Irmgard Neumann (née Pulß, 16 October 1925 – 22 February 1989) was a member of the

State Council of East Germany The State Council of the German Democratic Republic ( German: ''Staatsrat der DDR'') was the standing organ of the People's Chamber and functioned as the collective head of state of the German Democratic Republic, most commonly referred to as Ea ...

, the country's collective head of state.

Life

Neumann was born in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

. After graduation from the she worked as a housemaid. Following the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and subsequent creation of the

German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

, Neumann became a farmer at a

collective farm Collective farming and communal farming are various types of "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member-o ...

() near

Teterow Teterow () is a town of Germany, in the Rostock (district), district of Rostock, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. It is the geographical center of this federal state. It had a population of 8,852 in 2011. History The ''Stadtkirche St. Peter u ...

. In 1955 Neumann joined the

Democratic Farmers' Party of Germany Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) ** Democratic Par ...

(DBD), a

bloc party Bloc Party are an English Rock music, rock band that was formed in London, England, London in 1999 by co-founders Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano, sampler) and Russell Lissack (lead guitar). Their first four albums all featur ...

of the National Front. She was a member of the legislature of the

Bezirk Neubrandenburg The Bezirk Neubrandenburg was a district (''Bezirk'') of East Germany. The administrative seat and the main town was Neubrandenburg. History The district was established, with the other 13, on 25 July 1952, substituting the old German states. A ...

from 1958. In 1960 she joined the executive committee of the

Democratic Women's League of Germany The Democratic Women's League of Germany (, or DFD) was the mass women's organisation in East Germany. It was one of the constituent members of the National Front and sent representatives to the Volkskammer. In 1988, membership was 1.5 million. ...

. In September of the same year she was elected to the State Council, of which she remained a member until November 1963. Neumann attained a leading role in the DBD in 1963, which she held until 1977. Neumann was awarded the

Patriotic Order of Merit The Patriotic Order of Merit (German: ''Vaterländischer Verdienstorden'', or VVO) was a national award granted annually in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was founded in 1954 and was awarded to individuals and institutions for outstanding ...

in 1966. She died in 1989.

References

* * 1925 births 1989 deaths East German women in politics Democratic Women's League of Germany members Democratic Farmers' Party of Germany politicians Members of the State Council of East Germany Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit {{germany-politician-stub