“Georg-August Zinn was the architect of modern Hesse. He shaped our state like no other. The reconstruction of war-torn cities and the integration of displaced persons and refugees were enormous challenges at the time. To this day, he remains a model of drive, foresight, and public spirit. Hesse and Wiesbaden owe him a great deal. Given his long career in politics, he deserves to be honored through the extension of his grave of honor,” announced Mayor Gert-Uwe Mende. 

Georg August Zinn was born on May 27, 1901. He was an honorary citizen of the state capital Wiesbaden and a former Minister-President. The grave has since been designated as a grave of honor at the Nordfriedhof. After successfully completing his law studies, Georg August Zinn established himself as a lawyer in Kassel in 1931, where he was elected to the city council for the SPD at the age of 28. After World War II, which he experienced as a soldier, he remained politically active. After becoming state chairman of the SPD in 1947, he participated in the Parliamentary Council in Bonn as one of the fathers of the Basic Law. Following the founding of the Federal Republic, he served in the German Bundestag for two years before being elected the second Prime Minister of Hesse—and at the time the youngest prime minister in the Federal Republic—in 1950. He held this office until 1969. On June 28, 1966, the state capital honored his commitment to the state by awarding him honorary citizenship and making a separate entry in the city’s Golden Book. Dr. h.c. Dr. e.h. Georg August Zinn died on March 27, 1976, in Frankfurt am Main. 

Georg-August Zinn was awarded the Grand Cross of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1953. In 1971, he received the Wilhelm Leuschner Medal from the State of Hesse. He was an honorary citizen of the cities of Frankfurt am Main, Wiesbaden, and Kassel. After his death, various schools and streets were named after him. Among other things, the State Chancellery of the Hessian Minister-President in Wiesbaden is located on Georg-August-Zinn-Straße. 

Honorary graves in the state capital of Wiesbaden are awarded to individuals who, during their lifetime, either rendered outstanding service to the state capital of Wiesbaden itself or whose outstanding achievements in the fields of local politics, the arts, culture, science, economics, or social welfare are being honored.