List of German Presidents by longevity
Encyclopedia
This is a list of German Presidents since 1919 by age. This table can be sorted to display German Presidents by name, order of office, date of birth, age at inauguration, length of retirement, or lifespan.
Two measures of longevity are given; this is to allow for the differing number of leap days occurring within the life of each President. The first figure is the number of days between date of birth and date of death, allowing for leap days; in parenthesis the same period given in years and days, with the years being the number of whole years the President lived, and the days being the remaining number of days after his last birthday. Where the president in question is still living, the longevity is calculated up to .
age of accession is roughly 61 years and 10 months, which is a bit more than Horst Köhler
. The youngest person to become president was Friedrich Ebert
(age 48 years, 7 days). The oldest person to become president was Paul von Hindenburg
(age 77 years, 222 days).
The oldest living president is Walter Scheel
, born 8 July 1919 (aged ). The youngest living former president is Roman Herzog
, born 5 April 1934 (aged ). The youngest living president is the incumbent, Christian Wulff
, born 19 June 1959 (aged ).
The longest-lived president is Walter Scheel
, who is currently living at the age of . Scheel became the longest-lived president by living to 15 October 2008. On that day, he became one day older than Karl Dönitz
, the previous holder of the oldest president record. The shortest-lived president was Friedrich Ebert
, who died at the age of 54 years, 24 days.
Two measures of longevity are given; this is to allow for the differing number of leap days occurring within the life of each President. The first figure is the number of days between date of birth and date of death, allowing for leap days; in parenthesis the same period given in years and days, with the years being the number of whole years the President lived, and the days being the remaining number of days after his last birthday. Where the president in question is still living, the longevity is calculated up to .
Overview
The medianMedian
In probability theory and statistics, a median is described as the numerical value separating the higher half of a sample, a population, or a probability distribution, from the lower half. The median of a finite list of numbers can be found by arranging all the observations from lowest value to...
age of accession is roughly 61 years and 10 months, which is a bit more than Horst Köhler
Horst Köhler
Horst Köhler is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union. He was President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU and the CSU, and the liberal FDP, Köhler was elected to his first five-year term by the Federal Assembly on...
. The youngest person to become president was Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
(age 48 years, 7 days). The oldest person to become president was Paul von Hindenburg
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934....
(age 77 years, 222 days).
The oldest living president is Walter Scheel
Walter Scheel
Walter Scheel is a German politician . He served as Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development from 1961 to 1966, Foreign Minister of Germany and Vice Chancellor from 1969 to 1974, acting Chancellor of Germany from 7 May to 16 May 1974 , and finally as President of the Federal...
, born 8 July 1919 (aged ). The youngest living former president is Roman Herzog
Roman Herzog
Roman Herzog is a German politician as a member of the Christian Democratic Union, and served as President of Germany from 1994 to 1999...
, born 5 April 1934 (aged ). The youngest living president is the incumbent, Christian Wulff
Christian Wulff
Christian Wilhelm Walter Wulff is the President of Germany and a politician of the Christian Democratic Union. He was elected President on 2010 and publicly swore the oath of office on . A lawyer by profession, he served as Premier of the state of Lower Saxony from 2003 to 2010.-Early life and...
, born 19 June 1959 (aged ).
The longest-lived president is Walter Scheel
Walter Scheel
Walter Scheel is a German politician . He served as Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development from 1961 to 1966, Foreign Minister of Germany and Vice Chancellor from 1969 to 1974, acting Chancellor of Germany from 7 May to 16 May 1974 , and finally as President of the Federal...
, who is currently living at the age of . Scheel became the longest-lived president by living to 15 October 2008. On that day, he became one day older than Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
, the previous holder of the oldest president record. The shortest-lived president was Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert
Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and...
, who died at the age of 54 years, 24 days.
German Presidents' ages
| # |
President |
Date of birth |
Date of inauguration |
Age at inauguration |
End of term |
Length of retirement |
Date of death |
Lifespan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert Friedrich Ebert was a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .When Ebert was elected as the leader of the SPD after the death of August Bebel, the party members of the SPD were deeply divided because of the party's support for World War I. Ebert supported the Burgfrieden and... |
4 February 1871 | N/A | days | ||||
| 2 | Paul von Hindenburg Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg , known universally as Paul von Hindenburg was a Prussian-German field marshal, statesman, and politician, and served as the second President of Germany from 1925 to 1934.... |
2 October 1847 | N/A | days | ||||
| 3 | Karl Dönitz Karl Dönitz Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner... |
16 September 1891 | days | days | ||||
| 4 | Theodor Heuss Theodor Heuss Theodor Heuss was a liberal German politician who served as the first President of the Federal Republic of Germany after World War II from 1949 to 1959... |
31 January 1884 | days | days | ||||
| 5 | Heinrich Lübke Heinrich Lübke Karl Heinrich Lübke was President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1959 to 1969.-Biography:... |
14 October 1894 | days | days | ||||
| 6 | Gustav Heinemann Gustav Heinemann Gustav Walter Heinemann, GCB was a German politician. He was Mayor of the city of Essen from 1946 to 1949, West German Minister of the Interior from 1949 to 1950, Minister of Justice from 1966 to 1969 and President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1969 to 1974.-Early years and professional... |
23 July 1899 | days | days | ||||
| 7 | Walter Scheel Walter Scheel Walter Scheel is a German politician . He served as Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development from 1961 to 1966, Foreign Minister of Germany and Vice Chancellor from 1969 to 1974, acting Chancellor of Germany from 7 May to 16 May 1974 , and finally as President of the Federal... |
8 July 1919 | days | days | ||||
| 8 | Karl Carstens Karl Carstens Karl Carstens was a German politician. He served as President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1979 to 1984.-Biography:... |
14 December 1914 | days | days | ||||
| 9 | Richard von Weizsäcker Richard von Weizsäcker Richard Karl Freiherr von Weizsäcker , known as Richard von Weizsäcker, is a German politician . He served as Governing Mayor of West Berlin from 1981 to 1984, and as President of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1984 to 1994... |
15 April 1920 | days | days | ||||
| 10 | Roman Herzog Roman Herzog Roman Herzog is a German politician as a member of the Christian Democratic Union, and served as President of Germany from 1994 to 1999... |
5 April 1934 | days | days | ||||
| 11 | Johannes Rau Johannes Rau Johannes Rau was a German politician of the SPD. He was President of Germany from 1 July 1999 until 30 June 2004, and Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia from 1978 to 1998.-Education and work:... |
16 January 1931 | days | days | ||||
| 12 | Horst Köhler Horst Köhler Horst Köhler is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union. He was President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU and the CSU, and the liberal FDP, Köhler was elected to his first five-year term by the Federal Assembly on... |
22 February 1943 | days | days | ||||
| 13 | Christian Wulff Christian Wulff Christian Wilhelm Walter Wulff is the President of Germany and a politician of the Christian Democratic Union. He was elected President on 2010 and publicly swore the oath of office on . A lawyer by profession, he served as Premier of the state of Lower Saxony from 2003 to 2010.-Early life and... |
19 June 1959 | Incumbent | Incumbent | days | |||
| # | President | Date of birth | Date of inauguration |
Age at inauguration |
End of term |
Length of retirement |
Date of death | Lifespan |