Walter Ulbricht

Walter Ernst Paul Ulbricht (/ˈʊlbrɪxt/; German: [ˈvaltɐ ˈʔʊlbʁɪçt]; 30 June 1893 – 1 August 1973) was a German communist politician. Ulbricht played a leading role in the creation of the Weimar-era Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and later in the early development and establishment of the German Democratic Republic. As the First Secretary of the Communist Socialist Unity Party from 1950 to 1971, he was the chief decision-maker in East Germany. From President Wilhelm Pieck's death in 1960, he was also the East German head of state until his own death in 1973.