Ludwig Mecklinger (14 November 1919 – 22 June 1994) was a German politician who was one of the health ministers of

East Germany 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 ...

and a member of the ruling party

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 ...

(SED). He had degrees both in medicine and law.

Early life and education

Mecklinger was born in Buchdorf, near

Donauwörth Donauwörth (; ) is a town and the capital of the Donau-Ries district in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is said to have been founded by two fishermen where the rivers Danube (Donau) and Wörnitz meet. The city is part of the scenic route called "R ...

, on 14 November 1919. He studied medicine in Leipzig, Hamburg and Berlin in the period between 1939 and 1944. In 1944 he was drafted into the German army and was arrested by the American forces. He was detained in a war camp in

Traunstein Traunstein (; ) is a Town#Germany, town in the south-eastern part of Bavaria, Germany, and is the administrative center of a much larger Traunstein (district), district of the same name. The town serves as a local government, retail, health se ...

. In 1945 he was released and joined the SED. In 1954 he also obtained a degree in law from the German Academy for State and Law in

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

Career

Between 1945 and 1947 Mecklinger was in the provincial government of Saxony-Anhalt responsible for disease control. Between 1948 and 1952 he served the minister of labor and health of the Land Saxony-Anhalt. In the period 1952–1954 he acted as the deputy chairman of the central committee of the

German Red Cross The German Red Cross (GRC) ( ; DRK) is the national Red Cross Society in Germany. During the Nazi era, the German Red Cross was under the control of the Nazi Party and played a role in supporting the regime's policies, including the exclusion ...

. From 1954 to 1957 he was the deputy chief of the medical service of the

Kasernierte Volkspolizei The Kasernierte Volkspolizei () (KVP) was the precursor to the National People's Army (NVA) in East Germany. Their original headquarters was in Adlershof Boroughs and neighborhoods of Berlin, locality in East Berlin, and from 1954 in Strausber ...

and then of the

National People's Army The National People's Army (, ; NVA ) were the armed forces of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (DDR) from 1956 until 1990. The NVA was organized into four branches: the (Ground Forces), the (Navy), the (Air Force) and the (Bord ...

. In 1957 he was named as the head of the military medical section at the

University of Greifswald The University of Greifswald (; ), formerly known as Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Founded in 1456, it is one of th ...

which he held until 1964. Mecklinger began to work for the Ministry for State Security or Stasi in 1962. In 1964 he was promoted to the professorship and was appointed deputy dean of the military medicine. The same year he was also named as the vice health minister. In 1969 Mecklinger was appointed secretary of state and first vice health minister. In 1971 he was named as the health minister and replaced Max Sefrin in the post. Mecklinger was the first physician who held the office in East Germany. He served in the cabinet led by

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

and was in office until his resignation in 1989. Klaus Thiemann replaced Mecklinger as health minister. In the period 1981–1988 Mecklinger served as a deputy at the East German Parliament. Between 1986 and 1988 he was a member of the central committee of the SED.

Awards

Mecklinger was the recipient of the bronze, silver and gold medals of the

and the gold medal for services to people and fatherland in 1974. In 1984 he was awarded with the Scharnhorst Order.

Death and awards

He died in Berlin on 22 June 1994.

References

External links