Ernst Thälmann – Leader of the Working Class (1955) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Release, runtime and language

1955 · 140 mins · German

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Directed by

Kurt Maetzig

Starring

Michel Piccoli, Werner Peters, Kurt Wetzel, Karla Runkehl, Angela Brunner, Fred Delmare

The second instalment of a two‑part historical biopic follows communist leader Ernst Thälmann. In autumn 1918, a 24‑year‑old Thälmann on Germany’s western front urges his comrades to lay down arms and join the communist struggle at home. He later confronts Hamburg’s police commissioner, who blocks a vital food convoy to Petrograd’s workers, and fights to get it through. He remains steadfast to his convictions until his death on 18 August 1944.