Career
Emil Fuchs (13 May 1874, Beerfelden, Grand Duchy of Hesse - 13 February 1971) was a German theologian. He was a Fellowship holder at Woodbrooke College (now Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre), Selly Oak, Birmingham during 1934-1935. Since then Emil Fuchs engaged for normalisation of relations between the state and church in East Germany.
Though a loyal German Democratic Republic supporter Fuchs occasionally opposed the party line: he was against the persecution of the Young Congregations (Junge Gemeinden) in 1950s and when conscription was introduced in East Germany, he managed to persuade the communist leadership to allow an alternative for armed service.
Men who refused usual service in the army could accordingly serve as "construction soldiers" (Bausoldaten), who, as evident from the term, did mostly construction tasks. They had four children: Elisabeth (1908–1939, suicide), Gerhard (1909–1951), Klaus (1911–1988) and Kristel (b 1913).