Phillipp Stahnke
Phillipp Stahnke | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister-President of Hanover | |
| In office 20 November 1939 – 20 November 1954 | |
| Monarch | Frederick |
| Deputy | Raoul Umlauf |
| Preceded by | Anton Weintraub |
| Succeeded by | Henry Plessner |
| Leader of the Hanoverian Union Party | |
| In office 20 November 1939 – 20 November 1954 | |
| Deputy | Raoul Umlauf |
| Preceded by | Anton Weintraub |
| Succeeded by | Henry Plessner |
| Deputy Leader of the Hanoverian Union Party | |
| In office 20 November 1924 – 20 November 1939 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Raoul Umlauf |
| Deputy Minister-President of Hanover | |
| In office 20 November 1924 – 20 November 1939 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Raoul Umlauf |
| Member of the Hanoverian Parliament for Wolfsburg I | |
| In office 20 November 1924 – 20 November 1964 | |
| Succeeded by | Moritz Schwarzkopf |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Phillipp Berhtram Stahnke March 2, 1889 Wolfsburg, Kingdom of Hanover |
| Died | February 18, 1982 (aged 92) Wolfsburg, Hanover |
| Political party | Hanoverian Union Party |
| Spouse | Helmine Nachtigall |
| Children | 4 |
Phillipp Berhtram Stahnke (2 March 1889 - 18 February 1882) was a Hanoverian politician who served as the second minister-president of Hanover and leader of the Hanoverian Union Party from 1939 to 1954. Previously the longtime deputy of noted Hanoverian statesman Anton Weintraub, Stahnke took office around the beginning of the Second World War, during which he led the country's defence against Nazi Germany, and later oversaw Hanover's period of post-war prosperity. A strong anti-communist and an advocate for British unionism, Stahnke vocally opposed any incorporation of Hanover into neighbouring West Germany and took steps to foster a distinct "Hanoverian" identity with Hanover later voting to remain part of the United Kingdom in the 1955 September Referendum as opposed to joining West Germany. A native of Wolfsburg, Stahnke was his city's premier politician for a period of over four decades and was even an instrumental figure in the foundation of the Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg where he was its life president from its founding in 1945 until his death. Among supporters, he was popularly nicknamed "Herr von Wolfsburg" owing to his significant role in the city's modern history.
As the first Hanoverian leader of the post-WW2 era, Stahnke was instrumental in aligning the party and the country's politics away from its traditional right-wing roots and more to the center via his support for social welfare and socially liberal policies while crucially preserving a strong unionist identity that has persisted ever since.
One of the oldest-lived Hanoverian minister-presidents, at the age of 92, Stahnke passed away on 18 February 1982, having outlived his predecessor Anton Weintraub (who notably died at the age of 105) by just several months.