President of Germany
Friedrich Ebert (SPD) served as Germany's first president, followed by Paul von Hindenburg. The office effectively came to an end upon Hindenburg's death in 1934 and its powers merged with those of chancellor. Adolf Hitler now ruled Germany as "Führer und Reichskanzler", combining his previous positions in party and government. The office, however, was not abolished and briefly revived at the end of the Second World War when Hitler appointed Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz as his successor as President of Germany. Dönitz agreed to the surrender to the Allies and was arrested a few days later.
List of German presidents by longevity
The longest-lived president was Walter Scheel, who died at the age of 97 years and 47 days. Scheel became the longest-lived president by living to 15 October 2008. On that day, he became one day older than Karl Dönitz, the previous holder of the oldest president record. The oldest living president, Joachim Gauck, will tie Scheel if he lives to 12 March 2037. The shortest-lived president was Friedrich Ebert, who died at the age of 54 years, 24 days.