Gerhard Reinhardt (May 4, 1916 – August 22, 1989) 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 ...

politician and German Resistance fighter against

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

Life and work

Reinhardt was born in

Werdau Werdau () is a town in Germany, part of the Landkreis Zwickau in Saxony. It is situated on the river Pleiße, 8 km from Zwickau. The town was mentioned as early as 1304, and in 1398 it was purchased by Frederick, then margrave of Meissen ...

, in the

Kingdom of Saxony The Kingdom of Saxony () was a German monarchy in Central Europe between 1806 and 1918, the successor of the Electorate of Saxony. It joined the Confederation of the Rhine after the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, later joining the German ...

, a state of the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

. He was born into a family of textile workers and himself learned how to be a

locksmith Locksmithing is the work of creating and bypassing locks. Locksmithing is a traditional trade and in many countries requires completion of an apprenticeship. The level of formal education legally required varies by country, ranging from no formal ...

, finishing his training with

journeyman years In the European apprenticeship tradition, the journeyman years (, also known in German as , , and colloquially sometimes referred to as , ) is a time of travel for several years after completing apprenticeship as a craftsman. The tradition date ...

spent traveling through several countries in Europe, including France, Switzerland and Austria. In 1930, he joined the

Young Communist League of Germany The Young Communist League of Germany (, abbreviated KJVD) was a political youth organization in Germany. History The KJVD was formed in 1920 from the Free Socialist Youth () of the Communist Party of Germany, A prior youth wing had been formed ...

. After the Nazis seized power in 1933, Reinhardt became active in the German Resistance. He was arrested and in 1936, sentenced to a prison term in the Zuchthaus in

Waldheim, Saxony Waldheim () is a town in Mittelsachsen district, in Saxony, Germany. Geography It is situated in the valley of the river Zschopau (river), Zschopau, southwest of Döbeln, and north of Chemnitz. The municipal area comprises Waldheim proper, th ...

.Gottfried Hamacher et al. (Ed.)
''Gegen Hitler. Deutsche in der Résistance, in den Streitkräften der Antihitlerkoalition und der Bewegung »Freies Deutschland«. Kurzbiografien''
(PDF) (Series: Manuskripte/Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung; Vol. 53). Dietz, Berlin (2005), p. 171. He worked as a

machinist A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who operates machine tools, and has the ability to set up tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling machines. A competent machinist will generally have a strong mechan ...

in Werdau between 1939 and 1942, when he was forced to fight in the 999th Light Afrika Division, a

penal battalion A penal military unit, also known as a penal formation, disciplinary unit, or just penal unit (usually named for their formation and size, such as ''penal battalion'' for battalions, ''penal regiment'' for regiments, ''penal company'' for companie ...

. In 1943, he deserted and went to fight with the Greek partisans as part of the

Anti-Fascist Committee for a Free Germany The Anti-Fascist Committee for a Free Germany (, or AKFD) was an organization of former Wehrmacht soldiers modeled after the National Committee for a Free Germany. The organization was formed in German-occupied Greece during the last months of the ...

in Greece, which he co-founded with

Falk Harnack Falk Harnack (2 March 1913 – 3 September 1991) was a German director and screenwriter. During Germany's Nazi era, he was also active with the German resistance to Nazism, German Resistance and toward the end of World War II, the partisans in Gr ...

. Later, he became its representative for the XIII

Greek People's Liberation Army The Greek People's Liberation Army (, ''Ellinikós Laïkós Apeleftherotikós Stratós''; ELAS) was the military arm of the left-wing National Liberation Front (EAM) during the period of the Greek resistance until February 1945, when, followi ...

(ELAS) Division. He became a captain in ELAS before going to

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, where he became an officer in the Second Austrian Freedom Battalion in the Third Yugoslavian Army. He returned to Germany in summer 1945 and in 1946, became a member of the

Socialist Unity Party The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (, ; SED, ) was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from the country's foundation in 1949 until its dissolution after the Peaceful Revolution in 1989. It was a Ma ...

. He went to work in the Land and Forest Ministry, part of the Ministry of the Interior. In 1961, he became the Secretary of the Central Committee for

Jugendweihe ''Jugendweihe'' ("youth consecration") or ''Jugendfeier'' ("youth ceremony") is a secular coming of age ceremony for Germany, German 14-year-olds. It originated among the secular societies in the 19th century as an alternative to confirmation by ...

; later, he became the Secretary of the central leadership of the Committees of the Anti-Fascist Resistance Fighters.

References

Sources

*''Strafdivision 999: Erlebnisse und Berichte aus dem antifaschistischen Widerstandskampf''. Deutscher Militärverlag, Berlin (1965), p. 332 *Andreas Herbst et al. (Ed.): ''So funktionierte die DDR''. Volume 3: ''Lexikon der Funktionäre''. Rowohlt, Reinbek (1994), p. 271 *Gerd-Rüdiger Stephan et al. (Ed.): ''Die Parteien und Organisationen der DDR. Ein Handbuch''. Dietz, Berlin (2002), p. 1060 {{DEFAULTSORT:Reinhardt, Gerhard 1916 births 1989 deaths People from Werdau People from the Kingdom of Saxony Socialist Unity Party of Germany politicians Communists in the German Resistance Greek People's Liberation Army personnel German Army soldiers of World War II German defectors