The Order of Karl Marx () was the most important

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...

in the

German Democratic Republic 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 **Ger ...

(GDR). The award of the order also included a prize of 20,000

East German mark The East German mark (german: Mark der DDR ), commonly called the eastern mark (german: Ostmark, links=no ) in West Germany and after reunification), in East Germany only ''Mark'', was the currency of the German Democratic Republic (East Germ ...

s. The order was founded on May 5, 1953 on the occasion of

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

's 135th birthday during Karl Marx Year and on the recommendation of the GDR Council of Ministers. It was granted to individuals, enterprises, organizations, and military groups for exceptional merit in relation to ideology, culture, economy, and other designations. Additionally, citizens of other countries could also be awarded the order.

Notable recipients of the Order

*1953:

Hermann Duncker Hermann Ludwig Rudolph Duncker (24 May 1874 – 22 June 1960) was a German Marxist politician, historian and social scientist. He was a lecturer for the workers' education movement, co-founder of the Communist Party of Germany, professor at the Un ...

Otto Grotewohl Otto Emil Franz Grotewohl (; 11 March 1894 – 21 September 1964) was a German politician who served as the first prime minister of the German Democratic Republic (GDR/East Germany) from its foundation in October 1949 until his death in Septembe ...

Luise Kähler Luise Kähler (12 January 1869 – 22 September 1955) was a German socialist, trade union leader and politician. She was one of a small number of women union officials that held a prominent position within Germany's trade unions in the first ha ...

Hermann Matern Hermann Matern (June 17, 1893 in Burg bei Magdeburg – January 24, 1971 in Berlin) was a German communist politician ( KPD) and high ranking functionary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and statesman in the German Democratic Republic. ...

Wilhelm Pieck Friedrich Wilhelm Reinhold Pieck (; 3 January 1876 – 7 September 1960) was a German communist politician who served as the chairman of the Socialist Unity Party from 1946 to 1950 and as president of the German Democratic Republic from 1949 t ...

Wilhelm Zaisser Wilhelm Zaisser (20 June 1893 – 3 March 1958) was a German communist politician and statesman who served as the founder and first Minister for State Security of the German Democratic Republic (1950–1953). Early life Born in Gelsenkirche ...

*1956: Wilhelm Koenen *1961: Alfred Kurella,

Gherman Titov Gherman Stepanovich Titov (russian: Герман Степанович Титов; 11 September 1935 – 20 September 2000) was a Soviet cosmonaut who, on 6 August 1961, became the second human to orbit the Earth, aboard Vostok 2, preceded by Yu ...

*1962: Alexander Abusch, Karl Bittel,

Franz Dahlem Franz Dahlem (14 January 1892 – 17 December 1981) was a German politician. Dahlem was a leading official of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and, after 1945, of East Germany's ruling Socialist Unity Party (SED). By the early 1950s he had ...

, Herbert Warnke,

Otto Winzer Otto Winzer (3 April 1902 – 3 March 1975) was an East German diplomat who served as East Germany's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1965 to 1975. Biography Winzer was born in Berlin in 1902. He was a son of worker. Otto Winzer learned the types ...

*1963:

Yuri Gagarin Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space. Tr ...

Karl Maron Karl Maron (1903–1975) was a German politician, who served as the interior minister of East Germany. He also assumed different posts in East Germany's government. Early life and education Maron was born in Berlin on 27 April 1903 and was educa ...

, Willy Rumpf,

Valentina Tereshkova Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova ( rus, Валентина Владимировна Терешкова, links=no, p=vɐlʲɪnʲˈtʲinə vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvnə tʲɪrʲɪʂˈkovə, a=Valentina Tereshkova.ogg; born 6 March 1937) is an engine ...

*1965:

Pavel Belyayev Pavel Ivanovich Belyayev (russian: Павел Иванович Беляев; 26 June 1925 – 10 January 1970) was a Soviet fighter pilot with extensive experience in piloting different types of aircraft. He was the first commander of the cosmona ...

Paul Fröhlich Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

, Aleksei Leonov, Hans Schaul *1966: Helene Berg *1967: Rudolf Dölling,

John Heartfield John Heartfield (born Helmut Herzfeld; 19 June 1891 – 26 April 1968) was a 20th century German visual artist who pioneered the use of art as a political weapon. Some of his most famous photomontages were anti-Nazi and anti-fascist statements. ...

, Wilhelm Kling,

Karl Mewis Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austrian ...

*1968:

Max Burghardt Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

, Roman Chwalek, Kurt Seibt *1969: Walter Beling,

Paul Dessau Paul Dessau (19 December 189428 June 1979) was a German composer and conductor. He collaborated with Bertolt Brecht and composed incidental music for his plays, and several operas based on them. Biography Dessau was born in Hamburg into a mu ...

Erich Honecker Erich Ernst Paul Honecker (; 25 August 1912 – 29 May 1994) was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1971 until shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. He held the post ...

Jürgen Kuczynski Jürgen Kuczynski (; 17 September 1904, Elberfeld – 6 August 1997, Berlin) was a German economist, journalist, and communist. He also provided intelligence to the Soviet Union during World War II. By 1936, Kuczynski had followed his father a ...

Albert Norden Albert Norden (4 December 1904 – 30 May 1982) was a German communist politician. Early years Albert Norden was born in Myslowitz, Silesia on 4 December 1904, one of the five recorded children born to the liberal rabbi (1870–1943) and hi ...

Willi Stoph Wilhelm Stoph (9 July 1914 – 13 April 1999) was a German politician. He served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1964 to 1973, and again from 1976 until 1989. H ...

Lotte Ulbricht Lotte Ulbricht (19 April 1903 – 27 March 2002, born Charlotte Kühn) was a Socialist Unity Party of Germany official and the second wife of the East German leader Walter Ulbricht. She was born the younger of two children in Rixdorf in 1903 ...

, Paul Verner *1970:

Bruno Apitz Bruno Apitz (28 April 1900 – 7 April 1979) was a German writer and a survivor of the Buchenwald concentration camp. Life and career Apitz was born in Leipzig, as the twelfth child of a washer woman. He attended school until he was fourteen, th ...

Otto Braun Otto Braun (28 January 1872 – 15 December 1955) was a politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) during the Weimar Republic. From 1920 to 1932, with only two brief interruptions, Braun was Minister President of the Free State ...

, Ernst Busch,

Fritz Dallmann Fritz Dallmann (1923–1999) was an East German politician who served as Chairman of the Peasants Mutual Aid Association from 1982 until German reunification in 1990. Dallmann's political career began after World War II, and he joined the SED ...

Heinz Hoffmann Heinz Hoffmann (28 November 1910 – 2 December 1985) was Minister of National Defense in the Council of Ministers of the German Democratic Republic, and since 2 October 1973 member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unit ...

Erwin Kramer Erwin Kramer (22 August 1902 – 10 November 1979) was an East German politician who served as both Minister of Transportation and General Director of the Deutsche Reichsbahn. Kramer was born in Schneidemühl (Province of Posen) (today P ...

Erich Mückenberger Erich Mückenberger (1910 in Chemnitz – 1998 in Berlin) was a German socialist politician. He began his political career in the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). He became a member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) when the ...

Harry Tisch Harry Tisch (March 28, 1927, Heinrichswalde – June 18, 1995) was an East German politician and trade unionist who served as Chairman of the Free German Trade Union Federation between 1975 and 1989. He was also a member of the State Council fr ...

*1971: Erich Correns *1972:

Fritz Cremer Fritz Cremer was a German sculptor. Cremer was considered a key figure in the DDR art and cultural politics. His most notable for being the creator of the "Revolt of the Prisoners" (Revolte der Gefangenen) memorial sculptor at the former concentra ...

Max Fechner Max Fechner (27 July 1892 – 13 September 1973) was a German politician who served as Minister of Justice of East Germany from 1949 to 1953 Life and career Fechner was born in Berlin and was a trained tool maker. He joined the SPD in 1910, was ...

, Klaus Gysi,

Kurt Hager Kurt Hager (24 July 1912 – 18 September 1998) was an East German statesman, a member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany who was known as the chief ideologist of the party and decided many cultural and educational policies in the German ...

Max Spangenberg Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

*1973: Ernst Albert Altenkirch, Eva Altmann, Werner Bruschke,

Friedrich Dickel Friedrich Dickel (9 December 1913 – 23 October 1993) was a German politician, who served as the interior minister of East Germany for nearly twenty-six years. Early life Dickel was born on 9 December 1913 in Wuppertal-Vohwinkel in the Pru ...

Ernst Goldenbaum Ernst Goldenbaum (15 December 1898, Parchim, Mecklenburg-Schwerin – 13 March 1990) was an East German politician. Biography Goldenbaum was born in Parchim. During World War I he served in the military and he participated in the German No ...

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 un ...

, Fred Oelßner *1974: Walter Arnold, Walter Bartel,

Bruno Beater Bruno Beater (5 February 19149 April 1982) was an East German intelligence officer and politician. He served as First Deputy Minister of State Security in the administrations of Walter Ulbricht and Erich Honecker. Biography Born into a workin ...

, Jurij Brězan,

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between 1964 and ...

, Walter Buchheim,

, Käthe Dahlem, Arthur Franke,

Alexander Schalck-Golodkowski Alexander Schalck-Golodkowski (3 July 1932 – 21 June 2015) was a politician and trader in the German Democratic Republic. He was director of a main department ('Hauptverwaltungsleiter') in the ''Ministry for Foreign Trade and German Domestic Tra ...

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...

Markus Wolf Markus Johannes Wolf (19 January 1923 – 9 November 2006), also known as Mischa, was head of the Main Directorate for Reconnaissance (), the foreign intelligence division of East Germany's Ministry for State Security (, abbreviated MfS, comm ...

Todor Zhivkov Todor Hristov Zhivkov ( bg, Тодор Христов Живков ; 7 September 1911 – 5 August 1998) was a Bulgarian communist statesman who served as the ''de facto'' leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB) from 1954 until 1989 ...

*1975:

Edmund Collein Edmund Collein (10 January 1906 – 21 January 1992) was an East German architect and urban planner. He is also known for his photography while studying at the Bauhaus art school. As a functionary of the SED, the ruling political party of East Ge ...

Werner Eggerath Werner Eggerath (16 March 1900, in Elberfeld – 16 June 1977, in East Berlin) was an East German author and communist politician. He was a member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED / ''Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands'') ...

Horst Sindermann Horst Sindermann (; 5 September 1915 – 20 April 1990) was a Communist German politician and one of the leaders of East Germany. He became Chairman of the Council of Ministers in 1973, but in 1976 he became President of the Volkskammer, ...

Aleksandr Vasilevsky Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Vasilevsky ( ru , Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Василе́вский) (30 September 1895 – 5 December 1977) was a Soviet career- officer in the Red Army who attained the rank of Marshal of the Soviet ...

Paul Wandel Paul Wandel (February 16, 1905, Mannheim – June 3, 1995, Berlin) was a German communist politician and statesman in the German Democratic Republic who served as the first Minister of People's Education. Biography In 1919 Wandel completed his ...

*1976:

Vladimir Aksyonov Vladimir Viktorovich Aksyonov ( Russian: Влади́мир Ви́кторович Аксёнов) is a former Soviet cosmonaut. Aksyonov was born in Giblitsy in the Kasimovsky District, Ryazan Oblast, Russian SFSR, on February 1, 1935. Edu ...

Hermann Axen Hermann Axen (6 March 1916 – 15 February 1992) was a German political activist who became involved in political resistance during the twelve Nazi years, most of which he spent in state detention. After the war he became a national politician ...

Valery Bykovsky Valery Fyodorovich Bykovsky (russian: Вале́рий Фёдорович Быко́вский; 2 August 1934 – 27 March 2019) was a Soviet cosmonaut who flew on three space flights: Vostok 5, Soyuz 22, and Soyuz 31. He was also backup for Vo ...

Luis Corvalán Luis Nicolás Corvalán Lepe (14 September 1916, in Puerto Montt – 21 July 2010) was a Chilean politician. He served as the general secretary of the Communist Party of Chile (PCCh). Corvalán joined the Communist Party of Chile at the age of fi ...

, Luise Ermisch, Manfred Ewald, Wolfgang Junker, Günter Mittag, Ernst Scholz, Paul Verner, Werner Walde *1977: Friedel Apelt,

Hilde Benjamin Hilde Benjamin ( Lange; 5 February 1902 – 18 April 1989) was an East German judge and Minister of Justice of the German Democratic Republic. She is most notorious for presiding over the East German show trials of the 1950s, which drew com ...

, Klaus Gysi,

Margot Honecker Margot Honecker (née Feist; 17 April 1927 – 6 May 2016) was an East German politician who was an influential member of that country's Communist government until 1989. From 1963 until 1989, she was Minister of National Education (''Ministerin ...

*1978:

, Fritz Eikemeier,

Werner Felfe Werner may refer to: People * Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name Fictional characters * Werner (comics), a German comic book character * Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Ra ...

Hans Modrow Hans Modrow (; born 27 January 1928) is a German politician best known as the last communist premier of East Germany. Taking office in the middle of the Peaceful Revolution, he was the ''de facto'' leader of the country for much of the winter ...

, Joachim Herrmann, Werner Krolikowski,

Konrad Naumann Konrad Naumann (25 November 1928 – 25 July 1992) was an East German politician. He built his career; initially, in regional politics, but between 1966 and 1986 he was important nationally as a member of the Central Committee of the country's r ...

, Elli Schmidt,

Sigmund Jähn Sigmund Werner Paul Jähn (; 13 February 1937 – 21 September 2019) was a German cosmonaut and pilot who in 1978 became the first German to fly into space as part of the Soviet Union's Interkosmos programme. Early life Jähn was born on 13 F ...

*1979:

, Johannes Chemnitzer, Horst Dohlus, Peter Edel, Ernst Engelberg,

Klaus Fuchs Klaus Emil Julius Fuchs (29 December 1911 – 28 January 1988) was a German theoretical physicist and atomic spy who supplied information from the American, British and Canadian Manhattan Project to the Soviet Union during and shortly a ...

Gerhard Grüneberg Gerhard is a name of Germanic origin and may refer to: Given name * Gerhard (bishop of Passau) (fl. 932–946), German prelate * Gerhard III, Count of Holstein-Rendsburg (1292–1340), German prince, regent of Denmark * Gerhard Barkhorn (1919–1 ...

Heinz Keßler Heinz Keßler (26 January 1920 – 2 May 2017) was a German communist politician and military officer in East Germany. His career in the military started when he was conscripted into the Wehrmacht, the armed forces of Nazi Germany, in WWII. Due ...

*1980:

, Alfred Lemmnitz, Siegfried Lorenz *1981:

, Peter Florin,

Erwin Geschonneck Erwin Geschonneck (27 December 1906 – 12 March 2008) was a German actor. His biggest success occurred in the German Democratic Republic, where he was considered one of the most famous actors of the time. Early life Geschonneck was born in B ...

, Gerhard Schürer *1982: Hilde Eisler,

Kim Il-sung Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...

, Paul Scholz *1983: Theo Balden, Gerhard Beil,

Wilhelm Ehm Wilhelm Ehm (30 August 1918 – 9 August 2009) a World War II Wehrmacht veteran and East German Admiral who was Deputy Minister of National Defense of the German Democratic Republic and head of the People's Navy (Volksmarine). Early life Ehm' ...

Oskar Fischer Oskar Fischer (12 April 1876 – 28 February 1942) was a Czech academic, psychiatrist and neuropathologist whose studies on dementia and Alzheimer disease were rediscovered in 2008. Early life and education Fischer was born into a German ...

Egon Krenz Egon Rudi Ernst Krenz (; born 19 March 1937) is a German former politician who was the last Communist leader of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) during the Revolutions of 1989. He succeeded Erich Honecker as the General Secreta ...

Werner Scheler Werner Scheler (12 September 1923 – 9 October 2018) was a German physician and Pharmacology, pharmacologist. Between 1959 and 1971 he worked at the University of Greifswald where he served as the Director of the university's Institute of Pharm ...

Gustáv Husák Gustáv Husák (, , ; 10 January 1913 – 18 November 1991) was a Czechoslovak communist politician of Slovak origin, who served as the long-time First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1969 to 1987 and the president o ...

*1984: 6th Flotilla of the East German People's Navy, Alfred Neumann,

, *1985:

, Horst Dohlus,

, Bruno Lietz,

Ilse Thiele Ilse Thiele (4 November 1920 – 10 January 2010) was an East German politician. She was a member of the powerful Central Committee of the country's ruling SED (party) between 1954 and 1989. She served as the Chair of the national Democrati ...

*1986: Heinrich Adameck,

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 2 ...

Luise Dornemann Luise Dornemann (born Luise Fremy: 23 February 1901 - 17 January 1992) was a women's rights activist-politician and, in her later years, a writer. Life Luise Fremy was born in Aurich, a midsized town in East Frisia, in the northwestern corner of ...

Gisela Glende Gisela Glende (born Gisela Trautzsch: 30 October 1925 - 3 February 2016) was an East German party official. She served between 1968 and 1986 as head of the Politburo office, which meant she was responsible for preparing the agendas and draft de ...

, Günter Mittag *1987:

Werner Jarowinsky Werner Jarowinsky (25 April 1927 - 22 October 1990) was an East German economist who became a party official. Between 1963 and 1989 he was a member of the powerful Party Central Committee which, under the Leninist constitutional structure that t ...

*1988: Georgi Atanasov,

Nicolae Ceauşescu Nicolae may refer to: * Nicolae (name), a Romanian name * ''Nicolae'' (novel), a 1997 novel See also * Nicolai (disambiguation) * Nicolao {{disambig ...

Manfred Gerlach Manfred Gerlach (8 May 1928 – 17 October 2011) was a German jurist and politician, and the longtime leader of the East German Liberal Democratic Party. He served as ''Chairman of the Council of State'' and was thus head of state of East ...

, Joachim Herrmann, Kurt Seibt *1989: Horst Brünner, Angel Dimitrov,

Alexi Ivanov Aleksi Ivanov Vasilev (Bulgarian: Алекси Иванов Василев), (born Alexe Bădărău; October 22, 1922 – June 9, 1997) was a Bulgarian politician Secretary of (Deputy Chairman) of Standing Committee Bulgarian Agrarian People's ...

, Günter Schabowski,

, Petur Tanchev, Herbert Weiz, Günther Wyschofsky

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Order Of Karl Marx Orders, decorations, and medals of East Germany Awards established in 1953 Awards disestablished in 1989 1953 establishments in East Germany 1989 disestablishments in East Germany Karl Marx