When was Walter Ulbricht born?

Walter Ulbricht was born on 30 June 1893 in Leipzig.

What positions has Walter Ulbricht held?

Positions held by Walter Ulbricht include: Chairman of the State Council (1960–1973); Chairman of the National Defence Council of the GDR (1960–1971); member of the Landtag of Saxony; member of the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic; member of the Volkskammer.

Where did Walter Ulbricht study?

Walter Ulbricht was educated at International Lenin School.

Hans-Joachim Spremberg · CC BY-SA 3.0 de

Suggest a better photo · Report

Walter Ulbricht

German communist politician and dictator (1893–1973)

EnglishRead in your language
CitedEvery fact sourced
Ad-freeNo ads, no tracking

Walter Ernst Paul Ulbricht was a German communist politician. Ulbricht played a leading role in the creation of the Weimar-era Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and later in the early development and establishment of the German Democratic Republic. As the First Secretary of the Communist Socialist Unity Party from 1950 to 1971, he was the chief decision-maker in East Germany. From President Wilhelm Pieck's death in 1960, he was also the East German head of state until his own death in 1973. As the leader of a significant Communist satellite, Ulbricht had a degree of bargaining power with the Kremlin that he used effectively. For example, he demanded the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961 when the Kremlin was reluctant.

Quick facts

Born: 30 June 1893 wd
Place of birth: Leipzig wd
Died: 1 August 1973 wd
Place of death: Groß Dölln wd
Citizenship: East Germany wd
Occupation: politician, resistance fighter, communist, joiner wd
Political party: National Committee for a Free Germany (1943–1945), Communist Party of Germany (1920–1946), Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (1917–1920), Social Democratic Party of Germany (1912–1917) wd
Education: International Lenin School wd
Spouse: Lotte Ulbricht wd

Positions held wd

Chairman of the State Council (12 September 1960 – 1 August 1973)
Chairman of the National Defence Council of the GDR (11 February 1960 – 25 June 1971)
member of the Landtag of Saxony
member of the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic
member of the Volkskammer

Awards wd

Hero of the Soviet Union (1963)
Order of Lenin
Order of the Red Banner of Labour
Order of the Nile
Order of Friendship of Peoples
Order of the October Revolution (1968)
Fritz Heckert Medal
Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class
Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class
Hero of Labour (1953)
Patriotic Order of Merit
Order of Karl Marx

Questions

When was Walter Ulbricht born?: Walter Ulbricht was born on 30 June 1893 in Leipzig.
What positions has Walter Ulbricht held?: Positions held by Walter Ulbricht include: Chairman of the State Council (1960–1973); Chairman of the National Defence Council of the GDR (1960–1971); member of the Landtag of Saxony; member of the Reichstag of the Weimar Republic; member of the Volkskammer.
Where did Walter Ulbricht study?: Walter Ulbricht was educated at International Lenin School.

Sources

Last updated 8 November 2026 · facts checked 8 November 2026

Cite this page

"Walter Ulbricht". DigiNepal. Last updated 8 November 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/walter-ulbricht. Retrieved 8 November 2026.

Machine-readable versions: JSON · Markdown

Text from the Wikipedia article Walter Ulbricht, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J1231-1002-002 Walter Ulbricht, Neujahrsansprache.jpg — Hans-Joachim Spremberg, CC BY-SA 3.0 de.

Is this you, or do you work in this person's office? Claim this profile