List of presidents of the Reichstag facts for kids

Quick facts for kids President of the Reichstag
Longest serving and last officeholder Hermann Göring 30 August 1932 – 23 April 1945
Presidium of the Reichstag
Style	Mr. President
Seat	Reichstag building, Königsplatz, Berlin
Nominator	Political parties
Appointer	Reichstag traditionally appointing nominee of the largest party
Term length	Contemporaneous to legislative period
Constituting instrument	German Constitution
Formation	March 1871
First holder	Eduard von Simson
Final holder	Hermann Göring
Abolished	23 April 1945
Succession	President of the Bundestag, 1949 President of the Volkskammer, 1949

The President of the Reichstag (which means President of the German Parliament) was a very important job in Germany's history. This person was like the main leader or speaker of the Reichstag, which was Germany's parliament or law-making body.

This role existed during two main periods. First, from 1871 to 1918, during the time of the German Empire. Then, it returned from 1920 to 1945, during the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. The President's job was to lead the meetings and make sure everything ran smoothly in the parliament.

Who Were the Presidents of the Reichstag?

The President of the Reichstag was chosen by the members of the parliament. This person was usually from the largest political party. Many different people held this position throughout Germany's history.

Understanding Political Parties

Here are the political parties mentioned for the presidents. Each color helps you see which party a president belonged to in the timeline below.       Independent       NLP       DKP       DRP       Zentrum       FVP       SPD       DDP       DNVP       NSDAP

List of Leaders by Era

This table shows the people who served as President of the Reichstag. It also includes those who led the Weimar National Assembly, which was a special parliament after World War I.

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office		Time in office	Political party
			Took office	Left office
Presidents of the Reichstag (German Empire)
1		Simson, EduardEduard von Simson (1810–1899)	March 1871	February 1874	2 years, 11 months	Independent
2		Forckenbeck, MaxMax von Forckenbeck (1821–1892)	February 1874	May 1879	5 years, 3 months	NLP
3		Seydewitz, OttoOtto Theodor von Seydewitz [de] (1818–1898)	May 1879	February 1880	9 months	DKP
4		Arnim, AdolfAdolf von Arnim-Boitzenburg [de] (1832–1887)	February 1880	February 1881	1 year	DRP
5		Gossler, GustavGustav von Goßler [de] (1838–1902)	February 1881	November 1881	9 months	DKP
6		Levetzow, AlbertAlbert von Levetzow (1827–1903)	November 1881	November 1884	3 years	DKP
7		Wedell, WilhelmWilhelm von Wedell-Piesdorf (1837–1915)	November 1884	November 1888	4 years	DKP
(6)		Levetzow, AlbertAlbert von Levetzow (1827–1903)	November 1888	March 1895	6 years, 4 months	DKP
8		Buol, RudolfRudolf von Buol-Berenberg (1842–1902)	March 1895	December 1898	3 years, 9 months	Centre
9		Ballestrem, FranzFranz von Ballestrem (1834–1910)	December 1898	20 February 1907	8 years, 2 months	Centre
10		Stolberg, UdoUdo zu Stolberg-Wernigerode [de] (1840–1910)	20 February 1907	19 February 1910 †	2 years, 364 days	DKP
11		Schwerin, HansHans von Schwerin-Löwitz (1847–1918)	1 March 1910	7 February 1912	1 year, 343 days	DKP
12		Kaempf, JohannesJohannes Kaempf (1842–1918)	7 February 1912	25 May 1918 †	6 years, 107 days	FVP
13		Fehrenbach, ConstantinConstantin Fehrenbach (1852–1926)	June 1918	9 November 1918	5 months	Centre
Presidents of the Weimar National Assembly
1		David, EduardEduard David (1863–1930)	7 February 1919	13 February 1919	6 days	SPD
–		Haussmann, ConradConrad Haußmann (1857–1922) Acting	13 February 1919	14 February 1919	1 day	DDP
2		Fehrenbach, ConstantinConstantin Fehrenbach (1852–1926)	14 February 1919	21 June 1920	1 year, 128 days	Centre
Presidents of the Reichstag (Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany)
14		Löbe, PaulPaul Löbe (1875–1967)	25 June 1920	28 May 1924	3 years, 338 days	SPD
15		Wallraf, MaxMax Wallraf (1859–1941)	28 May 1924	7 January 1925	224 days	DNVP
(14)		Löbe, PaulPaul Löbe (1875–1967)	7 January 1925	30 August 1932	7 years, 236 days	SPD
16		Göring, HermannHermann Göring (1893–1946)	30 August 1932	23 April 1945	12 years, 236 days	NSDAP

Timeline of Presidents

This timeline shows when each person served as President of the Reichstag. You can see how long each person held the position and which political party they belonged to.

The Presidium: Helping the President

The President of the Reichstag was supported by a group called the Presidium. This group helped the President manage the parliament's work. They made sure that debates and votes happened in an organized way.

Learn More About the Reichstag

• Reichstag (North German Confederation)
• Reichstag (German Empire)
• Reichstag (Weimar Republic)
• Reichstag (Nazi Germany)

See also

In Spanish: Presidente del Reichstag para niños