Friedrich Dickel (9 December 1913 – 23 October 1993) was a German politician, who served as the interior minister of

East Germany 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 German reunification, its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In t ...

for nearly twenty-six years.

Early life

Dickel was born on 9 December 1913 in Wuppertal-Vohwinkel in the

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. ...

of the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

Career

Dickel 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 ...

in 1931. He was a military officer with the rank of

colonel general Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

. He fought in the international brigades in the civil war of Spain together with others, including future

Stasi The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the (),An abbreviation of . was the state security service of the East Germany from 1950 to 1990. The Stasi's function was similar to the KGB, serving as a means of maintaining state autho ...

chief

Erich Mielke Erich Fritz Emil Mielke (; 28 December 1907 – 21 May 2000) was a German communist official who served as head of the East German Ministry for State Security (''Ministerium für Staatsicherheit'' – MfS), better known as the Stasi, from 1957 u ...

. Dickel commanded a

platoon A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may rang ...

unit in the civil war in Spain. After the Nazi rule in Germany, he settled in the Soviet Union where he taught at the Soviet General Staff Academy. He returned to East Germany in 1946 and served as the commander of the Officers’ School for Political Work in East Berlin from 1950. He was promoted to the rank of

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

in 1956. Next year he was named as the deputy national defense minister. Dickel became a member of the

Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (german: Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, ; SED, ), often known in English as the East German Communist Party, was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (GDR; East German ...

(SED) and of its central committee. His tenure in the SED central committee was between 1967 and 1989. He also served as a police chief in East Berlin. Dickel was appointed interior minister on 14 November 1963, replacing Karl Maron in the post. He also led the

Volkspolizei The ''Deutsche Volkspolizei'' (DVP, German for "German People's Police"), commonly known as the ''Volkspolizei'' or VoPo, was the national police force of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1945 to 1990. The Volkspolizei was a h ...

during his tenure. Dickel's term ended on 18 November 1989 when he was dismissed as a result of the atmosphere of change and reform in the country which began leading up to

German reunification German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...

. He was succeeded by Lothar Ahrendt as interior minister. In December 1989 Dickel retired from politics.

Death

After a long illness Dickel died in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

on 23 October 1993. He was 79.

Awards

Dickel was the recipient of the Order of Karl Marx which was awarded to him in June 1985 on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the German People's Police.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dickel, Friedrich 20th-century German politicians 1913 births 1993 deaths Army generals of the National People's Army Communist Party of Germany politicians German emigrants to the Soviet Union German people of the Spanish Civil War Government ministers of East Germany International Brigades personnel Members of the 5th Volkskammer Members of the 6th Volkskammer Members of the 7th Volkskammer Members of the 8th Volkskammer Members of the 9th Volkskammer Members of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany Politicians from Wuppertal People condemned by Nazi courts People from the Rhine Province Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit (honor clasp) Recipients of the Scharnhorst Order Rotfrontkämpferbund members