Joseph Koeth
| Joseph Koeth | |
|---|---|
| Reichsminister für wirtschaftliche Demobilmachung (Minister for Demobilisation) | |
|
In office 13 February 1919 – 30 April 1919 |
|
| Chancellor | Philipp Scheidemann (Ministerpräsident) |
| Preceded by | post created |
| Succeeded by | post abolished |
| Reichswirtschaftsminister (Minister for Economic Affairs) | |
|
In office 6 October 1923 – 23 November 1923 |
|
| Chancellor | Gustav Stresemann |
| Preceded by | Hans von Raumer |
| Succeeded by | Eduard Hamm |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
7 July 1870 Lohr a. Main, Bavaria, Germany |
| Died | 22 May 1936 (aged 65) Berlin |
| Political party | independent |
| Profession | Military officer, politician |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Joseph Koeth (7 July 1870 – 22 May 1936) was a German military officer and politician. During World War I he served as head of the commodity office in the Prussian Ministry of War created by Walther Rathenau. After the German revolution of 1918, Koeth was in charge of economic demobilisation as a member of the first democratically elected government under Philipp Scheidemann. He again served briefly as a minister of the Weimar Republic under Gustav Stresemann in 1923.
Joseph Koeth was born on 7 July 1870 in Lohr a. Main, Lower Franconia, then a part of the Kingdom of Bavaria. His father, Joseph (1829-1913) was a lawyer. His mother, Susanne (1845- 1903), came from a farming family.
He was married to Helene (1874-1958), née Fenkohl from Eastern Prussia (a sister of Gustav Fenkohl, a painter). They had one son, who was killed in war.
After serving for eleven years in the Bavarian Army, Koeth joined the Prussian Army in January 1900 as a Premier-Lieutenant. He had attended the War Academy at Munich for three years (1895–98) but was not awarded the full qualification to join the general staff, despite excellent performance.
He then served for nine years as a chief of battery in the 4th Badische Feldartillerie-Regiment Nummer 66 and in the training regiment Feldartillerie-Schießschule at Jüterbog (after 1904). After August 1909, Koeth worked at the Prussian Ministry of War (Feldartillerie-Abteilung, A 4). In March 1912, he was promoted to Major.
After the start of World War I, Koeth briefly served as Abteilungskommandeur (Battle of the Marne, static battles in the Champagne). However, in early October 1914 he returned to department A4 in the Ministry. In late February 1915, after working as an acting head of department, he succeeded Walter Rathenau as head of the Kriegsrohstoff-Abteilung (KRA, commodity department), without having had any prior experience in this field. His task was to provide war production with the required raw materials. He succeeded in this work through a system of Planned economy, systematic recycling of used materials and by accessing new sources of commodities. The work of his office (employing around 2,500 people at the end of the war) was highly regarded and brought him the recognition of the military command, industrialists and trade unions. However, in 1916/17 there were sharp differences with general Wilhelm Groener, head of the Kriegsamt, in connection with the Hindenburg Programme and the Gesetz über den vaterländischen Hilfsdienst. The cooperation with Groener's successor, Heinrich Scheuch, went more smoothly. In March 1917, Koeth was promoted to Oberstleutnant and Abteilungschef (head of department).
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