Lothar Bolz (3 September 190328 December 1986) was an

East German 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 ...

politician. From 1953 to 1965 he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of East Germany (GDR).

Biography

Lothar Bolz was born in

Gleiwitz Gliwice (; german: Gleiwitz) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. The city is located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Kłodnica river (a tributary of the Oder). It lies approximately 25 km west from Katowice, the regional capi ...

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, locate ...

, now

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, on 3 September 1903. His father was a watchmaker. He studied law at the universities of Breslau and

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland ...

. After his study he worked as a lawyer in Breslau In 1930, he joined the

Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (german: Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands, , KPD ) was a major political party in the Weimar Republic between 1918 and 1933, an underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and a minor party in West German ...

. After the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

came to power in 1933 he was no longer allowed to work as a lawyer because of his political affiliation. Bolz went to

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 million ...

, finding work as a teacher at the Marx-Engels Institute. From 1941 to 1945 he was headteacher of the anti-fascist school, which aimed to indoctrinate

German prisoners of war 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 ...

against fascism. During his stay in the Soviet Union, he became a Soviet citizen and retained dual citizenship. In 1947, he returned to Germany and joined the East German Socialist Unity Party, but in 1948 he founded the Communist-sponsored

National Democratic Party of Germany The National Democratic Party of Germany (german: Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands or NPD) is a far-right Neo-Nazi and ultranationalist political party in Germany. The party was founded in 1964 as successor to the German Reich Part ...

(NDPD). Many members of the NDPD were former Nazis and former

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

officers. From 1948 to 1972 he was the chairman of the NDPD. In 1949 he became a member of the

People's Chamber __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 ...

(Parliament) and from 1949 to 1953 he was the Minister of Construction. From 1950 to 1967 he was one of the Deputy Prime Ministers of the GDR. In 1953, being the successor of Foreign Minister Anton Ackermann. He stayed in the office until 1965. From 1950 to his death he was a member of the

Presidium A presidium or praesidium is a council of executive officers in some political assemblies that collectively administers its business, either alongside an individual president or in place of one. Communist states In Communist states the presid ...

of the National Front. He also acted as the chairman of Society for German-Soviet Friendship from 1968 to 1978. Bolz died on 28 December 1986 in

East Berlin East Berlin was the ''de facto'' capital city of East Germany from 1949 to 1990. Formally, it was the Soviet sector of Berlin, established in 1945. The American, British, and French sectors were known as West Berlin. From 13 August 1961 u ...

at the age of 83.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bolz, Lothar 1903 births 1986 deaths People from Gliwice People from the Province of Silesia Communist Party of Germany politicians Socialist Unity Party of Germany politicians National Democratic Party of Germany (East Germany) politicians Foreign Ministers of East Germany Members of the Provisional Volkskammer Members of the 1st Volkskammer Members of the 2nd Volkskammer Members of the 3rd Volkskammer Members of the 4th Volkskammer Members of the 5th Volkskammer Members of the 6th Volkskammer Members of the 7th Volkskammer Members of the 8th Volkskammer Refugees from Nazi Germany in the Soviet Union National Committee for a Free Germany members Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit (honor clasp) Recipients of the Banner of Labor Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta