Walter Bartel

Walter Bartel (15 September 1904 – 16 January 1992) was a German communist resistance fighter, historian and university professor.

On account of this illegal activity, he was charged with "Preparation for Treason" and sentenced to 27 months in a Zuchthaus, which he served from 1933 to 1935 at Brandenburg-Görden Prison.

[citation needed] In March 1939, the German occupying force arrested him and transported him to Buchenwald concentration camp.

[3] After 1945 he was rehabilitated by the KDP (after several review procedures) and became a founding member of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED).

After a short stint as Head of Department for Popular Education for the Magistrat of Berlin, he became the personal advisor of Wilhelm Pieck for party activities.

Walter Bartel and a small group of like-minded individuals sought to establish historical seminars and institutes in the DDR which conformed to the SED's regulations.