Ludwig Steeg
Encyclopedia
Ludwig Steeg German
Nazi politician, was Oberbürgermeister
(Lord Mayor) of Berlin
from 1939 to 1945.
, Saarland
, the son of a teacher. As a young man he moved to Berlin and gained a junior post in the city administration. In World War I
he served in the infantry, becoming a second lieutenant. Returning to Berlin in 1919, he rejoined the administration and was among other things responsible for city's cleaning services. He joined the Nazi Party in 1933, and thus gained rapid promotion as the majority of Berlin's civil servants who were loyal to the Social Democrats were removed from office. He became deputy to Julius Lippert
, the State Commissioner of Berlin, who also held the traditional title of Oberbürgermeister.
The real power in Berlin under the Nazis was, however, the Gauleiter
(party regional leader), Joseph Goebbels
, and in 1940 he persuaded Hitler to dismiss Lippert, who he believed had become a rival to his authority. Steeg, a loyal nonentity, was appointed in his place, "for lack of anyone better," as Goebbels put it. Steeg became Oberbürgermeister and Stadtpräsident (head of the city).
As Lord Mayor Steeg was responsible, under Goebbels, for the city's budget, traffic, building regulations, schools, youth facilities and health services. All these came under increasing strain as World War II
went on, partly because of the inexperience of the Nazi loyalists who had been placed on responsible jobs following the removal of experienced but politically unreliable officials, and partly because of the increasing shortage of staff as a result of wartime conscription.
Steeg was also responsible for preparing Berlin for the air-raids which were widely expected, and which began to occur with increasingly frequency and severity from 1943. He prepared plans for the production and distribution of food, the construction of shelters and the evacuation of women and children. About a million people were evacuated: even so, between 1943 and 1945 50,000 Berliners were killed in air-raids. He performed these tasks competently but did not exercise a public leadership role. This was exercised by Goebbels, who in 1944 took over the office of Stadtpräsident from Steeg.
During the last months of the war Steeg was eclipsed by Goebbels in preparing the defences of Berlin against the approaching Red Army
. He does not seem to have played any significant role in these events: he is not mentioned in any of the histories of Berlin at this time, such as Cornelius Ryan
's The Last Battle or Anthony Reid and David Fisher's The Fall of Berlin. Nevertheless, his post as Oberbürgermeister made him the symbolic head of the capital of the German Reich. When the city surrendered to the Soviet forces on 2 May 1945, he was arrested and taken to a Soviet internment camp, where he died in unexplained circumstances in September.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Nazi politician, was Oberbürgermeister
Burgomaster
Burgomaster is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or chairman of the executive council of a sub-national level of administration...
(Lord Mayor) of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
from 1939 to 1945.
Biography
Steeg was born in OttweilerOttweiler
Ottweiler is a municipality, former seat of the district of Neunkirchen, in Saarland, Germany. It is situated on the river Blies, approx. 7 km north of Neunkirchen, and 25 km northeast of Saarbrücken.The town is notable for the Ottweiler porcelain....
, Saarland
Saarland
Saarland is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The capital is Saarbrücken. It has an area of 2570 km² and 1,045,000 inhabitants. In both area and population, it is the smallest state in Germany other than the city-states...
, the son of a teacher. As a young man he moved to Berlin and gained a junior post in the city administration. In World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he served in the infantry, becoming a second lieutenant. Returning to Berlin in 1919, he rejoined the administration and was among other things responsible for city's cleaning services. He joined the Nazi Party in 1933, and thus gained rapid promotion as the majority of Berlin's civil servants who were loyal to the Social Democrats were removed from office. He became deputy to Julius Lippert
Julius Lippert (politician)
Julius Lippert was a German politician in the Nazi party.Born in Basel, Switzerland, he became an extreme anti-Semite in his youth after reading the anti-Semitic philosophers Joseph Arthur Comte de Gobineau and Houston Stewart Chamberlain...
, the State Commissioner of Berlin, who also held the traditional title of Oberbürgermeister.
The real power in Berlin under the Nazis was, however, the Gauleiter
Gauleiter
A Gauleiter was the party leader of a regional branch of the NSDAP or the head of a Gau or of a Reichsgau.-Creation and Early Usage:...
(party regional leader), Joseph Goebbels
Joseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
, and in 1940 he persuaded Hitler to dismiss Lippert, who he believed had become a rival to his authority. Steeg, a loyal nonentity, was appointed in his place, "for lack of anyone better," as Goebbels put it. Steeg became Oberbürgermeister and Stadtpräsident (head of the city).
As Lord Mayor Steeg was responsible, under Goebbels, for the city's budget, traffic, building regulations, schools, youth facilities and health services. All these came under increasing strain as World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
went on, partly because of the inexperience of the Nazi loyalists who had been placed on responsible jobs following the removal of experienced but politically unreliable officials, and partly because of the increasing shortage of staff as a result of wartime conscription.
Steeg was also responsible for preparing Berlin for the air-raids which were widely expected, and which began to occur with increasingly frequency and severity from 1943. He prepared plans for the production and distribution of food, the construction of shelters and the evacuation of women and children. About a million people were evacuated: even so, between 1943 and 1945 50,000 Berliners were killed in air-raids. He performed these tasks competently but did not exercise a public leadership role. This was exercised by Goebbels, who in 1944 took over the office of Stadtpräsident from Steeg.
During the last months of the war Steeg was eclipsed by Goebbels in preparing the defences of Berlin against the approaching Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. He does not seem to have played any significant role in these events: he is not mentioned in any of the histories of Berlin at this time, such as Cornelius Ryan
Cornelius Ryan
Cornelius Ryan, was an Irish journalist and author mainly known for his writings on popular military history, especially his World War II books: The Longest Day: June 6, 1944 D-Day , The Last Battle , and A Bridge Too Far .-Early life:Ryan was born in Dublin and educated at Synge Street CBS,...
's The Last Battle or Anthony Reid and David Fisher's The Fall of Berlin. Nevertheless, his post as Oberbürgermeister made him the symbolic head of the capital of the German Reich. When the city surrendered to the Soviet forces on 2 May 1945, he was arrested and taken to a Soviet internment camp, where he died in unexplained circumstances in September.