Schmidt, Helmut, << shmiht, HEHL moot >> (1918-2015), served as chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982. In 1974, the country’s Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, elected Schmidt to succeed Willy Brandt, who had resigned. Both men belonged to the Social Democratic Party. In 1982, the Bundestag voted to remove Schmidt from office and replace him with Helmut Kohl of the opposition party, the Christian Democratic Union. After leaving office, Schmidt became copublisher and editorial writer for the weekly publication Die Zeit.
As chancellor, Schmidt was known for his skillful management of economic affairs. Schmidt promoted economic cooperation among Western European nations.
Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt was born on Dec. 23, 1918, in Hamburg, Germany. He graduated from the University of Hamburg in 1949. Schmidt served in the Bundestag from 1953 to 1962 and again in 1965. He held several posts in Brandt’s cabinet, including minister of economics. Schmidt died on Nov. 10, 2015.
