Rudolf Wolters - Early Life

Early Life

Wolters was born into a Catholic family in Coesfeld, Germany on August 3, 1903, the son of an architect who had married the daughter of a master carpenter in the shipbuilding trade. In his privately published memoirs, Segments of a Life, Wolters described his father as "a serious, conscientious and diligent man, always concerned about the future". Wolters regarded his mother as "a highly practical woman, full of zest for life, who in hard times thought nothing of serving a delicious roast without letting on it was horsemeat". Wolters passed a generally happy childhood, punctuated by the chaos of the war years, and by a childhood illness that resulted in his being taught at home for a year by two priests.

After passing his Abitur, or secondary school examination, he began his architectural studies at the Technical University of Munich in 1923. Wolters noted the politicized atmosphere of his student days, stating, "My academic freedom began, one might say, to the sound of drums: the Hitler Putsch and its consequences to us students, most of whom were in agreement with it." Wolters, by his own admission, was in broad sympathy with Nazi aims, though he never saw a need to join the Party.

In 1924, Wolters met Albert Speer, who was a year behind him. Wolters transferred to the Technical University of Berlin later that year, followed by Speer in 1925. Wolters sought to study under Professor Hans Poelzig, but there was no room in the course for the transfer student. Instead, Wolters studied under Heinrich Tessenow, as did Speer. Wolters obtained his degree in 1927, and earned his doctorate at the school two years later. In class prize competition, Wolters generally finished second to Speer.

Wolters' graduation coincided with the start of the Great Depression, and he had great difficulty finding a job, eventually settling for an unpaid position at Reichsbahn headquarters in Berlin in 1930. Upon losing that position the following year, Wolters accepted a position with the Trans-Siberian Railway's urban planning division in Novosibirsk.