Roman Herzog

Roman Herzog was born on 5 April 1934 and built his career as a professor of law before joining the Federal Constitutional Court as a judge. He rose to president of that court in 1987, holding the position through the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the legal architecture of reunification. In 1994, the Christian Democratic Union put him forward for the presidency, and he won—the first to hold the office after East and West became one country again. He served until 1999, and in 1997 received the Charlemagne Prize. He died on 10 January 2017.