Helmut Kohl: Man of history

Helmut Kohl played a significant part in the shaping of modern-day Europe. He extended the continent and opened up its borders, internal and external. His belief in and commitment to a united Europe was absolute, and for this he will never be forgotten. At his memorial service in Strasbourg, assembled heads of state expressed their gratitude.

He knew what he wanted early on. He never saw himself as the "grandson" of Konrad Adenauer, the first post-war German chancellor, but realized that the "old man's" influence could be useful. As a young politician in Rhineland-Palatinate, he invited Adenauer to address the regional CDU conference behind the back of the CDU state premier, Peter Altmeier. Adenauer came - a boost for Kohl.

Kohl, a historian, was also a modernizer. He discovered the power of the media in the early 1970s, when he was still a local politician in Rhineland-Palatinate. He often opened up his home in Oggersheim to journalists. Their portraits of him as a father figure and family man helped establish his image. Kohl was ambitious and dynamic, and embodied the desire for advancement typical of his time.

On October 1, 1982, Kohl realized his ultimate political dream. The simple provincial boy became chancellor, succeeding the "world statesman" Helmut Schmidt (SPD). In this period Kohl was the target of mockery and ridicule in left-wing social circles, where he was nicknamed "The Pear." Many people underestimated his high political professionalism and tenacity. Kohl's true moment was yet to come.

A gesture for the history books: September 22, 1984, in a military cemetery near Verdun. Who held out the hand to whom? It was French President Francois Mitterand, and Helmut Kohl was happy to take it. The photograph capturing this moment amid the graves of German and French soldiers has long since become an icon of contemporary history.

Kohl's political fate was almost sealed at the CDU party conference in September 1989. Although his health was not good, he just managed to ward off a "coup" by prominent party colleagues. Shortly beforehand, he had received information that Hungary was about to open its borders to thousands of East German refugees. The coup had failed, and a new political opportunity presented itself.

On December 19, 1989, the German question was still undecided. Kohl was in Dresden. Rumors were rife. He planned to make a speech outside the Frauenkirche. Would he say what so many were longing to hear? He hesitated, before finally stating that the goal was "the unity of our German nation." In an emotional atmosphere, before thousands of people, his was a measured speech that avoided extremes.

Between July 14 and 16, 1990, the die was finally cast in favor of German unity - outward unity, at least. Kohl and his foreign minister, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, were in Moscow and the Caucasus, Gorbachev's home. They were discussing the question of a unified Germany's membership of NATO - to which Gorbachev agreed. It was the last, and biggest, political hurdle on the path to unification.

Helmut Kohl never lacked the ability to assert himself. Nicknamed "the black giant" on account of his height (1.93 meters, 6'4") and political orientation, he had no problems defending himself. When demonstrators in Halle pelted him with eggs on May 10, 1991, his bodyguards had difficulty restraining him - Kohl waded into the crowd to confront them himself.

For Helmut Kohl, Europe was not just a policy field: It was the issue dearest to his heart. German unification had been negotiated but not yet formally declared when, on a visit to Bonn, the EU Commission President Jacques Delors presented Kohl with a map of Europe – with all of unified Germany as a member state.

In 2001, after years of illness, Kohl's wife Hannelore took her own life. After her death, the family fell apart. A part of the reason was that Kohl the politician left little room for Kohl the private man. "I do not exaggerate when I say that my father's public office could be felt in even the farthest reaches of his private life," his son Walter wrote in "Leben oder gelebt werden."

The second woman at Kohl's side - who he married in 2008 - remains a controversial figure. The 53-year-old economist has been accused of trying to claim sole prerogative of interpretation regarding Kohl's life, and of being behind the rift between Kohl and his two sons. "She cares for, protects and controls him," the Süddeutsche Zeitung wrote in 2012.

If a person made a positive impression on him, Kohl remembered them. Angela Merkel drew his attention early in her career, and, as "Kohl's girl," enjoyed his protection for years. But when Kohl refused to reveal the origin of millions of marks paid into a CDU slush fund, the two became estranged. Kohl's last will and testament precluded Merkel making a speech at any official German state ceremony.

The ceremony in Strasbourg was not, however, a German state one - it was a "European" ceremony. Kohl's political comrades came from all over the world to take their leave of the chancellor of national and European unity. And German Chancellor Angela Merkel also spoke, saying: "Thank you for the opportunity that we, as Germans and Europeans, received through you."

Helmut Kohl's final resting place is in the cemetery of the Speyer Cathedral. He chose to be buried here instead of with his late wife, Hannelore, in the family grave in Ludwigshafen. This decision, as well as the family quarrel before the commemoration ceremony, may become part of how Kohl is remembered in years to come.