Wilhelm Helms

Wilhelm Helms (19 December 1923 – 8 December 2019) was a German politician. He served as a member of the Bundestag from 1969 to 1972. Helms was notable for his 1972 party switch that threatened to collapse the government of Chancellor Willy Brandt.

Early life and career Wilhelm Helms was born on 19 December 1923 in the Bissenhausen district of Twistringen, Germany. His father, Heinrich Helms died in 1941 while his brother, Heinrich, was killed in World War II.

After high school, he was drafted into the Wehrmacht. He served in a tank crew on the Russian front and left the army in 1945. He worked his family's farm after the war.

At the no-confidence vote, two CDU politicians voted to support Brandt while Helms would not reveal how he had voted. However, he later stated that he would support the vote for the treaties. Helms sat with the CDU for the remainder of his term. In the 1972 West German federal election, he was not re-elected to the Bundestag.

Personal life In 1944, he met his wife, Lya Schilmbller, who had been sent to work on the farm. The couple become engaged in 1946 and married in 1948.

Helms died on 8 December 2019 in Vechta, Germany at the age of 95.