Kurt von Schleicher Reich Chancellor of Germany from December 1932 to January 1933, Hitler's predecessor in this post. Date of Birth: 04.04.1882 Country: Germany

Biography of Kurt von Schleicher

Kurt von Schleicher (Kurt von Schleicher, April 4, 1882 – June 30, 1934) served as the Chancellor of Germany from December 1932 to January 1933, preceding Adolf Hitler in this position. He was the last head of government of the Weimar Republic. Coming from a military family, Schleicher participated in World War I. As a general, he made a career in the Reichswehr in the 1920s and served as a liaison between the army and the politicians of the Weimar Republic. He held conservative "Prussian" views on the army and the state and actively participated in the secret rearmament of the country, but was more liberal in terms of economics. Starting from 1930, he played a significant political role due to his influence on President Hindenburg. Schleicher contributed to the formation of cabinets led by first Heinrich Brüning and then his friend Franz von Papen, serving as the Minister of War under them. During his short tenure as Chancellor (less than two months, from December 1932), he continued the policy of German rearmament. However, he found himself politically isolated in the Reichstag and, following an agreement between Papen, Hjalmar Schacht, and others with Hindenburg, he was removed from office and replaced by Hitler on January 30, 1933. Schleicher, along with his wife Elisabeth, was executed by order of Hitler during the Night of the Long Knives. Their bodies were discovered by their 16-year-old daughter. According to the account of their cook, she led two men in civilian clothing into his office. One of them asked, "Are you General von Schleicher?" Upon receiving an affirmative answer, they shot him first and then his wife, who had rushed in upon hearing the shots. The main events of the Night of the Long Knives involved purges of the leaders of the SA, but Hitler also ordered the killing of several of his political enemies who were not associated with the SA, including Schleicher. The Führer suspected him (perhaps not without reason) of attempting to restore the Hohenzollern dynasty to power. The version about the connection between Schleicher and Röhm was not even considered due to its obvious absurdity: Schleicher had such a strong dislike for Röhm that he did not even try to hide it. After Schleicher's murder, the organizers of the Night of the Long Knives feared the revenge of the military. However, von Reichenaus dispelled their fears by issuing a statement: In recent weeks, it has been established that the former Minister of War, retired General von Schleicher, maintained contacts with hostile circles of stormtroopers and foreign states. It has been proven that he spoke and acted against our state and its leadership. This fact determined the necessity of his arrest during the ongoing purge. At the moment of his arrest by the criminal police officers, Schleicher attempted to resist and used a weapon. During the ensuing shootout, the retired general and his intervening wife were fatally wounded. In retrospect, Hermann Göring claimed that he only intended to arrest Schleicher, but his Gestapo team was quicker.