Late German President Horst Köhler Remembered at State Memorial.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier lauded his predecessor Horst Köhler as a dedicated public servant at a state memorial in the Berlin Cathedral on Tuesday.

Köhler died on February 1 at the age of 81. He was chosen in 2004 to become the country’s ninth president, succeeding Johannes Rau. Before that he was managing director of the International Monetary Fund in Washington.

Steinmeier praised Köhler as an “energetic and tireless servant of our community until the last days of his life.”

“We Germans mourn the loss of Horst Köhler. We are grateful that he was among us and worked for us. We miss him,” Steinmeier added.

Germany’s top leaders were on hand for the state ceremony and a preceding church service, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the presidents of the Bundestag, Bundesrat and Federal Constitutional Court.

Former German presidents Christian Wulff and Joachim Gauck and former Chancellor Angela Merkel also came to Berlin Cathedral to pay their respects.

Köhler’s casket was draped in Germany’s black, red and gold national flag.

Köhler was re-elected for a second term in 2009. But just a year later, he resigned with immediate effect over controversial remarks he made regarding Afghanistan. His resignation was unprecedented in the history of post-war Germany.

Köhler was the first president who was not a party politician but came from a business background. Initially largely unknown to the wider public, he swiftly earned recognition and sympathy.

Austrian former president Heinz Fischer and former German finance minister Theo Waigel also spoke at Tuesday’s ceremony.

Under Waigel, Köhler served as state secretary in the Ministry of Finance, where he was the German chief negotiator for the Maastricht Treaty on European Economic and Monetary Union.

Steinmeier had praised Köhler after his death as “a stroke of luck” for Germany. He particularly highlighted Köhler’s advocacy for fair and equal treatment of the African continent, adding that he was far ahead of his time in this regard.