Lauritz Lauritzen
Encyclopedia
Lauritz Lauritzen was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany
(SPD). He was born in Kiel
and died in Bad Honnef
.
Lauritzen studied Law
at the universities of Freiburg
and Kiel
and earned a doctorate (Dr. iur, equivalent to S.J.D.). After working as a high ranking civil servant at the Ministry of the Interior of the German Federal State of Lower Saxony
, Lauritzen became mayor of Kassel
. In 1963 he joined the Hessian
government as Minister of Justice and Federal Affairs. A possible candidacy as Minister President of Hesse, was obstructed by an affair concerning donations to a football club.
After the election to the Bundestag
in 1966, Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger
appointed Lauritzen as Federal Minister of Housing and Urban Development
. After the election of 1969, the name of the ministry was changed to Ministry of Urban Development and Housing. On July 7, 1972, Lauritzen additionally became head of the Ministries of Transport
and of Post and Communication. From December 15, 1972 on, he headed only the Ministry of Transport. His predecessor at the Transport Ministry, Georg Leber
, triggered press and public opposition by implementing a blanket 100 km/h speed limit on major roads, but not on Autobahnen. In support of his predecessor's action, Lauritzen in August 1972 repeated his conviction that speed limits served the cause of traffic safety. During the 1973 oil crisis
Lauritzen took the opportunity to implement a general speed limit of 100 km/h (subsequently withdrawn) on German autobahns. He left the cabinet on May 7, 1974 upon the resignation of Chancellor Willy Brandt
.
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
(SPD). He was born in Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
and died in Bad Honnef
Bad Honnef
Bad Honnef is a spa town in Germany near Bonn in the Rhein-Sieg district, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located on the border of the neighbouring state Rhineland-Palatinate...
.
Lauritzen studied Law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
at the universities of Freiburg
University of Freiburg
The University of Freiburg , sometimes referred to in English as the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.The university was founded in 1457 by the Habsburg dynasty as the...
and Kiel
University of Kiel
The University of Kiel is a university in the city of Kiel, Germany. It was founded in 1665 as the Academia Holsatorum Chiloniensis by Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp and has approximately 23,000 students today...
and earned a doctorate (Dr. iur, equivalent to S.J.D.). After working as a high ranking civil servant at the Ministry of the Interior of the German Federal State of Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Lauritzen became mayor of Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
. In 1963 he joined the Hessian
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
government as Minister of Justice and Federal Affairs. A possible candidacy as Minister President of Hesse, was obstructed by an affair concerning donations to a football club.
After the election to the Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
in 1966, Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger
Kurt Georg Kiesinger
Kurt Georg Kiesinger was a German politician affiliated with the CDU and Chancellor of West Germany from 1 December 1966 until 21 October 1969.-Early career and wartime activities:...
appointed Lauritzen as Federal Minister of Housing and Urban Development
Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs (Germany)
The Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development is a Ministry of Germany.It was created in 1998 by merger of the former Federal Ministry of Transport and the Federal Ministry of Regional Planning, Building and Urban Development, both established in 1949...
. After the election of 1969, the name of the ministry was changed to Ministry of Urban Development and Housing. On July 7, 1972, Lauritzen additionally became head of the Ministries of Transport
Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs (Germany)
The Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development is a Ministry of Germany.It was created in 1998 by merger of the former Federal Ministry of Transport and the Federal Ministry of Regional Planning, Building and Urban Development, both established in 1949...
and of Post and Communication. From December 15, 1972 on, he headed only the Ministry of Transport. His predecessor at the Transport Ministry, Georg Leber
Georg Leber
Georg Leber is a German politician in the Social Democratic Party of Germany .After serving in the Luftwaffe in World War 2, he joined the SPD in 1947...
, triggered press and public opposition by implementing a blanket 100 km/h speed limit on major roads, but not on Autobahnen. In support of his predecessor's action, Lauritzen in August 1972 repeated his conviction that speed limits served the cause of traffic safety. During the 1973 oil crisis
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo. This was "in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war. It lasted until March 1974. With the...
Lauritzen took the opportunity to implement a general speed limit of 100 km/h (subsequently withdrawn) on German autobahns. He left the cabinet on May 7, 1974 upon the resignation of Chancellor Willy Brandt
Willy Brandt
Willy Brandt, born Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm , was a German politician, Mayor of West Berlin 1957–1966, Chancellor of West Germany 1969–1974, and leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany 1964–1987....
.