Manfred Rommel CBE was a German politician belonging to the Christian
Democratic Union, who served as Lord Mayor of Stuttgart from 1974 until 1996.
He was the only son of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and his wife Lucia Maria
Mollin. Background and family
Rommel was born in Stuttgart and entered service as a Luftwaffenhelfer at age 14,
serving in an anti-aircraft battery. He considered joining the Waffen SS, but
his father opposed it. On 14 October 1944, he was present at his parents’
house when his father was led off and forced to commit suicide for his alleged
complicity in the 20 July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler, which was
publicly portrayed by the Nazi leadership as a death resulting from a
war injury. In February 1945, Rommel was dismissed from Air Force service and in
March 1945 he was conscripted to the paramilitary Reichsarbeitsdienst
service. Being in the town of Riedlingen by the end of April, immediately before
the French First Army taking over, he deserted. He was taken prisoner of war,
disclosed the truth about his father’s death and was interrogated by General
Jean de Lattre de Tassigny. In 1947, he took his Abitur while
studying in Biberach an der Riß and went on to study law at the University of
Tübingen. He married Liselotte in 1954 and had a
daughter named Catherine. While Oberbürgermeister of Stuttgart,
Rommel began a much-publicised friendship with U.S. Army Major General
George S. Patton IV, the son of his father's World War II adversary, George
S. Patton Jr., who was assigned to the VII Corps headquarters near the city.
Additionally, he was also friends with David Montgomery, 2nd Viscount
Montgomery of Alamein the son of his father's other great adversary, Field
Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, a friendship viewed by some as a symbol of
British-German reconciliation following the War and West Germany's admission
into NATO. Career
After a stint working as a lawyer, in 1956, Rommel entered the civil service
and later became state secretary in the state government of Baden-Württemberg.
In 1974, Rommel succeeded Arnulf Klett as Oberbürgermeister of Stuttgart by
winning 58.5% of the votes in the second round of elections, defeating Peter
Conradi of the SPD. He was re-elected after the first round of elections in
1982 with 69.8% and in 1990 with 71.7% of the votes. As the mayor of Stuttgart,
he was also known for his effort to give the Red Army Faction terrorists who had
committed suicide at the Stuttgart-Stammheim prison a proper
burial, despite the concern that the graves would become a pilgrimage point
for radical leftists. In a 1996 celebration at the Württemberg
State Theatre, Manfred Rommel received the highest German civil distinction,
the Bundesverdienstkreuz. In his speech, Helmut Kohl put particular emphasis on
the good relations that were kept and built upon between France and Germany
during Rommel's tenure as Oberbürgermeister of Stuttgart. A few
days after this distinction was given to Rommel, the city of Stuttgart offered
him the Honorary Citizen Award. He also risked his popularity when he stood out
for the fair treatment of foreign immigrants, who were being drawn to
Stuttgart, by its booming economy. As mayor, Rommel also exerted a "tight
control over the city's finances, reducing its debt and enabling a radical
makeover of the local infrastructure, especially roads and public transport
[while working]...to foster Franco- German relations."
Outside politics Having retired from politics in 1996,
Rommel was still in demand as an author and stirring speaker, despite suffering
from Parkinson's disease. He wrote various political and humorous books. He
was known for his down-to-earth and often funny sayings and quotations.
Occasionally, he wrote articles for the Stuttgarter Zeitung.
Rommel collaborated with Basil Liddell-Hart in the publication of The
Rommel Papers, a collection of diaries, letters and notes that his father wrote
during and after his military campaigns. He was awarded several foreign awards
including the CBE, the French légion d'honneur, the US medal of freedom and
the highest grade of the German federal order of merit.
Honours Manfred Rommel once wrote about his many
honours: "Die Zahl der Titel will nicht enden. Am Grabstein stehet: bitte
wenden!" which translates as: "The number of honours seems to be endless.
The inscription on my gravestone will read: Please turn over!"
Theodor-Heuss-Medaille Orden des Großoffiziers im Orden von
Oranien-Nassau Ehrensenator der Fachhochschule für
Technik Stuttgart Honorary doctorate of the University of
Missouri-St. Louis General Lucius D. Clay-Medaille
President of the Freiherr-vom-Stein-Gesellschaft
Chevalier of the Legion of Honour of the French Republic
Guardian of Jerusalem Commander of the Order of the British
Empire Honorary doctorate of the University of
Maryland Honorary citizen of Stuttgart
Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern und Schulterband des Verdienstordens der
Bundesrepublik Deutschland Honorary doctorate of the University of
Wales Dolf Sternberger-Preis
Honorary citizen of the University of Stuttgart
Verdienstmedaille des Landes Baden-Württemberg
Heinz Herbert Karry-Preis Honorary citizen of Cairo
See also List of people whose parent commited
suicide References