The Federal Chancellor Helmut Schmidt Foundation (''

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 ...

: Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung,'' Abbr. ''BKHS'') is the most recent of the six non-partisan foundations commemorating politicians in

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 betwee ...

. It was established on 1 January 2017 by the

German Bundestag 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 ...

to “preserve the memory of

Helmut Schmidt Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt (; 23 December 1918 – 10 November 2015) was a German politician and member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), who served as the chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982. Before becoming Ch ...

’s political work for the freedom and unity of the German people, for European freedom and unification and for understanding and reconciliation among nations”. Within the framework of its political education work, it is also tasked with conveying to young people in particular those topics that exercised Schmidt as a politician and journalist. The foundation has its headquarters in central

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

and a branch office in Schmidt's former home in the Langenhorn district of the city, where the private ''Helmut Schmidt Archives'' are also located.

Organisation

The BKHS is a foundation in public law under direct federal government control. It is funded by grants from the federal budget and is subject to legal supervision by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM). The bodies of the foundation are the

Board of Trustees A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit org ...

, whose members are appointed for a period of five years by the Federal President, and the Management Board appointed by the Trustees. The Board of Trustees currently comprises Peer Steinbrück (Chair), Dirk Fischer, Johannes Kahrs,

Giovanni di Lorenzo Giovanni di Lorenzo (; born 9 March 1959) is an Italian-German journalist. Editor-in-chief (since 2004) of German nationwide weekly newspaper '' Die Zeit'' and former editor-in-chief of Berlin's liberal daily newspaper '' Der Tagesspiegel'' ( ...

Sandra Maischberger Sandra Maischberger (born 25 August 1966) is a German journalist, talk show host, and author. Early life and education Born in Munich, Maischberger spent five years of her childhood in Frascati, near Rome, Italy, and also grew up in Garching, ...

and Constanze Stelzenmüller. The historian Meik Woyke has been Chairman of the Management Board and Managing Director since 1 July 2019. Further, honorary members of the board are Hans-Gerhard Husung and Bernd Neuendorf. From 2017 to 2019, Stefan Herms and Knut Nevermann managed the foundation's business as honorary board members.

Tasks

According to the law establishing it, the foundation shall # make a contribution to the understanding of contemporary history and the continued development of the Federal Republic of Germany and # to the reappraisal, presentation and further development of Germany's responsibilities in foreign, security and economic policy in a European and global setting. # It shall also contribute to deepening and broadening knowledge of 21st century geopolitical and economic challenges in Europe and the world. In addition to the historical work, there are three sub-programmes: “European and International Politics”, “Global Markets and Social Justice” and “Democracy and Society”. They take up thematic impulses in Helmut Schmidt's life and address current political issues. A particular focus is on the future of transatlantic relations: In this regard, the foundation has already staged several symposiums and, in cooperation with the

German Marshall Fund The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) is a nonpartisan American public policy think tank that seeks to promote cooperation and understanding between North America and the European Union. Founded in 1972 through a gift from the ...

, established a high-ranking commission of experts charged with making recommendations by the autumn of 2020. This "Transatlantic Task Force" includes European and US experts such as

Catherine Ashton Catherine Margaret Ashton, Baroness Ashton of Upholland, (born 20 March 1956), is a Labour Party (UK), British Labour politician who served as the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of ...

Cecilia Malmström Anna Cecilia Malmström (born 15 May 1968) is a Swedish politician who served as European Commissioner for Trade from 2014 to 2019. She previously served as European Commissioner for Home Affairs from 2010 to 2014 and Minister for European U ...

, Will Hurd,

Elissa Slotkin Elissa Blair Slotkin (born July 10, 1976) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from since 2023. She represented the from 2019 to 2023, before redistricting. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as a ...

, Henrik Enderlein, or Michael Froman. It is chaired by President of the German Marshall Fund Karen Donfried and German diplomat Wolfgang Ischinger. The foundation works closely with the private ''Helmut and Loki Schmidt Foundation'' (HLS), established in 1992, and also on archive matters with the

Friedrich Ebert Foundation The Friedrich Ebert Foundation (''German: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung e.V.; Abbreviation: FES'') is a German political party foundation associated with, but independent from, the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). Established in 1925 as th ...

and the

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Locations

Helmut Schmidt Forum

At its headquarters in central Hamburg, the foundation maintains the ''Helmut Schmidt Forum'', where exhibitions and guided tours are offered as well as regular readings, lectures and discussions. On 7 December 2018, the first exhibition, “100 years in 100 days” opened, showing one image for each year of the former Chancellor's life, including some previously unpublished photographs, up until the end of March 2020. After a break for alterations, a new permanent exhibition will be shown here from 10 November 2020 onwards.

House in Langenhorn

In December 1961, Helmut and Loki Schmidt and their daughter Susanne moved into a house in the Langenhorn district of Hamburg. Here, Helmut Schmidt played host to friends, politicians and artists. His guests included

Valéry Giscard d’Estaing The French name Valery () is a male given name or surname of Germanic origin ''Walaric'' (see Walric of Leuconay), that has often been confused in modern times with the Latin name ''Valerius''—that explains the variant spelling Valéry (). The S ...

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

Juan Carlos I of Spain Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between 1964 and 1 ...

Oskar Kokoschka Oskar Kokoschka (1 March 1886 – 22 February 1980) was an Austrian artist, poet, playwright, and teacher best known for his intense expressionistic portraits and landscapes, as well as his theories on vision that influenced the Viennese Expres ...

and the members of the “Friday Society” that Schmidt founded. After Schmidt's death on 10 November 2015, the private ''Helmut and Loki Schmidt Foundation'' (HLS), established back in 1992, inherited the property from the couple with the task of preserving it as an authentic historical site. Due to space constraints, guided tours here are only possible to a limited extent. They are offered exclusively through the BKHS.

Helmut Schmidt Archives

Also in Langenhorn are the Helmut Schmidt Archives that house the private papers of Helmut and Loki Schmidt and their close friend Karl Wilhelm Berkhan. They comprise more than 3,500 individual documents, 284 photo albums and a comprehensive library. Schmidt had already had a small library built in 1978, and in 1992 the couple acquired the semi-detached house next door to house the archives. In 2006/7 a further annexe was added. Since then the bequests have been housed in a separate storeroom. The archives also belong to the private ''Helmut and Loki Schmidt Foundation''. BKHS staff work to index and record the bequests stored here, thus creating the conditions for their public use.

References

External links

Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung

Helmut und Loki Schmidt-Stiftung
{{authority control Foundations based in Germany Charities based in Germany Political and economic think tanks based in Germany Organisations based in Hamburg