief of the German People's Police |
| Werner Eberlein | 1919-2002 | 1984 | 1989 | 1981–1989 member | 1986–1989 member | 1. Secretary of the SED district leadership in the Magdeburg district |
| Werner Felfe | 1928-1988 | 1976 | 1988 | 1954 candidate, 1963–1988 member | 1973 candidate, 1976–1988 member | 1. Secretary of the SED district leadership in the Halle district, since 1981 Central Committee Secretary for Agriculture |
| Otto Grotewohl | 1894-1964 | 1960 | 1964 | 1949–1964 member | 1949–1964 member | Chairman of the Council of Ministers, from 1960 de facto retirement from all functions due to illness |
| Kurt Hager | 1912-1998 | 1979 | 1989 | 1950 candidate, 1954–1989 member | 1958 candidate, 1963–1989 member | Central Committee Secretary for Science and Culture |
| Wolfgang Herger | * 1935 | 1986 | 1989 | 1976–1989 member | 1989 member for one month | Head of department for security issues in the Central Committee of the SED |
| Heinz Hoffmann | 1910-1985 | 1960 | 1985 | 1952–1985 member | 1973–1985 member | 1960–1985 Minister for National Defense, since 1961 Army General |
| Erich Honecker | 1912-1994 | 1960 | 1989 | 1949–1989 member | 1950 candidate, 1958–1989 member | Secretary of the Central Committee for u. a. Security questions; 1960–1971 Secretary of the National Defense Council of the GDR, 1971–76 First Secretary of the Central Committee of the SED, 1971–1989 Chairman of the National Defense Council of the GDR, since 1976 General Secretary of the Central Committee of the SED and Chairman of the State Council |
| Heinz Keßler | 1920-2017 | 1967 | 1989 | 1950–1989 member | 1986–1989 member | Minister for National Defense from 1985 |
| Günther Kleiber | 1931-2013 | 1988 | 1989 | 1967–1989 member | 1967 candidate, 1984–1989 member | 1. Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the GDR (1988–1989), permanent representative of the GDR at Comecon |
| Egon Krenz | * 1937 | 1985 | 1989 | 1973–1989 member | 1983–1989 member | Central Committee Secretary for Security Issues, Chairman of the NVR from October 24 to December 6, 1989 |
| Werner Krolikowski | * 1928 | 1973 | 1989 | 1963–1989 member | 1971–1989 member | 1. Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers (1976–1988), since 1988 Central Committee Secretary for Agriculture |
| Bruno Leuschner | 1910-1965 | 1960 | 1965 | 1950–1965 member | 1953 candidate, 1958–1965 member | Chairman of the State Planning Commission |
| Karl Marron | 1903-1975 | 1960 | 1963 | 1954–1963 member | No | Minister of the Interior, since 1962 Colonel General, resigned in 1963 |
| Hermann Matern | 1893-1971 | 1960 | 1971 | 1950–1971 member | 1950–1971 member | Chairman of the Central Party Control Commission |
| Erich Mielke | 1907-2000 | 1960 | 1989 | 1950–1989 member | 1971 candidate, 1976–1989 member | Minister for State Security, Army General since 1980 |
| Günter noon | 1926-1994 | 1979 | 1989 | 1958 candidate, 1962–1989 member | 1963 candidate, 1966–1989 member | Central Committee Secretary for Economy |
| Alfred Neumann | 1909-2001 | 1960 | 1989 | 1954–1989 member | 1954 candidate, 1958–1989 member | Central Committee Secretary for Organization, since 1968 1st Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers |
| Albert North | 1904-1982 | 1960 | 1979 | 1955–1981 member | 1958–1981 member | Central Committee Secretary for Propaganda |
| Alois Pisnik | 1911-2004 | 1960 | 1979 | 1950–1989 member | 1958–1963 candidate | 1. Secretary of the district leadership of the SED Magdeburg |
| Sigfrid Riedel | 1918-2018 | 1960 | 1963 | No | No | Chief of the Main Staff of the National People's Army (NVA), Lieutenant General |
| Horst Sindermann | 1915-1990 | 1972 | 1989 | 1958 candidate, 1963–1989 member | 1967-1989 | 1973–1976 Chairman of the Council of Ministers, since 1976 President of the People's Chamber |
| Willi Stoph | 1914-1999 | 1960 | 1989 | 1950–1989 member | 1953-1989 | Army General, Minister of National Defense until July 1960, Chairman of the Council of Ministers from 1964–1973, Chairman of the Council of State from 1973–1976, again Chairman of the Council of Ministers since 1976 |
| Fritz Streletz | * 1926 | 1971 | 1989 | 1981–1989 member | No | Since 1971 Secretary of the National Defense Council, since 1979 Deputy Minister for National Defense and Chief of the Main Staff of the National People's Army (NVA), Colonel General |
| Kurt Tiedke | 1924-2015 | 1979 | 1984 | 1963 candidate, 1967–1989 member | No | 1. Secretary of the district leadership of the SED Magdeburg |
| Walter Ulbricht | 1893-1973 | 1960 | 1973 | 1949–1973 member | 1949–1973 member | First secretary of the Central Committee of the SED and chairman of the NVR until 1971, chairman of the State Council until 1973 |
| Waldemar Verner | 1914-1982 | 1960 | 1979 | 1954 candidate, 1963 member | No | Admiral, Head of the Main Political Administration (PHV) of the National People's Army (NVA) |
After 1990, the members of the NVR were prosecuted for their political responsibility for the border security regime ( shooting orders and deaths from the wall ).
A bunker was built in Prenden near Wandlitz for the members of the NVR . This was the largest bunker in the GDR. See also Bunker Complex 5000 .
literature
- Daniel Giese: The SED and its army. The NVA between politicization and professionalism 1956–1965 . Oldenbourg, Munich 2002, ISBN 3-486-64585-4 . (Chapter: Central institutions and instruments of the SED for controlling the military , pp. 79ff. In the Google book search)
- Armin Wagner : Walter Ulbricht and the secret security policy of the SED. The National Defense Council of the GDR and its prehistory (1953 to 1971) (= military history of the GDR . Vol. 4). Edited by the Military History Research Office, Links, Berlin 2002, ISBN 3-86153-280-8 .
- Otto Wenzel: READY for WAR - The National Defense Council of the GDR 1960 to 1989 , Verlag Wissenschaft und Politik, Cologne 1995, ISBN 3-8046-8824-1 .
Web links
- History of the National Defense Council at the Federal Archives
- Law on the formation of the National Defense Council of the German Democratic Republic
- Minutes of the National Defense Council at the Federal Archives
- Literature from and about the National Defense Council of the GDR in the catalog of the German National Library
- Literature from and about the National Defense Council of the GDR in the bibliographic database WorldCat
Individual evidence
- ^ Law on the formation of the National Defense Council of the German Democratic Republic of February 10, 1960. In: Law Gazette of the German Democratic Republic , 1959, Part I, p. 89. ( Online )
- ^ Walter Ulbricht appointed chairman of the defense council . In: Neues Deutschland from February 12, 1960, p. 1.
- ^ Law on the formation of the Council of State of the German Democratic Republic of September 12, 1960. ( Online )
- ^ Constitution of the GDR from 1968, Articles 50 and 73. ( Online )
- ↑ 20th meeting of the People's Chamber: Elections to the People's Chamber and the district days on November 14, 1971 . In: Neues Deutschland from June 25, 1971, pp. 1–2.
- ^ Egon Krenz elected chairman of the State Council . In: Neues Deutschland from October 25, 1989, pp. 1–2.
- ↑ Manfred Gerlach took over as chairman of the State Council . In: Neues Deutschland from December 7, 1989, p. 1.