Franz Blücher

Franz Blücher
Vice Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany)
In office
20 September 1949  29 October 1957
Preceded by vacant
last office holder: Hermann Göring
Succeeded by Ludwig Erhard
Federal Minister for Matters of the Marshall Plan
later renamed
Minister for Economic Cooperation
In office
20 September 1949  29 October 1957
Preceded by new office
Succeeded by Hermann Lindrath
as Minister for Federal Patrimony
Personal details
Born 24 March 1896
Essen, German Empire
Died 26 March 1959(1959-03-26) (aged 63)
Bad Godesberg, West Germany
Political party FDP
Free People's Party (FVP)
DP

Franz Blücher (24 March 1896 26 March 1959) was a German politician and member of the German Parliament (Bundestag).

Blücher was born in Essen, Rhine Province, German Empire.

After World War II, Blücher was one of the founders of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and served as chairman in the British occupation zone (1946-1949) and as Federal Chairman (1949-1954).

From 1949 to 1957, he was a member of Chancellor Konrad Adenauer's cabinet. As representative of the second-largest government party, he was the first Vice-Chancellor of Germany (West Germany) and also held the Ministry for Matters of the Marshall Plan, which in 1953 was renamed Ministry for Economic Cooperation.

In 1956, he - along with other fifteen ministers and parliamentarians - sided with Chancellor Adenauer against his party and formed the Free People's Party (FVP), which early in 1957 merged with the German Party (DP).

Franz Blücher died on 26 March 1959 in Bad Godesberg, North Rhine-Westphalia.

Honours and awards

Blücher was awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Berlin (1954) and the University of the Punjab in Lahore (1957). In 1954 he was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit and the Grand Cross of the Greek Order of George I. In 1955, he received the Grand Cross of Merit of the Italian Republic.

In 1956, Blücher received the Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold with Sash for Services to the Republic of Austria.[1]

References

  1. "Reply to a parliamentary question" (pdf) (in German). p. 21. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
Political offices
Preceded by
Franz von Papen
Vice Chancellor of Germany
19491957
Succeeded by
Ludwig Erhard
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