Religious affiliations of chancellors of Germany

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Most German chancellors have been followers of a Christian church. German society has been affected by a Catholic-Protestant divide since the Protestant Reformation, and the same effect is visible in this list of German chancellors. It is largely dominated by Catholics and Protestants as these remain the main confessions in the country.

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The current German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is unaffiliated. Olaf Scholz in 2023 (cropped).jpg
The current German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is unaffiliated.

The current German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is unaffiliated with any church or other religious body; he was raised Protestant.

Details

Most of Germany's chancellors have been either Protestants or Catholics. A significant portion of Protestant chancellors belonged to the Prussian Union of Churches, which united the Reformed and Lutheran confessions throughout the Kingdom of Prussia and was in force since 1817. Some Catholic chancellors came from the Catholic Centre Party. The Christian Democratic Union, a party of both Catholics and Protestants, produced both kinds of chancellors. One chancellor, namely Philipp Scheidemann, was Reformed (Calvinist). [1]

Although there were some religious sceptic chancellors, most never officially renounced their faith and were given a Christian funeral. Hermann Müller, a Social Democrat heavily influenced by his father, an advocate of Ludwig Feuerbach's views, is the only one notable for not having been a member of any confession at all. Friedrich Ebert was baptised Catholic, but later officially left the denomination. [2] Gustav Bauer is on record as unaffiliated to any recognised religion at least from 1912 to 1924 (thus including his term of office), [3] but was buried in a Protestant cemetery. [4]

As some chancellors' views are uncertain or cause confusion among researchers, only their official affiliation to a church is mentioned. Due to the German church tax system, legal membership in a church that has the right to collect taxes is officially registered and certain information on this status is available. Actual worldviews are not known for some chancellors; for others, they may differ from the belief system of the church of which they were legal members, as is the case e.g. Adolf Hitler and Joseph Goebbels. A further link to information on their worldviews is given where available, but the absence of such a mention does not mean that other chancellors’ views were necessarily in line with the teachings of their church. For issues about Nazi stance on religion, see Religion in Nazi Germany, Religious aspects of Nazism, and Religious views of Adolf Hitler.

By term

North German Confederation (1867–1871)

NameTermLegal affiliation
1 Otto von Bismarck 1867–1871 Protestant [5]

German Reich (1871–1945)

NameTermLegal affiliation
German Empire (1871–1918)
1 Otto von Bismarck 1871–1890 Protestant [5]
2 Leo von Caprivi 1890–1894Protestant [6]
3 Chlodwig zu Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst 1894–1900 Catholic [7]
4 Bernhard von Bülow 1900–1909Protestant [8]
5 Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg 1909–1917Protestant [9]
6 Georg Michaelis 1917Protestant [10]
7 Georg von Hertling 1917–1918Catholic [11]
8 Max von Baden 1918Protestant [12]
Weimar Republic (1918–1933)
9 Friedrich Ebert 1918–1919None [2]
10 Philipp Scheidemann 1919Protestant [13]
11 Gustav Bauer 1919–1920None [3]
12 Hermann Müller 1920None [14]
13 Constantin Fehrenbach 1920–1921Catholic [15]
14 Joseph Wirth 1921–1922Catholic [16]
15 Wilhelm Cuno 1922–1923Catholic [17]
16 Gustav Stresemann 1923Protestant [18]
17 Wilhelm Marx 1923–1925Catholic [19]
18 Hans Luther 1925–1926Protestant [20]
19
(17)
Wilhelm Marx1926–1928Catholic [19]
20
(12)
Hermann Müller1928–1930None [14]
21 Heinrich Brüning 1930–1932Catholic [21]
22 Franz von Papen 1932Catholic [22]
23 Kurt von Schleicher 1932–1933Protestant [23]
Nazi Germany (1933–1945)
24 Adolf Hitler 1933–1945Catholic, [24]
see more details
25 Joseph Goebbels 1945Catholic [25]
see more details
26 Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk 1945Protestant [26]

Federal Republic of Germany (1949–present)

NameTermLegal affiliation
1 Konrad Adenauer 1949–1963 Catholic [27]
2 Ludwig Erhard 1963–1966 Protestant [28]
3 Kurt Georg Kiesinger 1966–1969Catholic [29]
4 Willy Brandt 1969–1974Protestant [30]
5 Helmut Schmidt 1974–1982Protestant [31]
6 Helmut Kohl 1982–1998Catholic [32]
7 Gerhard Schröder 1998–2005Protestant [33]
8 Angela Merkel 2005–2021Protestant [34]
9 Olaf Scholz 2021–presentNone [35]

Affiliation totals

Affiliation
Protestant 16
Catholic 13 a
None4

a. ^ Including two determined opponents of the Catholic faith, Hitler and Goebbels (see Nazi attitudes towards Christianity).

See also

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References

  1. Scheidemann, Philipp Heinrich
  2. 1 2 Federal Archives, files of the Reich chancellery, Friedrich Ebert's death
  3. 1 2 See parliamentary handbooks downloadable here
  4. See "Gemeinde Glienicke/Nordbahn: Schon fast in Vergessenheit geraten"
  5. 1 2 Deutsche Biographie: Otto von Bismarck
  6. Deutsche Biographie: Leo von Caprivi
  7. Deutsche Biographie: Chlodwig zu Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst
  8. Deutsche Biographie: Bernhard von Bülow
  9. Deutsche Biographie: Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg
  10. Deutsche Biographie: Georg Michaelis
  11. Deutsche Biographie: Georg von Hertling
  12. Deutsche Biographie: Max von Baden
  13. Deutsche Biographie: Philipp Scheidemann (reformed)
  14. 1 2 Deutsche Biographie: Hermann Müller
  15. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Constantin Fehrenbach
  16. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Joseph Wirth
  17. Deutsche Biographie: Wilhelm Cuno
  18. Deutsche Biographie: Gustav Stresemann
  19. 1 2 Deutsche Biographie: Wilhelm Marx
  20. Deutsche Biographie: Hans Luther
  21. University of Rostock: Inscription of Heinrich Brüning as a student
  22. Deutsche Biographie: Franz von Papen
  23. Deutsche Biographie: Kurt von Schleicher
  24. Deutsche Biographie: Adolf Hitler
  25. Deutsche Biographie: Joseph Goebbels
  26. Deutsche Biographie: Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk
  27. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Konrad Adenauer
  28. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Ludwig Erhard
  29. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Kurt Georg Kiesinger
  30. Der Spiegel, 21/1960: Anti-Brandt-Feldzug: Reise in die Vergangenheit
  31. Kommission für Geschichte des Parlamentarismus und der politischen Parteien: Die Volksvertretung 1946–1972
  32. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Helmut Kohl
  33. Kath.net: In Schröders Kabinett ist jeder zweite Minister evangelisch
  34. Konrad Adenauer Foundation: Biographical entry for Angela Merkel
  35. Bundestag: Biographical entry for Olaf Scholz