I was born February 26, 1875 in Bremerhaven. My father died one year later and we moved to Oldenburg. After school, I studied law and political science from 1893 to 1897. I became the Mayor of Delmenhorst from 1901 to 1909 and afterwards moved to Bremerhaven where I was City Director until 1913.
From 1913 to 1919 I was Lord Mayor of the town of Kassel before I moved to Weimar to be member of the Reichstag. 

During the first election I changed my name from Koch to Koch-Weser to show what region I come from as there were many representatives who were called Koch.
Chancellor Hindenburg announced me as the Secretary of the Interior from 1919-1921. In the year 1920 I was Vice Chancellor of Weimar Republic.
From 1919-1930 I was member of the Reichstag and when the Nazis gained power I withdrew from my seat in the Reichstag and became a lawyer and notary in Berlin until 1933.

The Nazis cancelled my authorisation as a lawyer and threatened me with racial and political persecution.

That's why I decided to move with my family (my wife and our two young sons) from Germany to Brazil. My elder son left some months later.
I left Bremerhaven November 25, 1933 and arrived at Santos, Brazil three weeks later.
We traveled 2^nd class and had a wonderful and relaxing journey.

I bought some 100 ha of land and founded a colony called Rolandia, which was well known in the whole world after some time.
I died in Brazil in 1944 and nowadays no member of my family lives in Brazil anymore. 
My wife was a teacher and she decided to return to Germany in 1968 where she died in 1991.

My children and grandchildren live in Switzerland, Italy, Germany and the USA.

by Hermann and Rasmus