Sigfrid Riedel
Sigfrid Riedel (born September 3, 1918 in Neuwelt ; † May 4, 2018 ) was a general of the NVA and chief of the main staff .
Life
The son of a metalworker learned the trade of a clerk after leaving school. Riedel came into contact with politics at an early stage. From 1929 to 1933 he was a member of the Red Pioneers and the KJVD . After his apprenticeship, Riedel was with the RAD from 1938 to 1939 . When the Second World War broke out , Riedel served in the Wehrmacht , most recently as a sergeant. He was taken prisoner by the Americans in 1945.
After his release from captivity, Riedel joined the KPD in 1945 and the SED in 1946 and worked as head of the employment office in Schwarzenberg until he joined the armed organs (German People's Police) on March 1, 1947. Until 1949 he served as HR manager at the VPKA (Volkspolizeikreisamt) Aue . This activity was followed by a special course in the USSR . After his return, Riedel served from 1950 to 1952 as chief of staff in the VP Office Leipzig II. He then went to Pasewalk , where he became chief of staff of the territorial administration of the KVP . From 1953 to 1954 Riedel served as chief of staff at the KVP office in Potsdam . Following a year-long activity on the KVP staff, he was assigned to study at the General Staff Academy of the USSR from 1955 to 1957 .
After completing his studies as a graduate military scientist, Riedel served in the Ministry of National Defense as Deputy Chief of the Main Staff for Organization, before taking on the functions of Deputy Minister for National Defense and Chief of the Main Staff from 1960 to 1967. His appointment as major general took place on the tenth anniversary of the founding of the GDR on October 7, 1959. Four years later, Riedel was promoted to lieutenant general. Due to a lack of assertiveness, he was replaced on March 15, 1967 by Colonel General Heinz Keßler and deported to the post of State Secretary and head of the main administration (mobilization) planning at the chairman of the GDR Council of Ministers . Sigfrid Riedel was released from active service on January 1, 1983 and then lived in Berlin.
Awards
- 1961 Patriotic Order of Merit in bronze, 1969 in silver and 1976 in gold
- 1975 Friedrich Engels Prize
- 1978 Scharnhorst Order
- 1983 Gold medal for the Patriotic Order of Merit
literature
- Klaus Froh, Rüdiger Wenzke : The generals and admirals of the NVA. A biographical manual. 4th edition. Ch. Links, Berlin 2000, ISBN 3-86153-209-3
- Andreas Herbst : Riedel, Sigfried . In: Who was who in the GDR? 5th edition. Volume 2. Ch. Links, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-86153-561-4 .
- Hans Ehlert , Armin Wagner : Comrade General! The GDR military elite in biographical sketches. Ch. Links Verlag, Berlin 2003.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Sigfrid Riedel passed away. In: vtnvagt.de. Association to maintain the traditions of the National People's Army and the border troops of the GDR, accessed on May 29, 2018 .
- ↑ Hans Ehlert, Armin Wagner: Comrade General! The GDR military elite in biographical sketches, p. 435f
- ↑ Neues Deutschland from June 28, 1983
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Riedel, Sigfrid |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German general; Deputy Minister for National Defense of the GDR; Chief of the main staff of the NVA |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 3, 1918 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | New World , Kingdom of Saxony , German Empire |
| DATE OF DEATH | 4th May 2018 |