Dr. Rudolf Paul (30 July 1893 in Gera[1] - 28 February 1978) was a German politician.
He studied law in Berlin and Leipzig and practiced as a lawyer in Gera.
Paul was appointed as mayor of Gera on May 7, 1945 by the American city commander.
After the American retreat from Thuringia, the Soviet military administration appointed him as first Minister-President of the state on July 16, 1945.
Paul features in the fourth part of the novel Berlin by the anti-Nazi German writer Theodor Plievier.