Gustav Heinemann

Infobox_President | name=Gustav Heinemann
nationality=German


order=7^th President of Germany
3^rd President of the Federal Republic of Germany
term_start=July 1, 1969
term_end=June 30, 1974
predecessor=Heinrich Lübke
successor=Walter Scheel

office2 = Minister of the Interior | term_start2 = September 29, 1949 | term_end2 = October 11, 1950 | predecessor2 = - | successor2 = Robert Lehr | office3 = Minister of Justice | term_start3 = December 1, 1966 | term_end3 = March 26, 1969 | predecessor3 = Richard Jaeger | successor3 = Horst Ehmke

birth_date=birth date|1899|7|23|mf=y
birth_place=Schwelm, Germany
death_date=death date and age|1976|7|7|1899|7|23|mf=y
death_place=Essen, Germany
spouse=Hilda Heinemann (1896-1979)
party=CDU, later SPD
religion=Protestant

Gustav Walter Heinemann, GCB (July 23, 1899 - July 7, 1976) was a German politician. He was Minister of Interior Affairs from 1949 to 1950, Minister of Justice from 1966 to 1969 and President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1969 to 1974. He was famous for being open-minded with respect to the student protests of 1968, and he tried to keep his office as down-to-earth as possible (e.g. when asked whether he loved Germany, he answered that he loved his wife).

In the Weimar Republic Heinemann was member of the Christian Social People's Service (CSVD). After World War II he was one of the founders of the CDU and became mayor of the city of Essen. He was Minister of the Interior in the first cabinet of Konrad Adenauer. In 1950 he left the cabinet and the CDU in 1952 to form the All-German People's Party (GVP) with Helene Wessel and other CDU- and Center Party members. In 1957 he, and most GVP members, joined the SPD. In the grand coalition (1966-69) he was Minister of Justice.

In 1969 he became the first SPD member to be elected President of Germany.

His daughter Uta Ranke-Heinemann ran for the German presidency unsuccessfully in 1999. The president who was elected that year (Johannes Rau) was the husband of Heinemann's granddaughter (Uta Ranke-Heinmann's niece) Christina Delius.

The "Gustav-Heinemann-Friedenspreis" (Gustav Heinemann Peace Prize) is every year awarded to a book judged to have best promoted the cause of world peace.

Persondata
NAME=Heinemann, Gustav
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=German politician, President of Germany 1969-1974
DATE OF BIRTH=July 23, 1899
PLACE OF BIRTH=Schwelm, Germany
DATE OF DEATH=July 7, 1976
PLACE OF DEATH=Essen, Germany