Wolfgang Gerhardt

Wolfgang Gerhardt
Gerhardt in 2016
Leader of the Opposition
In office
22 November 2005 – 1 May 2006
ChancellorAngela Merkel
Preceded byAngela Merkel
Succeeded byGuido Westerwelle
Leader of the Free Democratic Party in the Bundestag
In office
5 October 1998 – 1 May 2006
Preceded byHermann Otto Solms
Succeeded byGuido Westerwelle
Leader of the Free Democratic Party
In office
10 June 1995 – 4 May 2001
DeputyCornielia Schmatz-Jacobsen
Jürgen Bohn
Rainer Brüderle
Cornelia Pieper
Walter Döring
Preceded byKlaus Kinkel
Succeeded byGuido Westerwelle
Deputy Leader of the Free Democratic Party
In office
23 February 1985 – 10 June 1995
LeaderMartin Bangemann
Otto Graf Lambsdorff
Klaus Kinkel
Preceded byJürgen Morlok
Succeeded byRainer Brüderle
Deputy Minister President of Hesse
In office
24 April 1987 – 5 April 1991
Minister PresidentWalter Wallmann
Preceded byHans Krollmann
Succeeded byJoschka Fischer
Representative of Hesse to the Federation
In office
24 April 1987 – 5 April 1991
Minister PresidentWalter Wallmann
Preceded byWilli Görlach
Succeeded byUlrike Rieder
Hessian Minister of Science and Art
In office
24 April 1987 – 5 April 1991
Minister PresidentWalter Wallmann
Preceded byVera Rüdiger
Succeeded byEvelies Mayer
Member of the Bundestag for Hesse
In office
16 October 1994 – 22 September 2013
ConstituencyFree Democratic List
Personal details
Born(1943-12-31)31 December 1943
Ulrichstein, Gau Hesse-Nassau, Greater German Reich
Died13 September 2024(2024-09-13) (aged 80)
Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany
Political party German:
Free Democratic Party
 EU:
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe

Wolfgang Gerhardt (31 December 1943 – 13 September 2024) was a German politician and the leader of the Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP) from 1995 until he was succeeded by Guido Westerwelle in 2001.[1]

Political career

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Gerhardt was born in Ulrichstein, Hesse.[2] He studied pedagogics, political science and German studies and completed his doctorate 1970 in Marburg.[3] He was a member of the Landtag of Hesse from 1978 until 1994.[2] Between 1987 and 1991, he served as State Minister for Science and Culture and Deputy Minister-President in the state government of Minister-President Walter Wallmann of Hesse.[4][5] In this capacity, he was one of the state's representatives on the Bundesrat.[6]

Gerhardt was member of the Deutscher Bundestag from 1994 to 2013.[1] Gerhardt served as chair of the Free Democratic Party from 1995 to 2001 and also chaired its grouping in the Bundestag from 1998 to 2006.[7]

From 2002 until 2012, Gerhardt was Vice President of Liberal International (LI), under the leadership of successive presidents Annemie Neyts-Uyttebroeck (2002–2005), John Alderdice (2005–2009), and Hans van Baalen (2009–2011).[3]

Ahead of the 2005 national elections, Gerhard was billed as a possible foreign minister in a new centre-right coalition with the Christian Democrats;[8] instead, newly elected Chancellor Angela Merkel entered a coalition with the Social Democratic Party.[9] From 2006 to 2018, Gerhardt served as chairman of the board of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.[1][2]

Political positions

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Gerhardt campaigned for a free pluralistic society and advocated for personal responsibility and independent judgment.[2][10] He was concerned about fair educational opportunities.[11]

For some of his opponents, Gerhardt was too calm.[12] He was succeeded in his most influential positions as Leader of the Opposition, Leader of the Free Democratic Party in the Bundestag and Leader of the Free Democratic Party by Guido Westerwelle.[12]

Other activities

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Source:[1]

Corporate boards

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  • Alte Leipziger Lebensversicherung aG, Member of the Advisory Board
  • Hallesche-Nationale Krankenversicherung aG, Member of the Advisory Board
  • Rücker AG, Member of the Supervisory Board
  • Deutsche Vermögensberatung (DVAG), Member of the Advisory Board (1995)[13]

Non-profits

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Personal life and death

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Gerhardt was married and had two children.[1] He died in Wiesbaden, Hesse, on 13 September 2024, at the age of 80.[2]

Writings

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  • Gerhardt, Wolfgang (1997). Es geht (in German). München: Ferenczy bei Bruckmann. ISBN 978-3-7654-2883-8.

Dissertation

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  • Gerhardt, Wolfgang (1971). Die bildungspolitische Diskussion in der FDP von 1945–1951 (in German). OCLC 612941060.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Deutscher Bundestag: Gerhardt, Dr. Wolfgang". Deutscher Bundestag (in German). 24 September 2009. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Früherer FDP-Chef Wolfgang Gerhardt in Wiesbaden gestorben". hessenschau.de (in German). 13 September 2024. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  3. ^ a b "In memoriam: LI Patron Dr. Wolfgang Gerhardt". Liberal International. 13 September 2024. Archived from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  4. ^ "Früherer FDP-Chef Gerhardt gestorben". Der Spiegel (in German). 13 September 2024. Archived from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  5. ^ "Walter Wallmann". Geschichte der CDU (in German). 24 September 1932. Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  6. ^ Schmid, Sandra. "Florett-Fechter der FDP: Wolfgang Gerhardt". Deutscher Bundestag (in German). Archived from the original on 15 April 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Wolfgang Gerhardt, who led Germany's pro-business Free Democrats, dies at 80". Associated Press. 13 September 2024. Archived from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Politik: Gerhardt empfiehlt sich als Außenminister". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). 11 May 2002. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  9. ^ "Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel 2005–2021". Die Bundesregierung informiert (in German). 2 June 2022. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  10. ^ Buschschlüter, Nicholas (13 September 2024). "Früherer FDP-Chef Wolfgang Gerhardt gestorben". tagesschau.de (in German). Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  11. ^ "Lindner: "Er blieb auch in Spitzenpositionen ein feiner und großzügiger Mensch"". Die Nachrichten (in German). 13 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  12. ^ a b Bebenburg, Pitt von (13 September 2024). "Wolfgang Gerhardt: Der Gentleman der FDP ist tot". FR.de (in German). Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  13. ^ Tobias Romberg (19 May 2011), Ritter der Schwafelrunde Archived 7 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine Die Zeit.
  14. ^ Board of Trustees Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research.
  15. ^ Advisory Board Archived 28 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine Turkey: Culture of Change Initiative (TCCI).

Further reading

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Obituaries

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