Werner Leich

Werner Leich (31 January 1927 – 17 December 2022) was a German Protestant theologian and pastor. From 1978 to 1992, he was the longest-serving Landesbischof of the Lutheran Church in Thuringia during the era of the German Democratic Republic, and led the state church’s independence from the regime.

Early life and education Leich was born in Mühlhausen on 31 January 1927. His father was a jurist and the mayor of Schalkau, and his mother was a teacher; she died six months after he was born. Leich grew up living with his aunt and his grandmother in Weimar, until his father married again and integrated him into the new family in Schalkau. In 1939, his father lost his position as mayor due to arguments with the Nazi party, and was assigned to a minor position in Gotha. Leich was then educated at the Ernestine-Gymnasium there until 1942.

Autobiography 1992: Wechselnde Horizonte. Mein Leben in vier politischen Systemen.