Gerhard Grüneberg

Gerhard Grüneberg (10 August 1921 – 10 April 1981) was a German politician and high-ranking party functionary of the Socialist Unity Party (SED).

In the German Democratic Republic, he served as the First Secretary of the SED in Bezirk Frankfurt (Oder) and was a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the SED. From the 1960s to the early 1980s, he was the powerful SED Agriculture Secretary, instituting various reforms to the GDR's collectivized agricultural sector.

Life and career Grüneberg grew up in humble circumstances in Lehnin, Brandenburg. His parents were members of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) since 1919 and 1928, respectively. From 1928 to 1933, Grüneberg was a member of the Jung-Spartacus League.

After completing elementary school, Grüneberg learned the trade of a bricklayer (1936–1939) and worked in this field until his conscription into the Kriegsmarine in the spring of 1941. He served on various ships, reached the rank of a Maat, and was awarded the Iron Cross, 2nd class. and concurrently became a member of the Volkskammer,

On 13 December 1959, he became a candidate member and on 15 September 1966, a full member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the SED. The Politburo appointed him as the head of their agricultural commission.

SED Agriculture Secretary In 1960, he became the Secretary for Agriculture of the SED Central Committee. As a consequence, he implemented many ideas aimed at industrializing the collectively managed agriculture since 1960. The most significant aspect became the gradual separation of animal and plant production, starting in the mid-1960s. This was particularly evident under the leadership of Erich Honecker, under whom Grüneberg expanded his power after falling out of favor with Walter Ulbricht in 1969 due to 'exaggerations.'

By the late 1970s, it became evident that the systematic operational separation between arable farming and animal husbandry was a failure, and the sizes of the farms became almost unmanageable. This led to internal criticism of Grüneberg – notably by the Central Committee Secretary for Economics, Günter Mittag. Grüneberg, together with his ally Bruno Kiesler (Head of the Agriculture Department of the Central Committee), attempted to alleviate the consequences through increased cooperation, which yielded limited success.

Even before his death, an agricultural policy shift began, intensifying under his successor as the Central Committee Secretary for Agriculture, Werner Felfe.

Felfe was awarded the Patriotic Order of Merit in 1959, 1964 and 1971 and the Karl Marx Order in 1979.

Death

Grüneberg died in 1981 at the age of 59 from a tumor. A state funeral took place at the SED Central Committee House in Berlin.

He was interred at the Memorial of the Socialists at the Friedrichsfelde Central Cemetery in Berlin-Lichtenberg. Paul Verner delivered the eulogy.