Georg August Zinn (27 May 1901 – 27 March 1976) was a German lawyer and a politician of the SPD. He was a member of the Bundestag from 1949 to 1951 representing Kassel, the 2nd Minister-President of Hesse from 1950 to 1969 and served as the 5th and 16th President of the Bundesrat in 1953/54 and 1964/65.

Georg-August Zinn
Memorial to Zinn in Paulskirche, Frankfurt

While he was at the helm of Hesse government he played an important role, although quite discreetly, in the capture of Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann. In Shlomo J. Shpiro's introduction to Isser Harel's book The House on Garibaldi Street, added to the 1997 expanded edition, it is revealed for the first time that then Hesse prosecutor-general Fritz Bauer did not act alone, in the attempt to apprehend Eichmann while he was hiding in Argentina, but was discreetly helped by Zinn.[1][2]

Zinn was two times married. His second wife was Dr. Christa Zinn (1927–2002). Three sons are still living, Karl Georg Zinn (born 1939, economist), Dr. Georg-Christian Zinn and Dr. Philip-André Zinn.

He was born in Frankfurt and died in Frankfurt.

References

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  1. ^ Harel, Isser (1997). The House on Garibaldi Street. London: Routledge. ISBN 9781315036687.
  2. ^ "Das haus in der Garibaldi Straße (The House on Garibaldi Street)". Der Spiegel (in German). 6 July 1975. Retrieved 28 August 2021. In this article there was just a hint to Zinn ("Eine hochstehende Persönlichkeit von großer Integrität" - a very important person of great integrity), whose name and role were not clearly revealed before the aforementioned 1997 Shpiro's introduction.
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