Strauss, Franz Josef

Born in Munich . My father was a butcher, had a trading shop. Mother is a housewife. Parents were zealous Catholics, monarchists and opponents of Prussian rule. Father took part in the establishment of the Bavarian People’s Party in 1919 and remained faithful to it until its dissolution by the National Socialists.

He studied at the gymnasium, in his youth he was engaged in cycling. In 1935-1939 he studied at the University of Munich . During his studies at the university, in order to avoid suspicions of disloyalty to the established regime, he participated in national-socialist youth organizations.

World War II

In the summer of 1939 he was called up to the Wehrmacht , where he served in the artillery unit. He participated in the campaign of the Wehrmacht against France. In March 1940 he passed the first state exam at the university, in April 1941 - the second. In November 1940, Strauss was promoted to non-commissioned officer, he was granted leave to complete his studies, for some time he even worked at the university as an assistant, helping to conduct seminars on ancient history and philology.

In early 1941, the anti-aircraft battalion, which included the Strauss battery, was transferred to the area of ​​Przemysl, closer to the Soviet border. In early September 1941, he was sent to an officer school near Stettin. After retraining, he was given the rank of lieutenant (the graduation document stated that he was “more suited to be a scientist than an officer”), and he was appointed commander of a platoon of anti-aircraft artillery batteries, which from Denmark was transferred to Russia and entered the composition of the 6th army of the Wehrmacht. So Strauss became a member of the Battle of Stalingrad . January 12, 1943, when there was very little left before the surrender of the 6th Army of Paulus, Strauss received an order to leave the heavy artillery battery for training courses for commanders. On the way, the train fell under bombardment, the wagons stood in the field for several days, here Strauss froze, giving his boots to the soldier. After the hospital until mid-May 1943, Strauss took courses. He was appointed an instructor officer, then an educator officer, and did not get to the front anymore. Military decorations: Iron Cross and the Cross "for military merit" ^[6] .

Political Activities

After the war, he spent some time in a prisoner of war camp, but already in 1945 he was released, as he was not convicted of war crimes. In the same year he became a member of the Christian Social Union . In 1946, he was elected to the council of Shongau County. In 1949 he was elected Secretary General of CSU. In 1961 he was elected chairman of the CSU and remained its leader until his death.

In 1949 he was elected deputy of the Bundestag , in which he became the leader of the CSU group and deputy chairman of the CDU / CSU faction.

In 1953, he became federal minister on special assignments and subsequently repeatedly held ministerial posts in the federal government.

In 1956 - 1962, Minister of Defense in the government of Chancellor Konrad Adenauer .

Press Scandal

The scandal that erupted in 1962 was triggered by a number of very critical articles by Der Spiegel magazine on the issue of corruption in the Department of Defense. In particular, journalists shed light on the personal interest of Defense Minister Franz Josef Strauss in the distribution of construction contracts. According to journalists, the minister received large bribes, kickbacks, from construction companies, in particular, FibAG.

In October 1962, Der Spiegel magazine published material on military exercises held in September 1962. The article was clearly directed against Strauss, questioning his activities as Minister of Defense. The minister himself acted decisively: by order of Strauss, without notice to the members of the government, a “night operation” was conducted to search the editorial office of the magazine. Strauss personally asked the Spanish police to arrest the author of the article there. Strauss's actions received wide publicity in the press. Public opinion was clearly not on the side of the minister. Strauss tried to justify himself, but in vain. A government crisis erupted. In mid-December 1962, Strauss had to resign. The trial against the magazine lasted three years, but he did not bring the desired result to Strauss: he was not able to put the journalists in the dock. Strauss himself was actually acquitted, the investigation was terminated with the wording "the minister acted in a state of emergency."

In government and opposition

In 1966 - 1969, the Minister of Finance in the government of the " big coalition " of the CDU / CSU - SPD, led by Chancellor Kurt Kiesinger . Strauss got along with the Social Democrat Minister of Economics K. Schiller until they quarreled over the revaluation of the brand, but, trying to influence the foreign policy, he clashed with Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Willy Brandt , who even then advocated for the recognition of existing realities. in Europe.

After the CDU / CSU left the opposition as a result of the 1969 Bundestag elections, he became the most consistent opponent of the Brandt- Scheel government . He believed that the "eastern treaties" would lead to the final recognition of the GDR and the legitimization of the split in Germany.

Strauss was not only a practical politician, but also a theorist. Many of his works are devoted to the history of Germany, CSU, foreign policy issues of Germany, security policy, international problems. His memoirs, published after the death of Strauss, shed light on the relationship between the chairman of the CSU and the leadership of the CDU : Adenauer, Erhard , Bartzel, and especially Kohl , which was reflected in the content and conduct of German policy.

Bavarian Prime Minister

From 1978 to 1988, Strauss served as Prime Minister of Bavaria .

In 1980, he was nominated as a CDU / CSU candidate for the post of Federal Chancellor in the Bundestag elections . During the election campaign, he made a statement that the “eastern treaties” would be respected. The CDU / CSU were defeated, and for Christian Democrats, the results were the worst since the 1949 election. Strauss was a vivid exponent of the interests and views of his conservative electorate (including immigrants from Eastern European countries), and for the center, and even more so for the left, it was a source of concern, causing rejection. In a conservative Bavaria, everything looked different. It was admired by the energetic, funny, rude prime minister, a real Bavarian, appearing in public in traditional Bavarian clothing.

As the leader of the second party of the government coalition during Helmut's chancellor, Kohl Strauss occupied a prominent place in the political life of Germany. In 1983-1984 - Chairman of the Bundesrat .

In 1983, he negotiated successfully with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade of the GDR, Schalk-Golodkovsky, to provide the Government of Germany with a billion-dollar loan that saved the GDR from declaring state bankruptcy.

From December 28 to December 31, 1987 he made the only trip to the USSR during his political activity on the Cessna plane, which he himself flew. Was adopted in the Kremlin by M.S. Gorbachev .

The name of Franz Josef Strauss is Munich International Airport .

Family

In June 1957, he married Marianne Zwiknagl, the daughter of a prominent Bavarian politician. They had 2 sons and a daughter. Wife died in a car accident in June 1984.

Daughter Monica (b. 1962) - Minister of Education and Culture of Bavaria in 1998-2005, since 2009 deputy of the European Parliament from the CSU.

• Strauss F. J. Your Future, Germany = Deutschland deine Zukunft. - M .: Progress , 1976 .-- 69 p. Sent on special. to the list .
• Strauss F. I. Memories = Die Erinnerungen. - M .: International Relations, 1991.

• Biography (German)