The German Writers' Union (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, "Deutscher Schriftstellerverband") was an

East German East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...

association of writers. It was founded in 1950 and renamed in 1973 as Schriftstellerverband der DDR (Writers' Association of the GDR). The association considered itself an heir to the earlier traditions of the SDS (, "Protection League of German Writers") which had flourished in the

1920s File:1920s decade montage.png, From left, clockwise: Third Tipperary Brigade Flying Column No. 2 under Seán Hogan during the Irish War of Independence; Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol in accordance to the Eighteenth Amendment to ...

but then, after

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

, been forced into line under the Hitler dictatorship and, in July 1933, found itself subsumed into the "National Association of German Writers" ('' Reichsverband deutscher Schriftsteller''), a Nazi mandated successor organisation between 1933 and 1945. The DSV archives are now in the Academy of Arts Berlin.

Presidents

Bodo Uhse Bodo Uhse (12 March 1904 – 2 July 1963) was a German writer, journalist and political activist. He was recognised as one of the most prominent authors in East Germany. Early years Uhse came from a Prussian Junker family with a long tradition ...

(1950–1952) *

Anna Seghers Anna Seghers (; born ''Anna Reiling,'' 19 November 1900 – 1 June 1983), is the pseudonym of German writer Anna Reiling, who was notable for exploring and depicting the moral experience of the Second World War. Born into a Jewish family and mar ...

(1952–1978) *

Hermann Kant Hermann Kant (; 14 June 1926 – 14 August 2016) was a German writer noted for his writings during the time of East Germany. He won the Heinrich Mann Prize in 1967. He served the Stasi as an informer under the codename ''IM Martin''. Early lif ...

(1978–1990) *

Rainer Kirsch Rainer Kirsch (17 July 1934 – 4 September 2015) was a German writer and poet. Life and career Kirsch was born in Döbeln in 1934. After graduating from high school, he studied history at the Klosterschule Roßleben and philosophy at the Marti ...

(1990)

Presidents

See also