Lothar de Maizière | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 de Maizière in the aftermath of the1990 East German general election | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minister for Special Affairs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 3 October 1990 – 17 December 1990 Serving with Rudolf Seiters, Hans Klein,Sabine Bergmann-Pohl,Günther Krause,Rainer Ortleb,Hansjoachim Walther | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chancellor | Helmut Kohl | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Position established | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Position abolished | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minister-President of East Germany | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 12 April 1990 – 2 October 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Head of state | Sabine Bergmann-Pohl(interim) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Deputy | Peter-Michael Diestel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Hans Modrow(asChairman of the Council of Ministers) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Helmut Kohl(asChancellor of Germany) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Acting | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 20 August 1990 – 2 October 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minister-President | himself | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Markus Meckel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Position abolished | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1940-03-02)2 March 1940 (age 85) Nordhausen, Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Christian Democratic Union(1990–present) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other political affiliations | Christian Democratic Union (East Germany)(1956–1990) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin Humboldt University of Berlin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Other offices held
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Leader of East Germany
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Lothar de Maizière (German pronunciation:[dəmɛˈzi̯ɛːɐ̯]; born 2 March 1940)[1] is a German former politician of theChristian Democratic Union. In 1990, he served as the head of the first and only democratically elected government ofEast Germany, holding this office during the final months beforeGerman reunification. Subsequently he briefly served as a minister in the new government of the unifiedFederal Republic of Germany until his past as aStasi informant was revealed.
Maizière is of French ancestry, descending from aHuguenot family that fled religious persecution in France during the late 17th century. The family took its name from the town ofMaizières-lès-Metz and sought refuge inPrussia, where they became part of a broader Huguenot community that integrated into Berlin society while retaining French cultural ties. For generations, the Maizières attended French-language schools and worshipped in Huguenot churches in the capital, a tradition that lasted well into the early 20th century.[2][1]
Lothar is the son of Clement de Maizière, a lawyer, and part of a prominent family with deep roots in both East and West German public life. His uncle,Ulrich de Maizière, served as Inspector General of theBundeswehr, the highest-ranking military officer in West Germany. His cousin,Thomas de Maizière, became a key political figure in unified Germany, serving as a close advisor to ChancellorAngela Merkel and holding several ministerial positions, most notably as Federal Minister of the Interior from 2013 to 2018 in Merkel’sthird cabinet.
Maizière was born inNordhausen, Thuringia, and attended the ancientBerlinisches Gymnasium zum Grauen Kloster,[3] where he was one of the last pupils before the school closed in 1958. He next studied viola at theHanns Eisler College of Music inEast Berlin from 1959 to 1965.[4] He played in theBerlin Symphony Orchestra[5] before studying law bydistance learning through theHumboldt University of Berlin from 1969 to 1975.[6]
A longtime member of the East GermanChristian Democratic Union (CDU), Maizière rose to national prominence during the political upheavals that followed thefall of the Berlin Wall. In late 1989, he played a key role in removing the party'spro-Communist leadership, helping to steer the CDU away from its long-standing subordination to the rulingSocialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). He was elected party chairman in November of that year and became one of the leading figures in the transition to democracy. In the historicMarch 1990 election, the first and only free election in the German Democratic Republic (GDR), the CDU and its allies emerged victorious, positioning Maizière to take on a leading role in the new government.
Following the CDU's electoral victory, Maizière was elected to theVolkskammer and, one month later, succeededHans Modrow as Premier of East Germany, a role he held from 12 April to 2 October 1990 as head of thede Maizière cabinet. His government focused almost exclusively on reunification, working closely with the West German government led byHelmut Kohl. As Premier, Maizière signed theTreaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany, also known as the "Two Plus Four Agreement", which formally ended the postwar rights of the Allied powers in Germany and laid the legal groundwork for reunification. This agreement, combined with a series of political, legal and economic steps, led to the dissolution of the GDR on 3 October 1990, with its territory becoming part of theFederal Republic of Germany (FRG).
After reunification, Maizière joined the federal government as Minister for Special Affairs in Chancellor Kohl's cabinet, a post meant to provide representation for the newly incorporated eastern states. However, his political career came to an abrupt end just months later. On 17 December 1990, Maizière resigned after allegations surfaced that he had served as an informant for the East German secret police, theStasi, under the codename "IM Czerni". Though Maizière initially denied any wrongdoing, reports from theStasi Records Agency indicated that he had provided information to the Stasi. The revelations caused widespread disillusionment, particularly in light of his prominent role in the democratic transition.[7][8]
Media related toLothar de Maizière at Wikimedia Commons
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| Preceded by | Chairman of the Council of Ministers of | Succeeded byasChancellor ofUnited Germany |
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