Redirected from List of famous German people
Famous people from
Germany:
Actors
Artists
- Hans von Aachen, (1552-1615), mannerist painter
- Albrecht Altdorfer, (1480-1538), German painter
- Joseph Beuys, (1921-1986), artist
- Arnold Böcklin[?], (1827-1901), painter
- Lucas Cranach the Elder, (1472-1553), German painter
- Lucas Cranach the Younger, (1515-1586), painter
- Albrecht Dürer, (1471-1528), painter
- Max Ernst, (1891-1976), surrealist painter
- Caspar David Friedrich, (1774-1840), painter
- Walter Gropius, (1883-1969), architect
- George Grosz, (1893-1959), artist
- Hannah Höch[?] - artist
- Hans Holbein the Elder, (c.1465-1524), German painter
- Hans Holbein the Younger, (c.1497-1543), German illustrator, painter
- Janosch, (1931), German artist known for his books for children
- Franz Marc, (1880-1916), painter
- Carl Spitzweg, (1808-1885), painter
Composers
- Karl Friedrich Abel, (1725-1787), German composer
- Martin Agricola, (1466-1506), German composer
- Johann Sebastian Bach, (1685-1750), composer
- Ludwig van Beethoven, (1770-1827), German composer
- Johannes Brahms, (1833-1897), German composer
- Georg Friedrich Händel, (1685-1759), German composer, opera composer
- Paul Hindemith, (1895-1963), German composer
- Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
- Carl Orff, (1895-1982), German composer
- Johann Pachelbel, (1653-1706), German composer
- Clara Schumann, (1819-1896), German composer
- Robert Schumann, (1810-1856), German composer, songwriter
- Karlheinz Stockhausen, (1928-), modern 12-tone composer
- Richard Strauss, (1864-1949), German composer, opera composer
- Georg Philipp Telemann, (1681-1767), German composer
- Richard Wagner, (1813-1883), German composer
- Carl Maria von Weber, (1786-1826), composer
- Kurt Weill, (1900-1950), was a German composer: Threepenny Opera, "September Song"
Filmmakers
- Werner Herzog, (born 1942), German film director
- Fritz Lang, (1890-1976), German film director
- Ernst Lubitsch, (1892-1947), film director
- F.W. Murnau, (1888-1931), German film director
- Wolfgang Petersen, (born 1941), German film director
- Leni Riefenstahl, (born 1902), German female film director
- Wim Wenders, (1945-), German-born film director
Royalty
- Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, (1819-1861), Queen Victoria's husband & consort
- Albert[?] (1828-1902), King of Saxony (1873-1902)
- Anton[?] (1755-1836), King of Saxony (1827-1836)
- Carol I of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1839-1914), Prince (1867-1881) and King (1881-1914) of Romania
- Charles[?] (1823-1891), King of Württemberg (1823-1891)
- Ferdinand of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1865-1927), King of Romania (1924-1927)
- Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1861-1948), Prince of Bulgaria (1887-1908), King (or Tsar) of the Bulgarians (1908-1918)
- Frederick I (1657-1713), Elector of Brandenburg (1688-1713), King in Prussia (1701-1713)
- Frederick I (1754-1816), Duke (1797-1803), Elector (1803-1806), and King (1806-1816) of Württemberg
- Frederick II the Great (1712-1786), King of Prussia (1740-1786)
- Friedrich III (1831-1888), German Emperor and King of Prussia (1888)
- Frederick Augustus I (1750-1827), Elector (1763-1806) and King (1806-1827) of Saxony
- Frederick Augustus II (1797-1854), King of Saxony (1836-1854)
- Frederick Augustus III[?] (1865-1932), King of Saxony (1904-1918)
- Frederick William I (1688-1740), King of Prussia (1713-1740)
- Frederick William II (1744-1797), King of Prussia (1786-1797)
- Frederick William III (1770-1840), King of Prussia (1797-1840)
- Frederick William IV (1795-1861), King of Prussia (1840-1861)
- George[?] (1832-1904), King of Saxony (1902-1904)
- George V[?] (1819-1878), King of Hanover (1851-1866)
- John[?] (1801-1873), King of Saxony (1854-1873)
- Ludwig I (1786-1868), King of Bavaria (1825-1848)
- Ludwig II (1845-1886), King of Bavaria (1864-1886)
- Ludwig III[?] (1845-1921), King of Bavaria (1913-1918)
- Maximilian I[?] (1756-1825), Elector (1799-1805) and King (1805-1825) of Bavaria
- Maximilian II (1811-1864), King of Bavaria (1848-1864)
- Otto (1848-1916), King of Bavaria (1886-1913)
- Otto of Bavaria (1815-1867), King of the Hellenes (1833-1862)
- Wilhelm I (1797-1888), German Emperor (1871-1888) and King of Prussia (1861-1888)
- Wilhelm II (1859-1941), German Emperor and King of Prussia (1888-1918)
- William I[?] (1781-1864), King of Württemberg (1816-1864)
- William II[?] (1848-1921), King of Württemberg (1891-1918)
Musicians and singers
Philosophers
- Hannah Arendt, (1906-1975), political theorist
- Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, (1770-1831), philosopher
- Johann Gottlieb Fichte, (1762-1814), philosopher
- Martin Heidegger, (1889-1976), German philosopher
- Immanuel Kant, (1724-1804), German philosopher
- Gottfried Leibniz, (1646-1716), physicist, philosopher
- Karl Marx, (1818-1883), philosopher and sociologist. Founder of Marxist political and economic philosophy
- Friedrich Nietzsche, (1844-1900), German existentialist philosopher and fierce critic of what he called the 'slave
- Arthur Schopenhauer, (1788-1860), philosopher
Politicians
- Konrad Adenauer, (1876-1967), federal chancellor (CDU)
- Otto von Bismarck, (1815-1898), 19th century German statesman
- Martin Bormann, (1900-probably 1945), nazi leader
- Willy Brandt, (1913-1992), West German Chancellor (SPD)
- Heinrich Brüning (1885-1970), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Center Party)
- Friedrich Ebert, (1871-1925), First President of the Weimar Republic (SPD)
- Ludwig Erhard, (1897-1977), federal chancellor (CDU)
- Hans-Dietrich Genscher, (born 1927), former minister for foreign affairs (FDP)
- Jakob Grimm, (1785-1863), parlamentarian
- Wilhelm Grimm, (1786-1859), parlamentarian
- Paul von Hindenburg, (1847-1934), general, president
- Petra Kelly, (1947-1992), founder of the German Green Party
- Kurt Georg Kiesinger, (1904-1988), federal chancellor (CDU)
- Helmut Kohl, (1930-), federal chancellor (CDU)
- Angela Merkel, (1991-1994 and ; 1994-1998 , and), (CDU)
- Franz von Papen (1879-1969), chancellor and politician of the Weimar Republic
- Walther Rathenau (1867-1922), foreign minister (DDP)
- Johannes Rau, (born 1931), federal president (SPD)
- Kurt von Schleicher[?] - general and chancellor in the Weimar period
- Helmut Schmidt, (1969-1972 ; 1972-1974 ; 1974-1982), federal chancellor (SPD)
- Gerhard Schröder, (born 1944), federal chancellor (SPD)
- Gustav Stresemann, (1878-1929), statesman of the Weimar Republic (DVP)
- Guido Westerwelle - party leader of the liberal party (FDP)
- Klaus Barbie, (1913-1991), the "Butcher of Lyon"
- Martin Bormann (1900-1945?), Hitler's private secretary
- Eva Braun, (1912-1945), Hitler's girlfriend
- Karl Brandt, (1904-1948)
- Karl Dönitz, (1891-1980), chief of the german marine
- Anton Drexler - founder of German Workers Party, which became the NSDAP
- Adolf Eichmann, (1906-1962), German SS officer
- Hans Frank, (1900-1946), Governor-General of Poland
- Roland Freisler, (1893-1945), German politician
- Wilhelm Frick, (1877-1946), Minister of the Interior
- Walter Funk, (1890-1960), Minister of Economics
- Joseph Goebbels, (1897-1945), Chancellor of Germany, propaganda chief for the Nazis
- Hermann Göring, (1893-1946), German nazi and chief of Luftwaffe
- Rudolf Hess, (1894-1987), Nazi potentate
- Reinhard Heydrich, (1904-1942), Nazi officer
- Heinrich Himmler, (1900-1945), Nazi head of Gestapo
- Adolf Hitler, (1889-1945), dictator
- Alfred Jodl, (1890-1946), general, operations chief of the OKW
- Wilhelm Keitel, (1882-1946), field marshal, head of the OKW
- Franz von Papen (1879-1969), Deputy Chancellor in Hitler's first cabinet.
- Erich Raeder, (1876-1960), found guilty on several accounts including war crimes at the Nuremberg Trials
- Joachim von Ribbentrop, (1893-1946), Nazi foreign minister
- Ernst Röhm, (1887-1934), head of the SA
- Erwin Rommel, (1891-1944), Feldmarschall
- Alfred Rosenberg, (1893-1946), nazi ideologist
- Hjalmar Schacht[?], Minister of economics
- Arthur Seyss-Inquart (1892-1946), Austrian Nazi leader
- Albert Speer, (1905-1981), "Hitler's architect", Minister of Armaments
- Gregor Strasser[?], early Nazi leader
Scientists
- Otto Wilhelm Hermann von Abich, (1806-1886), mineralogist, geologist
- Wernher von Braun, (1912-1977), space engineer
- Joseph von Fraunhofer, (1787-1826), physicist
- Justus von Liebig, (1803-1873), chemist
- Fritz Haber, (1868-1934), chemist
- Johann Bayer, (1572-1625), astronomer
- Carl Ferdinand Braun[?] - physicist
- Robert Wilhelm Bunsen, (1811-1899), chemist
- Georg Cantor, (1845-1918), mathematician
- Hans Gerhard Creutzfeldt - neuropathologist
- Anton de Bary, (1831-1888), surgeon, botanist, microbiologist
- Albert Einstein, (1879-1955), physicist
- Erich Fromm, (1900-1980), psychologist
- Carl Friedrich Gauss, (1777-1855), mathematician
- Ernst Haeckel, (1834-1919), physician
- Otto Hahn, (1879-1968), chemist
- Werner Karl Heisenberg, (1901-1976), physicist
- Johann Homann, (1664-1724), geographer
- Erich Hueckel, (1896-1980), physicist
- Friedrich August Kekulé von Stradonitz, (1829-1896), chemist
- Johannes Kepler, (1571-1630), astronomer
- Wolfgang Franz von Kobell[?] (1803-1882) - mineralogists
- Robert Koch, (1843-1910), physician
- Walter Karl Koch - surgeon
- Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe, (1818-1884), chemist
- Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, (1646-1716), mathematician
- Konrad Zacharias Lorenz, (1903-1989), behavioural physiologist
- Albertus Magnus, (died 1280), alchemist
- Lise Meitner, (1878-1968), physicist
- Lothar Meyer, (1830-1895), chemist
- Franz Mertens, (1840-1927), mathematician
- August Ferdinand Mobius[?]
- Walther Nernst, (1864-1941), physicist
- Georg Ohm, (1789-1854), physicist
- Adam Riese[?], (1492-1559), mathematician
- Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, (1845-1923), physicist
- Carl Wilhelm Scheele, (1742-1786), chemist
- Matthias Jakob Schleiden, (1804-1881), botanist
- Heinrich Schliemann, (1822-1890), archaeologist
- Theodor Schwann, (1810-1882), physiologist
- Rolf Singer, (1906-1994), mycologist
- Alfred Stock, (1876-1946), chemist
- August Weismann, (1834-1914), biologist
- Wilhelm Wundt, (1832-1920), physiologist, psychologist
- Konrad Zuse, (1910-1995), computers
Sportspersons
- Max Baer[?], (died 1959), World Heavyweight Boxing Champion
- Franz Beckenbauer, (born 1945), footballer
- Boris Becker, (born 1967), tennis player
- Rudolf Caracciola[?], (1901-1959), race car driver
- Steffi Graf, (born 1969), tennis player
- Georg Hackl, (born 1966), luger
- Armin Hary, (born 1937), athlete
- Jürgen Klinsmann[?] - footballer
- Bernhard Langer[?] - golfer
- Sepp Maier[?] - footballer
- Rosi Mittermaier[?], alpine ski champion
- Gerd Müller, (born 1945), footballer
- Annegret Richter, (born 1950), athlete
- Karl-Heinz Rummenigge[?] - footballer
- Uwe Seeler[?] - footballer
- Katja Seizinger[?], alpine ski champion
- Renate Stecher, (born 1950), athlete
- Berti Vogts[?] - footballer
- Rudi Völler[?] - footballer
- Fritz Walter, (1920-2002), footballer
- Michael Schumacher, (born 1969), racing driver
- Manfred Winkelhock, (1951-1985), racing driver
- Katharina Witt[?] - ice skater
Theologians
- Heinrich Abeken, (1809-1872), German theologian
- Johannes Agricola, (1494-1566), Protestant reformer
- Eusebius Amort, (1692-1775)
- Karl Barth, (1886-1968)
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer, (1906-1945), German Theologian
- Rudolf Bultmann[?]
- Alfred Delp
- Martin Luther, (1483-1546), of the Protestant Reformation
- Philipp Melanchthon, (1497-1560), Protestant Reformation
- Elisabeth Moltmann-Wendel[?]
- Jürgen Moltmann[?], (born 1926), theologian
- Joseph Ratzinger, (born 1927), Cardinal
- Friedrich Schleiermacher, (1768-1834), German theologian
- Dorothee Sölle, (1929-2003)
- Helmut Thielicke[?]
- Paul Tillich[?], German philosopher
- Adolf Harnack, (1851-1930)
Writers
- Ernst Moritz Arndt - poet
- Achim von Arnim[?], (1781-1831), German poet
- Bettina von Arnim[?], (1785-1859), German poet
- Ingeborg Bachmann, (1926-1973), poet
- Heinrich Böll, (1917-1985), author
- Bertolt Brecht, (1898-1956), playwright, poet
- Clemens Brentano, (1778-1842), poet
- Georg Büchner[?], German poet
- Wilhelm Busch, (1832-1908), poet
- Matthias Claudius - poet
- Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, (1797-1848), German poet
- Michael Ende, (1929-1995), German poet
- Joseph von Eichendorff[?], (1788-1857), poet
- Hans Magnus Enzensberger[?], (born 1929), German poet
- Wolfram von Eschenbach, (died 1220), poet
- Theodor Fontane, (1819-1898), poet
- Paul Gerhardt, (c. 1606-1676), poet
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, (1749-1832), author, poet
- Günter Grass, (born 1927), author
- Heinrich Heine, (1797-1856), poet
- Johann Gottfried von Herder, (1744-1803), poet
- Hermann Hesse, (1877-1962), author
- Rolf Hochhuth, (born 1931), playwright
- Ernst Jünger, (1895-1998), German poet
- Erich Kästner, (1899-1974), poet, novelist
- Siegfried Lenz[?], (born 1926), German novelist
- Gotthold Lessing - playwright, poet
- Thomas Mann, (1875-1955), author
- Karl May, (1842-1912), German poet
- Christian Morgenstern, (1871-1914), poet
- Novalis, (1772-1801), poet
- Erich Maria Remarque, (1898-1970), German novelist
- Rainer Maria Rilke, (1875-1926), poet
- Friedrich Schiller, (1759-1805), poet, playwright
- Theodor Storm, (1817-1888), poet
- Patrick Süskind[?], (born 1949), author of Perfume
- Kurt Tucholsky, (1890-1935), German poet
- Walter von der Vogelweide - poet
- Christa Wolf[?], German poet
Others
- Rodolphus Agricola, (1443-1485)
- Rudolf Diesel, (1858-1913), Diesel engine
- Johann Eck, (1486-1543)
- Gudrun Ensslin - terrorist
- Anne Frank, (1929-1945), diarist and victim of the Holocaust
- Klaus Fuchs, (1911-1988)
- Herschel Grynszpan
- Johann Gutenberg, (circa 1390s-1468), printer
- Hildegard von Bingen, (1098-1179), abbess, mystic
- August Horch, (1868-1951), car designer/manufacturer (AUDI)
- Karen Horney[?] - psychoanalyst
- Ulrike Meinhof, (1934-1976), terrorist
- Gerardus Mercator, (1512-1594), cartographer
- Carl von Ossietzky, (1889-1938), journalist and pacifist
- Ludwig Quidde, (1858-1941), historian and pacifist
- Albert Schweitzer, (1875-1965), physician , humanitarian
- Edith Stein, (1891-1942), nun, victim of Holocaust
- Johann Tetzel, (1465-1519)
- Manfred von Richthofen, (1892-1918), pilot
- Diedrich Hermann Westermann, (1875-1956), linguist
See also: List of people by nationality
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