Theodor Heuss

Theodor Heuss
Heuss in 1953
President of West Germany
In office
12 September 1949 – 12 September 1959
ChancellorKonrad Adenauer
Preceded byKarl Arnold (acting)
Succeeded byHeinrich Lübke
Leader of the Free Democratic Party
In office
12 December 1948 – 12 September 1949
DeputyFranz Blücher
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byFranz Blücher
Leader of the Free Democratic Party
in the Bundestag
In office
4 September 1949 – 12 September 1949
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byHermann Schäfer
Parliamentary constituencies
Member of the Bundestag
for Württemberg-Baden
In office
7 September 1949 – 15 September 1949
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byMargarete Hütter
ConstituencyFree Democratic Party List
Member of the Parliamentary Council
for Württemberg-Baden
In office
1 September 1948 – 5 August 1949
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Member of the
Landtag of Württemberg-Baden
In office
10 December 1946 – 16 September 1949
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byAnna Hartnagel
ConstituencyDemocratic People's Party List
Member of the Reichstag
In office
13 October 1930 – 8 July 1933
ConstituencyWürttemberg
In office
5 January 1925 – 13 June 1928
ConstituencyWürttemberg
Personal details
Born(1884-01-31)31 January 1884
Brackenheim, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Empire
Died12 December 1963(1963-12-12) (aged 79)
Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, West Germany
Political partyFVP (1910–1918)
DDP (1918–1933)
DPD (1947–1948)
FDP (1948–1963)
Spouse
(m. 1908; died 1952)
Children1
Alma materLMU Munich
ProfessionJournalist
Signature

Theodor Heuss (German: [ˈteːodoːɐ̯ ˈhɔʏs] ; 31 January 1884 – 12 December 1963) was a German liberal politician who served as the first president of West Germany from 1949 to 1959. His cordial nature – something of a contrast to the stern character of chancellor Konrad Adenauer – largely contributed to the stabilization of democracy in West Germany during the Wirtschaftswunder years. Before beginning his career as a politician, Heuss had been a political journalist.[1]

  1. ^ Wieck, Michael; Lenz, Siegfried (2003). A Childhood Under Hitler and Stalin: Memoirs of a "certified" Jew. Madison, Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 146, 266. ISBN 0299185443.