Ludwig Kasner

Ludwig Marian Kasner (born Ludwik Marian Kaźmierczak; 17 October 1896 – 3 February 1959) was a German soldier and policeman who worked for the Berlin Police. He was the father of German theologian Horst Kasner and the paternal grandfather of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Born to ethnic Polish parents in Posen (now Poznań), Kasner joined the Prussian Army and thus the Imperial German Army in 1915 and fought in the Western Front in World War I before being captured by the French later that year. Two years later in 1917, Kasner joined the Polish Blue Army (also known as "Haller's Army") and fought for Poland for the rest of World War I, and subsequently the Polish–Ukrainian War and the Polish–Soviet War until in 1921 where he retired from the army. Two years later in 1923, Kasner moved to Berlin where he joined the Berlin Police and was promoted twice, reaching the rank of Hauptwachtmeister ("chief watch master", the most senior constable rank).

In 1930, Kasner and his family officially changed their surname from their maiden Kaźmierczak, with Kasner also Germanising his name from Ludwik to Ludwig which was common at the time in order to integrate into German society. Despite this however, the family still kept in touch with their Polish relatives and remained in good terms. In 1933 during Adolf Hitler and the Nazi's rise to power, Kasner was forced to step down and retire from the Berlin Police due to him being viewed by the new regime as "politically unreliable". In 1943, Kasner along with his son, Horst joined the German Army and fought for Nazi Germany during the final two years of World War II before leaving following Germany's defeat in the Battle of Berlin. After 1945, Kasner's profession was unknown.

In 2013, Kasner received media attention in Poland and Germany after a new book shed light on Angela Merkel's family background. This was not only due to Kasner's being of Polish origin, but also because Kasner's nephew had provided a photograph of him in the uniform of the Blue Army. Prior to that, little was known about Kasner, though Angela Merkel gave multiple references to him in 1995 and 2000 respectively.