Fritz Klein (1924–2011) held important positions in GDR historiography and at the same time had an impact far beyond its borders. As co-author of the „Lehrbuchs für deutsche Geschichte“ (‘Textbook of German History’), he contributed to the historical master narrative of the GDR and at the same time campaigned for professional emancipation from political paternalism. After 1989, he became involved in the reappraisal of the GDR with the critical eye of a historian who was equally at home in East and West. In 2021, the ZZF took over 111 volumes from Fritz Klein's working library.