# Fourth Adenauer cabinet

The Fourth Adenauer cabinet (German: Kabinett Adenauer IV) was formed by incumbent Chancellor Konrad Adenauer after the 1961 federal election. The cabinet was sworn in on 14 November 1961.
The Spiegel affair in 1962 caused the coalition to fall apart over Defence Minister Franz Josef Strauss' actions which violated press freedom, leading to all FDP ministers resigning in protest. As a result, the cabinet was a minority government of the CDU/CSU for just under a month in the fall of 1962 before Adenauer was able to convince the FDP to return to the coalition by assuring Strauß' resignation.

## Composition

Shortly after the Spiegel affair, the resignation of Defence Minister Franz Josef Strauss was required to gain back the FDP's support for the cabinet, leading to a reshuffle. The heavily reshuffled cabinet is sometimes referred to as cabinet Adenauer V; however, this is not constitutionally correct, since no new election of the chancellor took place. The government still drew its constitutional legitimacy from Adenauer's election on 14 November 1961. Adenauer decided to retire just a few months later, following which Ludwig Erhard was elected as Chancellor and formed the first Erhard cabinet on 17 October 1963.
| Portfolio | Minister | Took office | Left office | Party |
| Chancellor | Konrad Adenauer | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Vice-Chancellor & Federal Minister for Economy | Ludwig Erhard | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs | Gerhard Schröder | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of the Interior | Hermann Höcherl | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CSU |
| Federal Minister of Justice | Wolfgang Stammberger | 14 November 1961 | 19 November 1962 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of Justice | Ewald Bucher | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of Finance | Heinz Starke | 14 November 1961 | 19 November 1962 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of Finance | Rolf Dahlgrün | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | FDP |
| Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Forests | Werner Schwarz | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister for Labour and Social Affairs | Theodor Blank | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Defence | Franz Josef Strauss | 14 November 1961 | 16 December 1962 (de facto) 9 January 1963 (de jure) | CSU |
| Federal Minister of Defence | Kai-Uwe von Hassel | 9 January 1963 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Transport | Hans-Christoph Seebohm | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Post and Telecommunications | Richard Stücklen | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CSU |
| Federal Minister of Housing Construction | Paul Lücke | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Displaced Persons, Refugees and War Victims | Wolfgang Mischnick | 14 November 1961 | 19 November 1962 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of Displaced Persons, Refugees and War Victims | Wolfgang Mischnick | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of All-German Affairs | Ernst Lemmer | 14 November 1961 | 11 December 1962 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of All-German Affairs | Rainer Barzel | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Ministry of Nuclear Energy | Siegfried Balke | 14 November 1961 | 13 December 1962 | CSU |
| Federal Ministry of Scientific Research | Hans Lenz | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of Family and Youth Affairs | Franz-Josef Wuermeling | 14 November 1961 | 11 December 1962 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Family and Youth Affairs | Bruno Heck | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Bundesrat and State Affairs | Hans-Joachim von Merkatz | 14 November 1961 | 13 December 1962 | CDU |
| Federal Minister of Bundesrat and State Affairs | Alois Niederalt | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | CSU |
| Federal Minister of the Treasury | Hans Lenz | 14 November 1961 | 19 November 1962 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of the Treasury | Werner Dollinger | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | CSU |
| Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation | Walter Scheel | 14 November 1961 | 19 November 1962 | FDP |
| Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation | Walter Scheel | 14 December 1962 | 15 October 1963 | FDP |
| Federal Minister of Health | Elisabeth Schwarzhaupt | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |
| Federal Minister for Special Affairs | Heinrich Krone | 14 November 1961 | 15 October 1963 | CDU |

## References and notes

* ↑ "Kabinette Adenauer".