Wolfgang Schäuble dies at the age of 81
Born in Freiburg in 1942, Schäuble was, among other things, Federal Minister of the Interior and Federal Minister of Finance, head of the CDU parliamentary group and party chairman of the CDU. He had been elected to the Bundestag by direct mandate in every election since 1972. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier wrote to Schäuble's widow Ingeborg:"Wolfgang Schäuble was a stroke of luck for German history." He had "achieved historic things for our country".
The Bundestag must now decide when the state ceremony in honor of Schäuble ordered by Steinmeier is to take place. The commemorative event will be organized by parliament.
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said:"Germany is losing a formative Christian Democrat who liked to argue and yet never lost sight of what politics is all about: making the lives of citizens better."
Former Federal Chancellor and political companion of Schäuble, Angela Merkel(CDU), mourned the loss of a politician "who shaped our country in many ways." Schäuble's voice "will be missed in Germany, I will personally miss his advice."
"One of our country's happiest moments is inextricably linked to his name - the overcoming of the division of Germany," wrote Bundestag President Bärbel Bas(SPD) to Schäuble's widow. As Federal Minister of the Interior, Schäuble drafted the Unification Treaty and played a decisive role in guiding the unification process. "Wolfgang Schäuble has thus become the architect of German unification."
CDU Chairman and Union parliamentary group leader Friedrich Merz said in Munich: "Our country has lost an exceptional politician, a statesman who left a deep mark on Germany and Europe over five decades." Schäuble had carried out his political duties "with the greatest, almost admirable discipline". In a message to the CDU/CSU MPs, Merz wrote that in Schäuble he had personally lost his "closest friend and advisor" that he had ever had in politics.
Katharina Dröge and Britta Haßelmann, leaders of the Green parliamentary group in the Bundestag, said that Schäuble's work had "shaped this country". They thanked him for "his impressive commitment to our parliamentarianism and our democracy."
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) wrote on X (formerly Twitter): "With Wolfgang Schäuble, we are losing a statesman and passionate European." CSU regional group leader Alexander Dobrindt called Schäuble a "passionate parliamentarian". He had "rendered outstanding services to this country for decades".
French President Emmanuel Macron praised Schäuble as a "friend of France". The former finance minister had "contributed to German reunification, to the creation of the euro and to European unity".
The President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, told the portal "Zeit Online": "He was as strong as a rock and, in his own way, a truly convinced European who served his country with his immense talent and impressive strength."
Schäuble held several ministerial posts under Chancellor Helmut Kohl and Chancellor Merkel (both CDU). He was Head of the Chancellery, Minister of the Interior and most recently Federal Minister of Finance until 2017. Schäuble was President of the Bundestag between 2017 and 2021.
Schäuble, who holds a doctorate in law, was also leader of the CDU parliamentary group from 1991 to 2000 and CDU party leader between 1998 and 2000. Schäuble has been in a wheelchair since an assassination attempt on his life in October 1990. Schäuble is survived by his wife Ingeborg and four children.
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- Schäuble was first elected to the Bundestag in 1972, a position he held for 50 years up until his death at the age of 81.
- As a member of the Bundestag, Schäuble served under several German chancellors, including Helmut Kohl and Angela Merkel, both from the CDU.
- Born in Freiburg in 1942, Schäuble held various key positions in the German government, including Federal Minister of the Interior, Federal Minister of Finance, and President of the Bundestag.
- The German Bundestag will need to decide when to hold a state ceremony in honor of Schäuble, who died at the age of 81, with the event to be organized by parliament.
- Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the President of Germany, described Schäuble as a "stroke of luck for German history" and a politician who had "achieved historic things for our country."
- Olaf Scholz, the current Federal Chancellor of Germany, expressed his condolences over Schäuble's death, stating that Germany had lost a "formative Christian Democrat" who had always kept the lives of citizens in mind.
- Angela Merkel, a former German Chancellor and political companion of Schäuble, lamented the loss of a politician who had "shaped our country in many ways," and added, "Wolfgang Schäuble will be missed in Germany and I will personally miss his advice."
- Friedrich Merz, the current Chairman of the CDU and Union parliamentary group, called Schäuble an "exceptional politician" and a "statesman" who had left a "deep mark" on Germany and Europe.
- Wolfgang Schäuble, who died at the age of 81, is survived by his wife Ingeborg and four children.
Source: www.stern.de
