Army general (East Germany)


Army general, was the highest peacetime general officer rank in the so-called armed organs of the GDR, that is, the Ministry of National Defence, the Stasi, and the Ministry of the Interior. It is comparable to the four-star rank in many NATO armed forces. It was aligned with Soviet military doctrine and other armed forces of the Warsaw Pact.
The rank was reserved to minister level exclusively. Consequently, in the National People's Army service branches, Landstreitkräfte, Luftstreitkräfte/Luftverteidigung, Border troops, and Volksmarine there was no equivalent. However, if a Navy flag officer was designated or appointed Minister of National Defence he would be promoted to Flottenadmiral. When the armed organs of the GDR were disbanded in October 1990, the rank was abolished.

Rankholders

East German officers who achieved the rank were:
NamePortraitPositionYear of Rank
Willi StophMinister of National Defence1959
Heinz HoffmannMinister of National Defence1961
Erich MielkeMinister for State Security1980
Friedrich DickelMinister of Interior1984
Heinz KesslerMinister of National Defence1985

Army general in other countries

The rank widely used in other armed forces of socialist countries, such as:
Junior Rank
Generaloberst
German Democratic Republic|name=GDR