Part of a common family, Clemens Gottlieb Ernst von Delbrück was born in Halle an der Saale on January 19, 1856. After high school, he studied theology at the Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg and law at the University of Berlin. Delbrück passed the Staatsexamen (state examinations) in 1882 and gained a government post in Marienwerder (now Kwidzyn in Poland).
Three years later, Delbrück was promoted to district administrator of Tuchel (now Tuchola, Poland). In 1891, he became president of the city council in Danzig. Five years later, Delbrück succeeded Karl Adolf Baumbach as mayor of Danzig. He also earned a seat in the Prussian House of Lords. As mayor, Delbrück served for six years.
In 1902, Delbrück was named Oberpräsident (Supreme President) of West Prussia, an office he would hold for three years. He then served as the West Prussian trade minister from 1905 to 1909.
With experience came higher offices. On July 14, 1909, Delbrück joined the national government as both Secretary of the Interior and Vice-Chancellor, succeeding Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg in both posts. Despite his role in modernizing the German government, Delbrück was further distinguished by his strong opposition to the parliamentary system of the Reichstag. In 1912, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Berlin.
From 1914 to 1916, Delbrück served as Vice-President of Prussia. During the First World War… and with the element of a quick German victory clearly lost, increasing conflict between Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg and leading military figures (especially Paul von Hindenburg) led to Delbrück’s dismissal as both Vice-Chancellor and Interior Minister on May 24, 1916. He was succeeded in both offices by Karl Helfferich.
Two days before his dismissal, Delbrück was awarded the Order of the Black Eagle. He was also given a letter assigning to him the status of hereditary nobleman, making him Clemens von Delbrück. In 1918, he was briefly a member of the Geheimes Zivilkabinett (Secret Civil Cabinet) before its dissolution when the German Empire collapsed that November.
Despite having never associated himself with any political party up to this point, Delbrück remained politically active after the war. He was a founding member of the German National People’s Party. From 1919 to 1920, Delbrück was also a member of the Weimar National Assembly. He then became a member of the Reichstag.
Sadly on December 17, 1921, Clemens von Delbrück died in Jena. He was sixty-five years old.