Ernst Goldenbaum

Ernst Goldenbaum (15 December 1898, Parchim – 13 March 1990, East Berlin) was a German politician who served as the chairman of the Democratic Farmers' Party of Germany from 1948 to 1982.

Biography

Goldenbaum was born in Parchim, Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. During World War I, he served in the Imperial German Army and he participated in the German November Revolution. In 1919, he joined the left-wing USPD and a few years later the Communist Party of Germany.

From 1923 to 1925, he was a member of the city council of Parchim, and from 1924 to 1932 he was a member of the Landtag of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. From 1932 to 1933, he was the editor of Volkswacht, a communist newspaper. After the Nazis seized power, he became a farmer and a member of the German resistance.

In 1944, he was arrested and he spent the last year of the war in Neuengamme concentration camp. In 1945, he was one of very few who survived the sinking of the SS Cap Arcona which claimed over 4000 lives.

After the war, he joined the Socialist Unity Party (SED), but in 1948, he co-founded the communist-sponsored Democratic Farmers' Party of Germany (DBD). The DBD was a close ally of the SED as a bloc party or a satellite party. Until 1982, Goldenbaum was the chairman of the party.

From 1949 to 1990 Goldenbaum was a member of the People's Chamber (Volkskammer). From 1949 to 1950, Goldenbaum was East Germany's first Minister of Agriculture and Forestry. Goldenbaum supported the SED's collectivisation in the 1950s and 1960s. From 1950 to 1963, he was the deputy chairman of the People's Chamber. After 1963, he was a member of the Presidium of the People's Chamber.