Erich Ollenhauer | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Leader of the Social Democratic Party | |
| In office 27 September 1952 – 14 December 1963 | |
| Preceded by | Kurt Schumacher |
| Succeeded by | Willy Brandt |
| President of the Socialist International | |
| In office 9 September 1963 – 14 December 1963 | |
| Preceded by | Alsing Andersen |
| Succeeded by | Bruno Pittermann |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 27 March 1901 Magdeburg, German Empire |
| Died | 14 December 1963 (aged 62) Bonn, West Germany |
| Political party | Social Democratic Party of Germany |
Erich Ollenhauer (27 March 1901 – 14 December 1963) was the leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) from 1952 until 1963. He was a key leader of the opposition to Konrad Adenauer in the Bundestag. In exile under the Nazis, he returned to Germany in February 1946, becoming vice chairman of the SPD. He was a close ally of the chairman Kurt Schumacher, and worked on party organization. Where Schumacher was a passionate intellectual, Ollenhauer was a thorough and efficient bureaucrat. He became party leader after Schumacher's death in 1952. Besides attending to organizational details, his main role was moderating the tension between the left-wing and right-wing factions. He remained party leader until his death, but yielded to the charismatic Berlin mayor Willy Brandt in 1961 as the party's candidate for chancellor. [1]
- ^ Dieter K. Buse and Juergen C. Doerr, eds. Modern Germany: An Encyclopedia of History, People, and Culture, 1871-1990 (2 vol. Garland, 1998) 2:727.