Joseph Wirth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph Wirth | |
|
|
---|---|
In office May 10, 1921 – November 14, 1922 |
|
Preceded by | Konstantin Fehrenbach |
Succeeded by | Wilhelm Cuno |
|
|
Born | September 6, 1879 |
Died | January 3, 1956 (aged 76) |
Political party | Catholic Centre Party |
Karl Joseph Wirth, known as Joseph Wirth, (September 6, 1879 – January 3, 1956) was a German politician of the Catholic Centre Party who served as Chancellor of Germany from 1921 to 1922. Along with his foreign minister, Walther Rathenau, Wirth set out to follow a policy of "fulfillment" with respect to Germany's reparations in order to show that Germany was incapable of payment.
Wirth was the youngest Chancellor Germany has had as of 2007. He is nowadays best known for his speech in front of the Reichstag after the assassination of Walther Rathenau by rightist extremists in 1922. Wirth - as a centre-right politician - famously proclaimed "The enemy is on the right!". His words later turned out to be prophetic.
[edit] First Cabinet, May - October 1921
- Joseph Wirth (Z) - Chancellor and Finance Minister
- Gustav Bauer (SPD) - Vice Chancellor and Treasury Minister
- Friedrich Rosen - Foreign Minister
- Georg Gradnauer (SPD) - Interior Minister
- Robert Schmidt (SPD) - Economics Minister
- Heinrich Brauns (Z) - Labour Minister
- Eugen Schiffer (DDP) - Justice Minister
- Otto Gessler (DDP) - Defence Minister
- Wilhelm Gröner - Transport Minister
- Andreas Hermes (Z) - Food Minister
Changes
- May 29, 1921 - Walther Rathenau (DDP) enters the cabinet as Reconstruction Minister.
[edit] Second Cabinet, October 1921 - November 1922
- Joseph Wirth (Z) - Chancellor and Foreign Minister
- Gustav Bauer (SPD) - Vice Chancellor
- Adolf Köster (SPD) - Interior Minister
- Andreas Hermes (Z) - Finance Minister and Food Minister
- Robert Schmidt (SPD) - Economics Minister
- Heinrich Brauns (Z) - Labour Minister
- Gustav Radbruch (SPD) - Justice Minister
- Otto Gessler (DDP) - Defence Minister
- Johannes Giesberts (Z) - Postal Minister
- Wilhelm Groener - Transport Minister
Changes
- February 1, 1922 - Walther Rathenau (DDP) succeeds Wirth as Foreign Minister. Wirth remains Chancellor
- March 10, 1922 - Anton Fehr (Bavarian Peasants' League) succeeds Hermes as Food Minister. Hermes remains Finance Minister.
- June 24, 1922 - Upon Rathenau's assassination, Wirth again becomes Foreign Minister.
Political offices | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by Konstantin Fehrenbach |
Chancellor of Germany 1921–1922 |
Succeeded by Wilhelm Cuno |
Preceded by Friedrich Rosen |
Minister of Foreign Affairs 1921–1922 |
Succeeded by Walther Rathenau |
Preceded by Walther Rathenau |
Minister of Foreign Affairs 1922 |
Succeeded by Hans von Rosenberg |
Preceded by Carl Severing |
Minister of the Interior 1930–1931 |
Succeeded by Wilhelm Groener |
|
|
|
|
|