Hans Modrow

Hans Modrow
source
Name	Hans Modrow
Caption	Modrow in 1989
Office	Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the German Democratic Republic
Term start	13 November 1989
Term end	12 April 1990
Predecessor	Willi Stoph
Successor	Lothar de Maizière (as Minister-President)
Office1	First Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party in Dresden
Term start1	1973
Term end1	1989
Predecessor1	Werner Krolikowski
Successor1	Position abolished
Birth date	27 January 1928
Birth place	Jasenitz, Province of Pomerania, Weimar Republic
Death date	10 February 2023
Death place	Berlin, Germany
Party	Socialist Unity Party of Germany (1949–1989), Party of Democratic Socialism (1989–2007), The Left (2007–2023)
Spouse	Annemarie Straubing, 1952, 2000, Doris Modrow, 2003, 2023

Hans Modrow was a German politician who served as the last communist prime minister of the German Democratic Republic during the pivotal period of the Peaceful Revolution. A prominent figure within the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, his brief tenure was marked by efforts to manage a controlled transition and dialogue with opposition groups. Following German reunification, he remained active in politics as a member of the Party of Democratic Socialism and later The Left, serving in both the Bundestag and the European Parliament.

Early life and education

Born in Jasenitz in the Province of Pomerania, Modrow was drafted into the Wehrmacht as a teenage Luftwaffe auxiliary during the final stages of World War II. He was captured by the Red Army and became a prisoner of war in the Soviet Union, where he was exposed to Marxism-Leninism. After his release, he moved to the Soviet occupation zone and joined the Free German Youth, quickly rising through its ranks. He pursued formal political education at the Karl Marx Higher Party School of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany Central Committee in Berlin, solidifying his ideological training.

Political career in East Germany

Modrow's political ascent within the Socialist Unity Party of Germany apparatus was steady, focusing on youth and economic policy. He served as the First Secretary of the Free German Youth Central Council and later held significant positions within the party's central committee, dealing with Agitprop and cadre policy. From 1973 until 1989, he was the powerful First Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany in the Dresden district, effectively governing the region. During this time, he also served as a member of the Volkskammer, the national parliament, and was a candidate member of the Politburo.

Role in the Peaceful Revolution

As public protests escalated during the Peaceful Revolution in autumn 1989, Modrow gained a reputation as a reform-oriented communist, distinct from the hardline Erich Honecker regime. Following the ouster of Egon Krenz, he was appointed Chairman of the Council of Ministers on November 13, 1989. His government, which included non-communists, initiated "Round Table" talks with opposition groups like New Forum and began dismantling the Stasi's power. He advocated for a "contractual community" between the two German states, but his efforts to preserve a reformed German Democratic Republic were swiftly overtaken by the momentum for rapid reunification.

Post-reunification political activities

After the first free Volkskammer election in March 1990, Modrow handed power to Lothar de Maizière of the Christian Democratic Union. He joined the post-communist Party of Democratic Socialism, serving as its honorary chairman. From 1990 to 1994, he represented the party in the Bundestag, where he served on the Committee on Foreign Affairs. Later, from 1999 to 2004, he was a member of the European Parliament, focusing on EU-Russia relations. He remained a vocal critic of NATO expansion and a defender of the legacy of the German Democratic Republic within the unified Germany.

Later life and death

In his later years, Modrow remained an elder statesman for The Left, the successor to the PDS. He continued to publish and comment on political issues, often reflecting on the history of the German Democratic Republic and European politics. In 1995, he was convicted by a Berlin court for his role in electoral fraud during the 1989 local elections, receiving a suspended sentence. Hans Modrow died at the age of 95 in Berlin in February 2023, recognized as a complex figure who bridged the final days of East German communism and post-reunification politics.

Category:1928 births Category:2023 deaths Category:German politicians