Otto Depenheuer
Otto Depenheuer (born 1953 in Bonn) is a German legal scholar and organist. He is a professor of constitutional law, public law, and philosophy of law at the University of Cologne, and is also known for his work as a concert organist. Depenheuer gained national attention in 2007 when German Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Schäuble publicly recommended his book Selbstbehauptung des Rechtsstaates (Self-assertion of the Constitutional State), sparking public debate over his interpretations of state power, terrorism, and the legacy of Carl Schmitt.
Otto Depenheuer
- Name
- Otto Depenheuer
- Born
- 1953
- Birthplace
- Bonn, West Germany
- Occupation
- Legal scholar, organist
- Known for
- Constitutional law; philosophy of law; Selbstbehauptung des Rechtsstaates
- Nationality
- Germany
- Education
- Schola Cantorum de Paris · University of Bonn
- Languages
- German
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Documentary summary
Otto Depenheuer (born 1953 in Bonn) is a German legal scholar and organist. He is a professor of constitutional law, public law, and philosophy of law at the University of Cologne, and is also known for his work as a concert organist. Depenheuer gained national attention in 2007 when German Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Schäuble publicly recommended his book Selbstbehauptung des Rechtsstaates (Self-assertion of the Constitutional State), sparking public debate over his interpretations of state power, terrorism, and the legacy of Carl Schmitt.
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Note VALÉORINE
Otto Depenheuer (born 1953) is a German jurist, musician and organist, among other activities. The jurist was born in Cologne.
Otto Depenheuer studied at Schola Cantorum de Paris and University of Bonn. The jurist worked for Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, University of Cologne and University of Münster and worked in Cologne. Languages used include German.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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wikidata · Q101727 · wikipedia · Otto Depenheuer
In this article
Biography
Biography
Otto Depenheuer studied at Schola Cantorum de Paris and University of Bonn. The recorded working language is German. Places of work recorded in the authority are Cologne. Employment is recorded with University of Cologne, University of Münster and Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Otto Depenheuer • Born — 1953 • Birthplace — Bonn, West Germany • Occupation — Legal scholar, organist • Employer — University of Cologne • Known for — Constitutional law; philosophy of law; Selbstbehauptung des Rechtsstaates
Biography
Biography
Depenheuer studied law in Bonn, where he attained his doctorate in 1985 and his habilitation in 1992. After teaching law in Münster and Halle/Saale, Depenheuer was appointed to the chair for public law and philosophy of law at the University of Mannheim in 1993. In 1999, he assumed the chair for constitutional law, public law and philosophy of law at the University of Cologne. As a musician, Depenheuer was awarded the "Diplome de Concert" in 1986 at the Schola Cantorum in Paris. He has performed at organ concerts in Germany and at Notre Dame de Paris, Jerusalem, New York City, Singapore and Kraków. He has also edited numerous organ sonatas. Since 2015, Depenheuer has been the workstream leader for the AMU (Agency for the Modernisation of Ukraine), where he contributes his expertise in law.
Identity and overview
Identity and overview
The following is established of the heading itself.
Works and production
Works and production
The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count. Recorded with the occupation jurist. The register further records that otto Depenheuer is recorded with the occupation organist. Recorded with the occupation musician. It is also recorded that otto Depenheuer is recorded with the occupation university teacher. Institutional cataloguing adds that otto Depenheuer is recorded as a citizen of Germany. The record continues: otto Depenheuer is recorded with the gender male. Born on 1 January 1953. The record continues: otto Depenheuer worked at Cologne.
Criticism and controversy
Depenheuer's works have become a matter of public interest in Germany after the conservative German Minister of the Interior, Wolfgang Schäuble, recommended the lecture of Depenheuer's book Selbstbehauptung des Rechtsstaates (Self-assertion of the constitutional state) in a 2007 interview. According to a critical review of the book by Gunter Hofmann, the book is centered on the necessity of the state to defend itself in a "global civil war" in the "age of terrorism", and refers to the U.S.'s Guantanamo Bay detention camp as a "legally permissible response in the fight of constitutional civilisation against the barbarity of terrorism". Depenheuer's critics accuse him of promoting the anti-liberal thought of authoritarian theorist Carl Schmitt, who is liberally cited in the book, and of perceiving terrorism as a faceless evil to which state-organised violence is the sole appropriate response. In his defence, Depenheuer stated in an interview that "enemy and victim are fundamental categories of politics" and referred to "some of the constitution's numerous exegetes", who disagree with him, as a "security risk".
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Otto Depenheuer”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q101727: Otto Depenheuer
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Biography on the website of the University of Köln.
- 2.Finanznachrichten - Börse & Wirtschaft aktuell.
- 3.Die Zeit issue 30/2007. "Das Klima ist nervöser". 4. 19 July 2007.
- 4.Gunter Hofmann. Schäubles Nachtlektüre. Die Zeit issue 33/2007. 7. 9 August 2007.
- 5.Thorsten Jungholt. Guantánamo auch in Deutschland denkbar. Die Welt. 28 December 2007.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 1
- Selbstbehauptung des Rechtsstaates. Paderborn: Ferdinand Schöningh, 2007. .
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This entry is compiled from 9 catalogued sources across 5 independent registers. The registers consulted are Crossref registry, Wikipedia, Wikidata, Internet Archive and DOAJ. Every statement above is held against the register that stated it; where the registers are silent, the entry is silent.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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