Former Bundestag President Wolfgang Schäuble (CDU), who came from Baden-Württemberg, has died. His family announced this on Wednesday.
Former Bundestag President Wolfgang Schäuble is dead. The CDU politician fell asleep peacefully with his family at home in Offenburg on Tuesday evening around 8 p.m., the family announced on Wednesday. Schäuble died after a long, serious illness. In his political career he was a minister, CDU leader, parliamentary group leader and President of the German Bundestag. Nobody has been a member of Parliament longer than him.
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Appreciation as a “passionate politician”
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier praised Schäuble as a “stroke of luck for German history.” “With Wolfgang Schäuble, we have lost a great person and passionate politician who achieved historic things for our country,” said Steinmeier in a letter of condolence to his widow Ingeborg Schäuble. The Federal President ordered a state act of mourning in memory of Schäuble, which was organized by the Bundestag. The timing and process have not yet been determined.
Baden-Württemberg’s Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) said that Schäuble’s death filled him with great sadness. In personal encounters, he was very impressed by his political judgment and his independent thinking.
With him, Germany and Baden-Württemberg are losing a committed democrat and convinced parliamentarian who had a significant impact on crucial years of federal politics.
The chairman of the CDU in Baden-Württemberg, Manuel Hagel, praised Schäuble as a politician of the century. “With him, the CDU Baden-Württemberg is losing a fine person and great politician.” Schäuble paved the way for German unity and “made this unity the pulse of a united Europe.”
Politicians from the federal and state governments paid tribute to Wolfgang Schäuble across party lines. The CDU politician from Baden-Württemberg died at the age of 81.
Mourning flags in Offenburg
The city and the Offenburg region reacted to Schäuble’s death with mourning flags and great sadness. The city’s honorary citizen represents the values and aspirations of Offenburg as a city of freedom like no other. “As a politician and statesman, he wrote world history, German history and, above all, democratic and parliamentary history,” said Mayor Marco Steffens (CDU). Despite his position as a world-class statesman, Schäuble was deeply rooted in his homeland and was always approachable.
Schäuble was born in Freiburg
Schäuble was born on September 18, 1942 in Freiburg. He studied law, but was drawn to politics early on. He joined the CDU in 1965. In 1972 he won a mandate for the Bundestag for the first time, where he served without interruption until his death.
Decades of German politics are associated with the name Schäuble. Under Chancellor Helmut Kohl (CDU), he was initially head of the Federal Chancellery and Federal Minister for Special Tasks, and from 1989 to 1991 Federal Minister of the Interior. Schäuble helped negotiate the unification treaty in the GDR after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Since the assassination attempt on him by a mentally disturbed man in October 1990, Schäuble has been in a wheelchair, but his political career has continued. From 1991 to 2000 he led the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. After the Union lost power in 1998, Schäuble became party leader as part of the CDU’s realignment. Angela Merkel became Secretary General.
Resignation as CDU leader after donations scandal
In the turmoil of the CDU donations affair and after statements about a 100,000 mark cash donation, Schäuble resigned as CDU leader in February 2000. Merkel became party leader, and in 2005, as chancellor, she made Schäuble interior minister, and four years later, finance minister. Schäuble held the office for two electoral terms; he achieved the “black zero”, i.e. a federal budget without new debts.
After the 2017 federal election, Schäuble was elected President of the Bundestag, the second highest office in the state, as the successor to Norbert Lammert. Schäuble was denied the highest office in the state, that of Federal President.
Wolfgang Schäuble died at the age of 81. The South Baden federal politician leaves behind a legacy: German unity. An obituary for a life dedicated to politics.
Withdrawal from management committees after losing the federal election
After the 2021 federal election, which the Union lost, Schäuble withdrew from the leadership committees. In the Bundestag, the SPD politician Bärbel Bas became president, Schäuble was now a member of parliament. In his speech as Senior President – the MP with the most years of service – he promoted open discourse and self-confident MPs.
In his party, Schäuble was one of the conservative politicians; behind the scenes, his words always carried weight. On the other hand, he had earlier than others called on the CDU to be open to alliances with the Greens. As early as 2007, he told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung”: “Black-green is not our wish, but it is an option for the Union.” In the struggle for the 2021 candidacy for chancellor, Schäuble sided with the then CDU leader Armin Laschet and opposed CSU leader Markus Söder.
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Son-in-law Interior Minister of BW – Daughter ARD program director
Politics also often played a role in Schäuble’s private life. Father Karl Schäuble was already a CDU politician and a member of the Baden state parliament. Schäuble’s younger brother Thomas was also a politician; he was state minister in Baden-Württemberg for 13 years. He died in 2013 as a result of a heart attack. The top CDU politician Thomas Strobl was Wolfgang Schäuble’s son-in-law, daughter Christine, the ARD program director, and Strobl’s wife. Schäuble leaves behind a total of four children and his wife Ingeborg, to whom he was married since 1969.