- Länderkammer
The "Länderkammer" (States' Chamber) was the one of the two legislative chambers of the German Democratic Republic (
East Germany ) from7 October 1949 to23 July 1952 , at which time it was largely sidelined, when the 5Länder (states) ofMecklenburg-Vorpommern ,Brandenburg ,Saxony ,Saxony-Anhalt andThuringia were abolished. The Länderkammer itself was abolished on8 December 1958 . The other chamber, which continued in existence, was the "Volkskammer " (People's Chamber).The GDR quickly developed strong centralist tendencies, but initially operated in this bicameral framework in which the Länder were represented. The Länderkammer had the power to introduce proposed laws and had a right to veto laws proposed by the Volkskammer, although another vote in the Volkskammer could overturn such a veto. The Länderkammer never made use of its veto rights.
In 1945, the Soviet military administration (SMAD) had significantly altered the territory of the Soviet zone of occupation (SBZ). While the historic borders of Germany were retained in places, significant changes resulted from the loss of large parts of Prussia as the eastern border was moved west to the
Oder -Neisse line. The territory of the GDR had been organized into five new states.
*The state ofMecklenburg-Vorpommern (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania) included the Free States and Grand Duchies that had in 1934 been combined into Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz, along with those parts of Pomerania which lay west of the Oder.
*The Province ofBrandenburg covered those parts of the former Prussian province of Brandenburg which lay west of the Oder.
*The state ofSachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt) was formed from the merger of the former Prussian province of Saxony and the former Free State ofAnhalt .
*The state ofSachsen (Saxony) was extended by the niederschlesischen Landzipfel by Görlitz on this side of the Neisse.
*The state ofThüringen (Thuringia) corresponded to the Free State formed in 1920 from the union of the Twelve Thuringian States, with the addition of the Prussian governmental district ofErfurt , which had been transferred to Thuringia in 1944.Initially, in 1949, the GDR aimed for a
unitary state with some degree of decentralisation. Laws were to be made by the centrallegislature inEast Berlin , and the Land authorities were responsible for the implementation of the laws.According to the Constitution of East Germany, in addition to a Chamber of Deputies (that is, the Volkskammer), a “provisional Land Chamber” was formed. The 50 members of the Land Chamber were to be determined by the assemblies in the various Lands, according to the memberships of these assemblies. Sachsen sent 13 delegates, Sachsen-Anhalt and Thuringia 10 each, Brandenburg nine, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania seven. Berlin sent 13 delegates with speaking rights (because of the Berlin status).
In 1952, the East German Länder were abolished. The Länderkammer continued to exist, but was something of a constitutional absurdity. Since the Landtagen could no longer meet to elect members of the Länderkammer, the 1954 delegates for each Land were chosen by a special meeting of the District Assemblies ("Bezirkstagen") of that Land. The members of the even later Länderkammer in 1958 were directly elected by their "Bezirkstagen". The delegates of this last assembly were appointed as a "suicide squad," raising no objection as the Volkskammer abolished the Länderkammer on
8 December 1958 .Chairmen of the Länderkammer
*
Reinhold Lobedanz (CDU ) 1949-1955
*August Bach (CDU ) 1955-1958ee also
*
Politics of East Germany
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