Walter Scheel | |
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Walter Scheel in 1971
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President of Germany (West Germany) |
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In office 1 July 1974 – 30 June 1979 |
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Chancellor | Helmut Schmidt |
Preceded by | Gustav Heinemann |
Succeeded by | Karl Carstens |
Acting Chancellor of Germany (West Germany) |
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In office 7 May 1974 – 16 May 1974 |
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Preceded by | Willy Brandt |
Succeeded by | Helmut Schmidt |
Vice-Chancellor of Germany (West Germany) |
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In office 21 October 1969 – 16 May 1974 |
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Chancellor | Willy Brandt |
Preceded by | Willy Brandt |
Succeeded by | Hans-Dietrich Genscher |
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany (West Germany) |
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In office 21 October 1969 – 16 May 1974 |
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Chancellor | Willy Brandt |
Preceded by | Willy Brandt |
Succeeded by | Hans-Dietrich Genscher |
Member of the European Parliament for West Germany |
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In office 1 July 1956 – 20 November 1961 |
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Member of the Bundestag | |
In office 6 September 1953 – 27 June 1974 |
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Personal details | |
Born |
Solingen, Weimar Republic |
8 July 1919
Died | 24 August 2016 Bad Krozingen, Germany |
(aged 97)
Political party | Free Democratic Party |
Other political affiliations |
Nazi Party (1942–1945) |
Spouse(s) |
Eva Charlotte Kronenberg (m. 1942–66) Mildred Wirtz (m. 1969–85) Barbara Wiese (m. 1988–2016) |
Children | 4 |
Religion | Lutheran |
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Walter Scheel (German pronunciation: [ˈvaltɐ ˈʃeːl]; 8 July 1919 – 24 August 2016) was a German politician. A member of the Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP), he first served in government as Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development from 1961-66. He led the FDP from 1968-74.
During the Chancellorship of Willy Brandt, Scheel was Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor. Scheel became acting Chancellor of West Germany from 7-16 May 1974 following Brandt's resignation after the Guillaume Affair. He was elected shortly after as President of West Germany, remaining in the role until 1979. Scheel was a member of the Evangelical Church in Germany.
Scheel was born in Solingen (now in North Rhine-Westphalia). He completed his abitur at the Reformrealgymnsasium Schwertstraße.
Scheel became a member of the Nazi Party in 1942. During World War II, he served in the Luftwaffe during the last years of the war as a radar operator on a Bf 110 night fighter.
When his Free Democratic Party reentered government in a coalition with Konrad Adenauer's Christian Democratic Union in 1961, Scheel was appointed federal minister of economic cooperation and development. He continued in that office under Chancellor Ludwig Erhard but brought about the downfall of the latter in late 1966 by resigning.