Walter Eugen Kolb (22 January 1902 - 20 September 1956) was a German politician of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

(SPD) who served as

Mayor of Frankfurt The Mayor of Frankfurt (German: (male) or (female), sometimes translated as "Lord Mayor") is the highest-ranking member of city government in Frankfurt, Germany. The mayor was traditionally elected by the city council. This system was replaced i ...

from 1946 until his death in 1956. He was the first Mayor of Frankfurt to be elected after the end of

World War II 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 ...

Early life and education

Kolb was born in 1902 as the son of businessman Eduard Kolb and forester's daughter Celementine Kolb (née Stichter). The family lived in

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

, where Kolb studied at and later at the

University of Bonn The University of Bonn, officially the Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (), is a public research university in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the () on 18 October 1818 by Frederick Willi ...

, where he studied law. In 1920 Kolb joined the SPD whilst a student at Bonn. In 1922 he formed the , a student organisation promoting liberal ideas and opposition to antisemitism. in 1923 Kolb was arrested by the French authorities who were occupying the Rhineland, during which time he completed his first state exams. In 1924, Kolb took up his first position as a judicial clerk, and he moved to Berlin in 1931 to work in the Ministry of Agriculture. He entered politics in 1932, becoming the "Landrat" (district administrator) of the Herrschaft Schmalkalden district in

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

Activities in Nazi Germany

Due to his criticism of

National Socialism 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 frequ ...

, Kolb was removed from his political duties; his removal was official justified by "cost-cutting". Kolb initially sought to emigrate abroad but decided against the idea. He opened a law firm in

, where he defended political prisoners; he was arrested for these activities several times. In 1941, Kolb was drafted into the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. In 1944, he was linked to the Stauffenberg plot to assassinate Hitler and arrested (although in actuality he was not involved in any way). In 1945, Kolb escaped from a prison transport and went into hiding until then end of the war.

Mayorship

After the end of 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 ...

, Kolb was the Mayor of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

between 1945 and 1946, before being elected as Mayor of Frankfurt on 25 July 1946. Kolb was the first mayor to be elected since the Nazis took power in 1933 (two mayors had been appointed by US forces after the end of the war). One of Kolb's most important tasks after the war was the reconstruction of Frankfurt, which had been damaged significantly by allied bombing. He initiated the reconstruction of Frankfurt's

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

, with the rebuilding of the Römer,

Frankfurt Cathedral Frankfurt Cathedral (), officially Imperial Dome of Saint Bartholomew (), is a Roman Catholic Gothic church located in the heart of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It is dedicated to Saint Bartholomew. It is the largest religious building in the c ...

and the

Goethe House The Goethe House is a writer's house museum located in the Innenstadt district of Frankfurt, Germany. It is the birthplace and childhood home of German poet and playwright Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It is also the place where Goethe wrote hi ...

all occurring under Kolb's leadership. Kolb also sought to revive the

Messe Frankfurt Messe Frankfurt () is one of the world's largest trade fair, congress and event organizer with its own exhibition grounds. The organization has 2,500 employees at some 30 locations, generating annual sales of around €661 million. Its services ...

and rebuild

Frankfurt Airport Frankfurt Airport ( ) , is Germany's busiest international airport by passenger numbers, located in Frankfurt, Germany's fifth-largest city. Its official name according to the German Aeronautical Information Publication is Frankfurt Main Airpor ...

. Under Kolb several sports associations were founded in Frankfurt, such as the

German Football Association The German Football Association ( ; DFB ) is the governing body of Association football, football, futsal, and beach soccer in Germany. A founding member of both FIFA and UEFA, the DFB has jurisdiction for the German football league system and ...

and the . In 1946, Kolb encouraged the intellectuals

Max Horkheimer Max Horkheimer ( ; ; 14 February 1895 – 7 July 1973) was a German philosopher and sociologist best known for his role in developing critical theory as director of the Institute for Social Research, commonly associated with the Frankfurt Schoo ...

Theodor W. Adorno Theodor W. Adorno ( ; ; born Theodor Ludwig Wiesengrund; 11 September 1903 – 6 August 1969) was a German philosopher, musicologist, and social theorist. He was a leading member of the Frankfurt School of critical theory, whose work has com ...

and Friedrich Pollock, who had been living in exile in the USA, to return to Frankfurt. After they returned, they re-established the

Frankfurt School The Frankfurt School is a school of thought in sociology and critical theory. It is associated with the University of Frankfurt Institute for Social Research, Institute for Social Research founded in 1923 at the University of Frankfurt am Main ...

Goethe University Frankfurt Goethe University Frankfurt () is a public research university located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It was founded in 1914 as a citizens' university, which means it was founded and funded by the wealthy and active liberal citizenry of Frankfurt ...

in 1951. In 1946 Kolb instructed the Frankfurt City Archives to collect files relating to the persecution of Jews during the Nazi era, which gave rise to the Commission for Research into the History of Frankfurt's Jews on 17 May 1961. Kolb sought to secure Frankfurt as the capital of

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

, but these efforts failed in 1949, with Bonn eventually becoming the capital. In 1954, Kolb was elected for a second term as Mayor of Frankfurt. However, at this point, he was suffering from diabetes, and had undergone several heart attacks. He died two years later in 1956, having been Mayor of Frankfurt for ten consecutive years. In the municipal elections of 1956, held after Kolb's death, the SPD won 54.5% of the vote, the best result in their history.

Personal life and death

Kolb married Anna Maria Elisabeth Trimborn in 1932. The couple had two children, a daughter who died after one day, and a son who was born in 1944 and died aged 17 in 1961. Kolb died of heart failure on 20 September 1956, aged 54. His coffin was followed by over 100,000 people; Kolb was very popular amongst the Frankfurt populace. He is buried at Frankfurt Main Cemetery.

Legacy

In 1959, the was founded, which provides grants to support and encourage further education. In 1960, a school in

Unterliederbach Unterliederbach is a quarter of Frankfurt am Main, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its six ...

was named after Kolb. The Walter Kolb Memorial Prize has been awarded by the

for outstanding dissertations since 1957.

External links

References

1902 births 1956 deaths 20th-century German politicians Mayors of Frankfurt Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany {{Authority control, state=autocollapse