List of mayors of Berlin facts for kids

Berlin is the capital city of Germany. It's also a special kind of state called a city-state. The person in charge of Berlin is called the Mayor. This page tells you about all the different mayors Berlin has had over the years, from the early 1800s until today.

Early Mayors: Napoleonic Times (1806–1809)

In 1806, French soldiers took control of Berlin. They gathered 2,000 rich people from the city. These people had to choose a "Grand Council" of sixty members. This council then picked a smaller "Administrative Committee" of seven citizens. This committee was the temporary city government. Their main job was to follow the French army's orders. This included collecting money from the wealthy citizens to pay for the war.

The first leader of this committee was a publisher from Prussia:

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
1		François Théodore de Lagarde (1756–1824)	October 27, 1806	July 6, 1809	983	Unknown

Lord Mayors of Royal Berlin (1809–1920)

After the French left, Berlin became part of the Kingdom of Prussia. The city's leader was then called the "Lord Mayor."

Political Party Colors:       Independent       SPD

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
Kingdom of Prussia (until 1867)
Berlin was the capital city of the Kingdom of Prussia.
1		Leopold von Gerlach (1757–1813)	July 6, 1809	June 8, 1813	1433	No party
2		Johann Gottfried Büsching (1761–1833)	February 1814	March 1832	6603	No party
3		Friedrich von Bärensprung (1779–1841)	March 1832	October 6, 1834	949	No party
4		Wilhelm Krausnick (1797–1882)	October 6, 1834	March 20, 1848	4914	No party
–		Franz Christian Naunyn (1799–1860) Acting	March 20, 1848	January 23, 1851	1039	No party
(4)		Wilhelm Krausnick (1797–1882)	January 23, 1851	December 30, 1862	−32165	No party
5		Karl Theodor Seydel (1812–1873)	January 12, 1863	January 18, 1871	1492	No party
German Empire (1867–1918)
Berlin was the capital city of the Kingdom of Prussia, which became part of the German Reich in 1871.
(5)		Karl Theodor Seydel (1812–1873)	January 18, 1871	April 1, 1872	439	No party
6		Arthur Hobrecht (1824–1912)	May 16, 1872	April 1, 1878	2146	National Liberal Party
7		Max von Forckenbeck (1824–1892)	November 21, 1878	May 26, 1892	4935	National Liberal Party
8		Robert Zelle (1829–1901)	September 26, 1892	September 30, 1898	2191	Free-minded People's Party
9		Martin Kirschner (1842–1912)	December 23, 1899	August 31, 1912	4634	No party
10		Adolf Wermuth (1855–1927)	September 1, 1912	November 9, 1918	2260	No party
Weimar Republic (1918–1933)
(10)		Adolf Wermuth (1855–1927)	November 9, 1918	October 1, 1920	692	No party

Lord Mayors of Greater Berlin (1918–1935)

This section covers the time when Berlin grew into "Greater Berlin."

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
Weimar Republic (1918–1933)
Berlin was the capital city of the Weimar Republic.
(10)		Adolf Wermuth (1855–1927)	October 1, 1920	November 30, 1920	60	No party
11		Gustav Böß (1873–1946)	February 10, 1921	November 7, 1929	3192	German Democratic Party
–		Arthur Scholtz (1871–1935) Acting	November 7, 1929	April 20, 1931	692	German People's Party
12		Heinrich Sahm (1877–1939)	April 20, 1931	January 30, 1933	651	No party
Nazi Germany (1933–1945)
Berlin was the capital city of the Weimar Republic and later Nazi Germany.
(12)		Heinrich Sahm (1877–1939)	January 30, 1933	January 30, 1935	730	No party (until 1933) Nazi Party (from 1933)

City Presidents of Berlin (1935–1945)

During the time of Nazi Germany, the government changed how cities were run. The main leader of the city was now called the "City President." The "Lord Mayor" title still existed but was more of a ceremonial role.

Political Party Colors:       NSDAP

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
Nazi Germany (1933–1945)
Berlin was the capital city of Nazi Germany.
(12)		Heinrich Sahm (1877–1939)	January 30, 1935	December 18, 1935	322	Nazi Party
–		Oskar Maretzky [de] (1881–1945) Acting	December 19, 1935	January 5, 1937	383	Nazi Party (Not party-member)
13		Julius Lippert (1895–1956)	January 5, 1937	July 1, 1940	1273	Nazi Party
14		Ludwig Steeg (1894–1945)	July 1, 1940	May 2, 1945	1766	Nazi Party

Lord Mayors of Berlin Under Allied Control (1945–1948)

After World War II, Berlin was divided and controlled by the Allied powers (United States, United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union). The city's leader was again called the "Lord Mayor."

Political Party Colors:       IND       SPD       CDU

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
Berlin under Allied control (1945–1948)
15		Arthur Werner (1877–1967)	May 17, 1945	December 10, 1946	572	No party
16		Otto Ostrowski (1883–1963)	December 10, 1946	June 11, 1947	183	Social Democratic Party
–		Louise Schroeder (1887–1957) Acting	June 11, 1947	August 14, 1948	430	Social Democratic Party
–		Ferdinand Friedensburg (1886–1972) Acting for Schroeder	August 14, 1948	December 1, 1948	109	Christian Democratic Union
–		Louise Schroeder (1887–1957) Acting	December 1, 1948	December 7, 1948	6	Social Democratic Party
17		Ernst Reuter (1889–1953) (West Berlin only)	December 7, 1948	February 1, 1951	786	Social Democratic Party

Lord Mayors of East Berlin (1948–1990)

After 1948, Berlin was split into East and West Berlin. East Berlin became the capital of East Germany.

Political Party Colors:       SED       PDS       SPD

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
East Berlin (1948–1949)
East Berlin was under Soviet control. They fully controlled it from November 1948 until East Germany was founded.
1		Friedrich Ebert Jr. (1894–1979)	November 30, 1948	October 7, 1949	311	Socialist Unity Party
East Berlin (1948–1990)
East Berlin was the capital city of East Germany.
(1)		Friedrich Ebert Jr. (1894–1979)	October 7, 1949	July 5, 1967	6480	Socialist Unity Party
2		Herbert Fechner (1913–1998)	July 5, 1967	February 11, 1974	2413	Socialist Unity Party
3		Erhard Krack (1931–2000)	February 11, 1974	February 15, 1990	5848	Socialist Unity Party
–		Ingrid Pankraz (born 1948) Acting	February 15, 1990	February 23, 1990	8	Party of Democratic Socialism
4		Christian Hartenhauer [de] (born 1948)	February 23, 1990	May 30, 1990	96	Party of Democratic Socialism
5		Tino Schwierzina (1927–2003)	May 30, 1990	October 3, 1990	126	Social Democratic Party in the GDR
East Berlin joined West Berlin on October 3, 1990, becoming one city again.

Governing Mayors of West and Reunified Berlin (1951–Present)

West Berlin was closely linked to West Germany. After Germany was reunified in 1990, Berlin became the capital of the new, united Germany. The city's leader is now called the "Governing Mayor."

Political Party Colors:       SPD       CDU

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Time in Office			Political Party
			Started	Ended	Days
West Berlin (1948–1990)
West Berlin was part of West Germany.
1		Ernst Reuter (1889–1953)	February 1, 1951	September 29, 1953	971	Social Democratic Party
2		Walther Schreiber (1884–1958)	September 29, 1953	January 11, 1955	469	Christian Democratic Union
3		Otto Suhr (1894–1957)	January 11, 1955	August 30, 1957 (died in office)	962	Social Democratic Party
4		Willy Brandt (1913–1992)	October 3, 1957	December 1, 1966	3346	Social Democratic Party
5		Heinrich Albertz (1915–1993)	December 1, 1966	October 19, 1967	322	Social Democratic Party
6		Klaus Schütz (1926–2012)	October 19, 1967	May 2, 1977	3483	Social Democratic Party
7		Dietrich Stobbe (1938–2011)	May 2, 1978	January 23, 1981	1362	Social Democratic Party
8		Hans-Jochen Vogel (1926–2020)	January 23, 1981	June 11, 1981	139	Social Democratic Party
9		Richard von Weizsäcker (1920–2015)	June 11, 1981	February 9, 1984	973	Christian Democratic Union
10		Eberhard Diepgen (born 1941)	February 9, 1984	March 16, 1989	1862	Christian Democratic Union
11		Walter Momper (born 1945)	March 16, 1989	January 24, 1991	565	Social Democratic Party
West Berlin joined East Berlin on October 3, 1990, becoming one city again.
Reunified Berlin (1990–Present)
Berlin is now a city-state and the capital city of Germany.
		Walter Momper (born 1945) & Tino Schwierzina (1927–2003)	October 3, 1990	January 24, 1991	113	Social Democratic Party
12 (10)		Eberhard Diepgen (born 1941)	January 24, 1991	June 16, 2001	3796	Christian Democratic Union
13		Klaus Wowereit (born 1953)	June 16, 2001	December 11, 2014	4926	Social Democratic Party
14		Michael Müller (born 1964)	December 11, 2014	December 21, 2021	2567	Social Democratic Party
15		Franziska Giffey (born 1978)	December 21, 2021	April 27, 2023	492	Social Democratic Party
16		Kai Wegner (born 1972)	April 27, 2023	Still in office	801	Christian Democratic Union

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Alcaldes de Berlín para niños