military defeat left the western two thirds of germany divided into four large military occupation zones after may 1945. upper bavaria was part of the . the military administrators were on the look out for german professionals untainted by a nazi past to make a start on rebuilding civil administration and society. sattler was mandated to oversee the rebuilding/restoration the "party buildings" (as they had been designated during the nazi period) in munich's königsplatz (""royal square""). this turned out to be the first step in a political career for sattler. he impressed the occupiers with his expertise and focus. he was also "noticed" by hans ehard, the man who became bavarian minister-president at the end of 1946, who commended the judicious objectivity of his judgement, able to be well-informed and quietly critical without becoming engaged in politics. nevertheless, from now on sattler did become involved with the emerging mainstream establishment, both politically and in terms of his architecture business which, inevitably, stood to benefit from the massive amount of reconstruction made necessary by the destruction of the war.