August Borsig

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August Borsig, painting by Franz Krüger (1855)

Johann Friedrich August Borsig (born June 23, 1804 in Breslau ; † July 6, 1854 in Berlin ) was a German entrepreneur . In 1837 he founded the Borsigwerke in Berlin.

youth

Borsig was the son of the cuirassier (Regiment von Dolffs) and carpenter foreman Johann George Borsig.

Apprenticeship

Borsig completed an apprenticeship as a carpenter while studying at the arts and crafts school in Breslau. Then he attended the Royal Industrial Institute in Berlin under the direction of Peter Christian Wilhelm Beuth . He broke off his training there after a year and a half. In September 1825 he applied for a mechanical engineering -Training in New Berlin iron foundry from Franz Anton Egells . Borsig's certificates attested that he had failed in chemistry and was hardly of any use as a technician; in addition, he was also retired from the military as unfit for service. Nevertheless Egells hired him. One of his first orders was the assembly of a steam engine in Waldenburg in Lower Silesia . Borsig carried out the order successfully and thus acquired the position (service contract on July 1, 1827) as a factor (operations manager) for eight years at extremely favorable conditions for the time, with an annual salary of 300 thalers . In 1828 he married Louise Pahl, who gave birth to their only son Albert a year later .

Company formation

The Borsigsche Maschinenbau-Anstalt 1847
Close-up view of the Beuth, the first independently developed locomotive in Germany
Steam locomotive manufactured by Borsig Berlin in 1930. Ljubljana railway station Slovenia.


In 1836, Borsig invested his savings in a piece of land on Chausseestrasse in front of the Oranienburger Tor and founded his own mechanical engineering company on the site adjacent to his old company (approval from the Royal Police Headquarters for the construction of a hut building on the acquired land at Oranienburger Tor on October 7th 1836). The founding date is set for July 22nd, 1837 - the day on which the first casting (cast-iron rail chairs ) for the construction of the Berlin – Potsdam railway was made in the foundry.

In the early days, Borsig built steam engines for its own needs and machines for other companies, as well as artificial and structural cast parts, but the focus soon shifted to locomotive construction . The first locomotive completed its maiden voyage on July 24, 1841 and was taken over by the Berlin-Anhalt Railway Company on August 24, 1841 . After a failed attempt in 1816–1817 with the two steam cars from the Königliche Eisengießerei Berlin and the steam locomotive by Ludwig Kufahl (delivered in 1840), this was only the fourth locomotive built in Germany and the second one designed here. Friedrich Wöhlert (1797–1877), Borsig's foreman and friend from Egell's time , was also involved in the construction .

In 1842 eight and in 1843 ten ordered steam locomotives based on American models were completed for the Prussian railways , and in 1844 Borsig exhibited its 24th locomotive, the Beuth , at the Berlin industrial exhibition . On August 15, 1843, a Borsig brand pulled the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV and his entourage to the opening of the new Berlin – Stettin railway line.

Borsig's company grew rapidly as new rail lines were being laid all over Germany . In 1847 construction began on the Moabit ironworks , which went into operation in 1849. In 1850 the mechanical engineering company and iron foundry in Moabiter Kirchstraße were bought. The three Berlin companies already employed 1,800 men, which at the time was a large company.

Borsig had already made a name for itself at the end of the 1840s, so that the economic crisis from 1848 to 1852 did not affect the company much. The 500th steam locomotive was built by his company as early as 1854,  and on the occasion of the celebration, Borsig was appointed a secret councilor of commerce. Borsig cemented its monopoly position and built 67 of the 68 new Prussian locomotives in 1854.

Borsig as a person

Borsig hereditary burial in the Dorotheenstadt cemetery , based on a design by Heinrich Strack
Villa Borsig in Berlin-Moabit, before 1867
Postage stamp 1954 , on the 100th anniversary of Borsig's death

With the increasing number of orders, Borsig's wealth increased and the Breslau soldier of fortune from poor backgrounds quickly became a rich entrepreneur who was not averse to pomp, but at the same time was a patron of many artists. August Borsig was considered a strict but fair superior who had an irrepressible thirst for action. He set up a health insurance fund , a death benefit fund and a savings bank for his workers . There was a classroom, a dining room, and a bathroom with a swimming pool.

His villa in Berlin-Moabit , the so-called Villa Borsig, was completed a few years earlier . With this magnificent building, Borsig fulfilled a dream. However, he could not enjoy his wealth for long. At the height of his power, he died on July 6, 1854.

Honors

  • On March 25, 1854 August Borsig was awarded the honorary title of Privy Councilor of Commerce .
  • The Borsigstraße in Berlin was named after him in 1859 and is located on the former premises of the parent plant, which was demolished around the turn of the century and built over tenements.
  • The Borsigdamm (since 1956) in Berlin-Reinickendorf leads past an outsourced factory site with a factory harbor.
  • Another Borsigstrasse also referred to the factory premises in Tegel / Reinickendorf from around 1900 to 1921.
  • The Borsigplatz in Dortmund was for his son August Julius Albert Borsig named.

literature

Web links

Commons : August Borsig  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Borsig: The history of the Borsig works. Retrieved March 26, 2020 .
  2. ^ Günter Ogger: The founding years - When capitalism was young and daring. Knaur, Munich 1995, p. 19
  3. ^ Julius Kohte : The former mechanical engineering institute of A. Borsig in Berlin . In: Zeitschrift für Bauwesen , Volume 41 (1891), Sp. 19–26, Plate 9. Digital copy in the holdings of the Central and State Library in Berlin .
  4. ↑ August Borsig . albert-gieseler.de
  5. ↑ Royal Iron Foundry Berlin . werkbahn.de
  6. ↑ Dr. L. Kufahl . albert-gieseler.de
  7. ^ History of economics at the Humboldt University in Berlin. Georg Leopold Ludwig Kufahl. In: hicks.wiwi.hu-berlin.de. Humboldt University, accessed on February 26, 2018 .
  8. ↑ luise-berlin.de: Edition Luisenstadt, Berlinische Monatsschrift, issue 3/1996; Hans-Heinrich Müller: Wöhlert - a pioneer in mechanical engineering
  9. ↑ Torben Müller, DER SPIEGEL: August Borsig: The King of Locomotives - DER SPIEGEL - Culture. Retrieved March 26, 2020 .
  10. ↑ Dorlis Blume, Dieter Vorsteher: The establishment of the August Borsig mechanical engineering institute in 1837. In: LeMO. July 2017, accessed on July 19, 2017 : “On March 25, 1854, the company celebrated the 500th locomotive festival, which began with the speech by the Prussian Minister of Commerce, August von der Heydt (1801–1874), who presented the Borsig commercial councilor with the patent of a secret council of commerce. "
  11. ↑ Borsigstrasse (center). In: Street name lexicon of the Luisenstädtischer Bildungsverein (near  Kaupert )
  12. ↑ Borsigdamm. In: Street name lexicon of the Luisenstädtischer Bildungsverein (near  Kaupert )
  13. ↑ Borsigstrasse (Tegel) . In: Street name lexicon of the Luisenstädtischer Bildungsverein
personal data
SURNAME Borsig, August
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Borsig, Johann Friedrich August (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German entrepreneur and founder of the Borsig-Werke
DATE OF BIRTH June 23, 1804
PLACE OF BIRTH Wroclaw
DATE OF DEATH July 6, 1854
Place of death Berlin