constituency 30, Chemnitz-Zwickau. Around 1930 he also became the editor of a Nazi daily newspaper, Der Freiheitskampf (The Freedom Struggle). On 15 July 1932 came his appointment as Landesinspekteur. In this position, he had oversight responsibility for his Gau and that of Thuringia. This was a short-lived initiative by Gregor Strasser to centralize control over the Gaue. However, it was unpopular with the Gauleiters and was repealed on Strasser's fall from power in December 1932. Mutschmann then returned to his Gauleiter position in Saxony. After the Nazis came to power, Mutschmann was appointed Reichsstatthalter (Reich Governor) of Saxony on 5 May 1933. A passionate hunter, he was the Gaujägermeister (Hunting Master) of Saxony on 10 September 1934. He was often accused of being more interested in his hobby than the welfare of Saxony. On 28 February 1935, he also became the Minister-President of Saxony, displacing his rival, Manfred Freiherr von Killinger, who was purged in the aftermath of the Night of the Long Knives. Mutschmann was one of only a few Gauleiters, to simultaneously occupy both the Reichsstatthalter and Minister-President positions. On 4 September 1935, he was made a member of Karl Frank's Academy for German Law. On 9 November 1937, he was promoted to SA-Obergruppenführer. Second World War and death When the war began on 1 September 1939, Mutschmann was appointed the Reich Defense Commissioner for Wehrkreis (Military District) IV that included his Gau as well as Gau Halle-Merseburg, northern Reichsgau Sudetenland and part of Gau Thuringia. On 16 November 1942, the jurisdiction of the Reich Defense Commissioners was changed from the Wehrkreis to the Gau level, and he remained Commissioner only for Gau Saxony. On 25 September 1944, he became the commander of the Nazi Volkssturm forces in Saxony. As Reich Defense Commissioner, Mutschmann had responsibility for air and civil defense measures and was blamed for not adequately preparing for the bombing of Dresden which occurred from 13-15 February 1945. On 14 April 1945 he declared Dresden a "fortress" city. On 1 May in Dresden, he insisted that the city go into public mourning after the suicide of German dictator Adolf Hitler on 30 April 1945. On 5 May, Mutschmann falsely announced that a large-scale German offensive on the Eastern Front was about to be launched. On 8 May as Dresden was occupied by the Red Army, Mutschmann fled the city. Moving to Oberwiesenthal and then to Tellerhäuser,