Egon Krenz facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Egon Krenz
Official portrait, 1984
General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany
In office 18 October 1989 – 3 December 1989
Deputy	Günter Schabowski
Preceded by	Erich Honecker
Succeeded by	Gregor Gysi (as Chairman)
Chairman of the State Council
In office 24 October 1989 – 6 December 1989
Preceded by	Erich Honecker
Succeeded by	Manfred Gerlach
Chairman of the National Defense Council
In office 18 October 1989 – 6 December 1989
Secretary	Fritz Streletz
Preceded by	Erich Honecker
Succeeded by	Office abolished
First Secretary of the Free German Youth
In office 9 January 1974 – 1 December 1983
Second Secretary	Wolfgang Herger Erich Postler Eberhard Aurich
Preceded by	Günther Jahn
Succeeded by	Eberhard Aurich
Chairman of the Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation
In office 8 February 1971 – 9 January 1974
Preceded by	Werner Engst
Succeeded by	Helga Labs
Volkskammer Member of the Volkskammer for Stralsund-Stadt, Stralsund- Land, Ribnitz-Damgarten, Rügen In office 14 November 1971 – 11 January 1990 Preceded by multi-member district Succeeded by Bernd Blässe
Central Committee Secretariat responsibilities
1983–1989	Youth
1983–1989	Sport
1983–1989	Security Affairs
1983–1989	State and Legal Affairs
Personal details
Born	Egon Rudi Ernst Krenz (1937-03-19) 19 March 1937 (age 88) Kolberg, Province of Pomerania, Free State of Prussia, Nazi Germany (now Kołobrzeg, Poland)
Political party	Independent
Other political affiliations	Socialist Unity Party (1955–1990)
Spouse	Erika Krenz ​ ​ (m. 1961; died 2017)​
Children	2
Residence	Dierhagen
Occupation	Politician Locksmith Teacher
Awards	Order of Karl Marx Banner of Labor
Signature
Central institution membership 1983–1989: Full member, Politburo of the Central Committee 1976–1983: Candidate member, Politburo of the Central Committee 1973–1989: Full member, Central Committee 1971–1973: Candidate member, Central Committee Other offices held 1985–1989: Member, National Defence Council 1984–1989: Deputy Chairman, State Council 1981–1989: Member, State Council 1971–1976: Volkskammer Chairman, Free German Youth
Leader of East Germany ← Honecker Modrow→

Egon Rudi Ernst Krenz (born 19 March 1937) is a German former politician. He was the last Communist leader of East Germany during the Revolutions of 1989. He took over from Erich Honecker as the leader of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). However, he had to step down just weeks later when the Berlin Wall fell.

Throughout his career, Krenz held many important jobs in the SED. He was Honecker's helper from 1984 until he became the leader in 1989. This happened during big protests against the government. Krenz tried to keep the Communist government in power, but he was not successful. The SED gave up its power a few weeks after the Berlin Wall fell. Krenz was then forced to resign. He was removed from the SED's new party on 21 January 1990. After his time in politics, he moved to the small town of Dierhagen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Early Life

Krenz was born in Kolberg, which was part of Nazi Germany at the time. Today, Kolberg is in Poland. In 1945, his family moved to Damgarten. This happened during the time when many Germans were moving from Poland after World War II.

Political Career in East Germany

Krenz in 2013, at an event in Munich.

Krenz trained to be a teacher and worked as a journalist when he was young. As a teenager, he joined the Free German Youth (FDJ) in 1953. He then joined the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) in 1955. After serving in the army from 1959 to 1961, he rejoined the FDJ.

He studied at a special Communist Party school in Moscow for three years. By 1967, he had a degree in social science. Krenz held many roles in the SED and the government. He led the Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation from 1971 to 1974. In 1973, he became a member of the party's main committee.

He was also a member of the Volkskammer (East Germany's parliament) from 1971 to 1990. From 1974 to 1983, he led the communist youth group, the Free German Youth. From 1981 to 1984, he was a member of the Council of State.

In 1983, he joined the Politburo, which was a very powerful group. He became the Secretary for Security, Youth, and Sport. This was the same job Honecker had before he became the top leader. Krenz became very important when he became Honecker's deputy on the Council of State in 1984. He was seen as the second most powerful person in East Germany. Even though he was the youngest member of the Politburo, many thought he would be Honecker's successor.

Leader of East Germany

After many protests against East Germany's communist government, the SED Politburo decided to remove Honecker. This happened on 18 October 1989. Krenz was then chosen as the new General Secretary of the SED. Krenz had been asked before to take over from Honecker. But he didn't want to go against a man he called "my foster father and political teacher." He wanted to wait until Honecker, who was very ill, passed away. But by October, he felt the situation was too serious to wait.

Despite the protests, the Volkskammer chose Krenz for two of Honecker's main government jobs. He became the Chairman of the Council of State and the Chairman of the National Defence Council. The first job was like being a president. The second job made Krenz the commander of the army.

Krenz (left) with Erich Mielke in 1985.

In his first speech as leader, Krenz promised to make the government less strict. He also promised democratic changes. But few East Germans believed him. They remembered that he had thanked Deng Xiaoping of China after the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests just months before. In Honecker's resignation speech, he named Krenz as his successor. This made it seem like the change was not democratic. Many people disliked Krenz almost as much as Honecker. Thousands of East Germans protested and demanded his resignation.

On the same day he took office, Krenz received a secret report. It showed how bad East Germany's economy was. The country was deeply in debt. Krenz had to ask West Germany for a loan. But West Germany would not consider it unless the SED gave up power and allowed free elections. Krenz was not willing to agree to this.

Krenz did not truly want to open up the government. While he talked about making travel easier, he also stopped a group called New Forum from becoming an approved organization. Before a big protest on 4 November, he ordered the police to stop anyone trying to cross the border without permission.

On 7 November, Krenz approved the resignation of Prime Minister Willi Stoph and his whole cabinet. Two-thirds of the Politburo also resigned. But the main committee still chose Krenz as General Secretary. Krenz gave a speech where he criticized Honecker. But by this time, events were moving too fast for him to control.

Even with promises of change, people continued to protest. To try and calm things, Krenz allowed the border with Czechoslovakia to reopen. This border had been closed to stop East Germans from going to West Germany. The new Politburo agreed to new rules for trips to the West.

Opening of the Berlin Wall

Krenz speaking to the Volkskammer on 24 October 1989.

On 6 November, the government shared a draft of new travel rules. It seemed like a big change, but it only made small adjustments. It would still take a long time to get permission to travel. Also, it did not promise that people traveling abroad would get foreign money. This draft made people very angry. The Mayor of West Berlin called it "complete trash."

This draft was published just after the government allowed travel to Czechoslovakia again. This caused many refugees to go to the West German embassy in Prague. The Czechoslovaks told East Germany that they had to fix the problem right away. Otherwise, they would close the border. At a meeting on 7 November, it was decided to allow people to leave permanently right away. They planned to open a special border crossing for this. But the officials decided this was not possible. So, they wrote new rules for both leaving permanently and temporary travel. These rules said that East German citizens could apply to travel abroad without the old strict requirements. It also allowed people to leave permanently through all border crossings, including those in Berlin.

Miep Gies and Krenz in 1989

The new rules were finished on 9 November. But no one told the Politburo's spokesman, Günter Schabowski, that the rules would start the next afternoon. So, at a press conference, when a reporter asked when the rules would begin, Schabowski thought they were already in effect. He said, "As far as I know—immediately, without delay." Parts of the press conference were shown on West German television, which most East Germans could watch. This caused thousands of East Berliners to rush to the Berlin Wall. They thought the border crossings at the Wall were open. Krenz and the other leaders did not want to order the use of force. So, the border guards, who were not ready and were outnumbered, let the crowds pass into West Berlin.

The fall of the Berlin Wall greatly weakened Krenz and the SED. On 18 November, Krenz swore in a new government. But it was clear that the SED's time was almost up. The CDU and the LDPD, who had always followed the SED, removed their pro-Communist leaders. They announced they were leaving the National Front. The new CDU leaders also demanded that Krenz resign from his positions.

On 1 December, the Volkskammer changed the East German constitution. They removed parts that made it communist. For example, Article One, which said East Germany was a socialist state led by the SED, was deleted. Two days later, the entire Politburo and Central Committee, including Krenz, resigned. A working group took over the party. On 6 December 1989, Krenz resigned from his remaining leadership jobs. Manfred Gerlach became the new head of state. To try and improve its image before East Germany's first free election, the new party, the Party of Democratic Socialism, removed Krenz and other former leaders in 1990.

Later Life

Krenz now lives in Dierhagen, a town on the Baltic Sea coast. He has not changed his political views and still defends the former East Germany.

Krenz speaks Russian very well. He has praised Russian president Vladimir Putin. He believes that the Cold War never truly ended.

Images for kids

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  Krenz in 2007

See also

In Spanish: Egon Krenz para niños