Brunhilde Hanke

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific_prefix =

| name = Brunhilde Hanke

| image =

| alt =

| caption =

| office1 = Member of the State Council of the German Democratic Republic

| term_start1 = July 13, 1967

| term_end1 = April 5, 1990

| office2 = Member of the Volkskammer

| term_start2 = October 20, 1963

| term_end2 = March 18, 1990

| office3 = Mayor of Potsdam

| term_start3 = 1961

| term_end3 = 1984

| predecessor3 = Wilhelm Rescher

| successor3 = Wilfried Seidel

| birth_name = Brunhilde Anweiler

| birth_date = {{birth date|1930|03|23|df=y}}

| birth_place = Erfurt, Thuringia, Germany

| death_date = {{death date and age|2024|10|13|1930|03|23|df=y}}

| death_place = Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany

| party = Die Linke
Socialist Unity Party of Germany (1946–1989)

| alma_mater = Parteihochschule Karl Marx

| awards = Patriotic Order of Merit, in silver (1979)
Patriotic Order of Merit, in bronze (1974)

| spouse = Helmut Hanke

| children = Bärbel Dalichow

}}

Brunhilde Hanke (née Anweiler; 23 March 1930 – 13 October 2024) was a German politician who was mayor of Potsdam and a member of the State Council of East Germany.

Early life

Hanke was born in Erfurt into a working-class family. She completed an apprenticeship as a seamstress in 1947, during which she joined the Free German Trade Union Federation. She soon also became a member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) and its youth organisation, the Free German Youth (FDJ). In 1951–52, she studied at the Komsomol academy in Moscow. She completed a diploma in social sciences at the {{lang|de|Parteihochschule Karl Marx}} in 1962.

Political career

Between 1952 and 1963, Hanke was part of the FDJ's central council. Hanke became mayor of Potsdam in 1961. Her tenure as mayor was marked by the construction of 37,000 apartment units, largely in the Plattenbau style. During her mayoralty she also came into conflict with SED leadership regarding the preservation and restoration of historic buildings. Hanke remained mayor until 1984. Afterwards, from 1987, she led the local {{lang|de|Kulturbund}} in Potsdam.

In 1963, Hanke was elected to the {{lang|de|Volkskammer}}. In 1967, she was made a member of the State Council of the GDR, the country's collective head of state. She remained a member of both institutions until 1990.

Hanke was awarded the Patriotic Order of Merit in bronze in 1974 and in silver in 1979.

Following German reunification, Hanke became a member of the political party Die Linke.

Death

Henke died in Potsdam on 13 October 2024, at the age of 94.[https://www.rbb24.de/politik/beitrag/2024/10/potsdam-oberbuergermeisterin-brunhilde-hanke-gestorben.html Frühere Potsdamer Oberbürgermeisterin Brunhilde Hanke gestorben] {{in lang|de}}

References

{{reflist|refs=

{{cite web|url=https://www.bundesstiftung-aufarbeitung.de/wer-war-wer-in-der-ddr-%2363;-1424.html?ID=1237|title=Hanke, Brunhilde|publisher=Bundesstiftung Aufarbeitung|first1=Andreas|last1=Herbst|author-link1=Andreas Herbst|first2=Helmut|last2=Müller-Enbergs|author-link2=Helmut Müller-Enbergs|language=de|access-date=26 November 2019}}

{{cite web|url=https://www.munzinger.de/search/go/document.jsp?id=00000013528|title=Brunhilde Hanke|work=Munzinger-Archiv|language=de|access-date=26 November 2019}}

{{cite book|title=Biographisches Handbuch der SBZ/DDR|volume=Band 1+2|page=278|first1=Gabriele|last1=Baumgartner|first2=Dieter|last2=Hebig|publisher=K.G. Saur|year=1996|location=Munich|language=de|isbn=9783111699134|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2CpHD7n0gjkC}}

{{cite news|url=https://www.pnn.de/potsdam/zwei-oberbuergermeister-zwei-welten/21985776.html|title=Zwei Oberbürgermeister – zwei Welten|work=Potsdamer Neueste Nachrichten|first=Günter|last=Schenke|date=26 April 2004|language=de|access-date=26 November 2019}}

{{cite news|url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/potsdam/landeshauptstadt/ex-oberburgermeisterin-hanke-wird-90-jahre-alt-7925362.html|title=Potsdams Plattenbaumeisterin: Ex-Oberbürgermeisterin Hanke wird 90 Jahre alt|first=Sandra|last=Calvez|date=2020-03-22|language=de|access-date=2023-05-23}}

}}

Category:1930 births

Category:2024 deaths

Category:Politicians from Erfurt

Category:Politicians from the Province of Saxony

Category:Socialist Unity Party of Germany politicians

Category:Free German Youth members

Category:Free German Trade Union Federation members

Category:Democratic Women's League of Germany members

Category:Party of Democratic Socialism (Germany) politicians

Category:The Left (Germany) politicians

Category:Members of the State Council of East Germany