Erdmann & Rossi

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Erdmann & Rossi was a Berlin-based coachwork company that became known in the first half of the 20th century primarily for its luxury bodies , but did not recover from the turning point of the Second World War.

history

The company was founded in 1898 by Willy Erdmann as a cartwright in Luisenstrasse for the manufacture of carriages . In 1906, the automobile salesman Eduard Rossi joined the company and the company expanded into bodies for automobiles, Rossi took over management of the company for the somewhat older Erdmann, and he organized the first move to Linienstraße. In 1909, however, Rossi had a fatal accident, Erdmann was forced to run the company again briefly, but then finally withdrew from the company. At that time, Erdmann & Rossi only had around 50 employees and had no national significance, which can be seen from the fact that hardly anything is known about the namesake.

The heyday of Friedrich Peters (1910–1936)

The manager from Schwerin (referred to in the literature as the "chief accountant", he was already active in other areas at the time) Friedrich Peters had married a rich customer. This put him in a position to take over the company of his previous bosses, which he was to have a decisive influence on until 1936. With his sociable manner, he managed to build excellent relationships with the nobility and other opinion leaders. In 1912 Erdmann & Rossi became purveyor to the court of the Dukes of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and Kaiser Wilhelm had luxury cars made as representative gifts for foreign heads of state and top politicians, for example for the Ottoman war minister Enver Pascha .

The First World War caused a first minor crisis, only postal and ambulance vehicles were manufactured and body repairs carried out.

In the 1920s (move to Karlsruher Straße) and 1930s, the company specialized even more in luxury bodies for German and foreign automobile manufacturers and also took over the German representation of Rolls-Royce and Bentley . Erdmann & Rossi also converted trucks for advertising purposes, and a major order came from Maggi .

After the seizure of power things continued to improve, customers now also included leading Nazis such as Göring , Heß and celebrities loyal to the system such as the racing driver Bernd Rosemeyer ( Horch 853 Coupé "Manuela", 1937/38) and the first Oscar winner Emil Jannings , whose Mercedes conversion was still going on can be visited today at Aalholm Castle on Lolland . The second great German racing star Rudolf Caracciola , flying ace Ernst Udet and Ernst Heinkel were also on the customer list.

In 1933 the competitor Wagenfabrik Jos. Neuss in Berlin-Halensee , whose formative figure Karl Trutz retired. Despite the seemingly modest number of employees of 60 (after the global economic crisis), it was an absolute luxury brand, with its star designer Johannes Beeskow as head of construction. This finally made the company number 1 in the luxury segment in Germany, while Voll & Ruhrbeck , which was based very close in Charlottenburg, was only considered a competitor in the upscale market area . Beeskow and Peters shared a passion for aerodynamic shapes, and sometimes came up with innovative ideas.

With the company Rometsch , also based in Halensee , which specializes in converting medium-sized cars, v. a. Opel , had specialized, there was a collaboration (Beeskow was supposed to work for Rometsch after the war). A new business were deluxe amenities for Junkers of Lufthansa .

Around 200 workers, the highest level was a good 250, finished two to three bodies per week. Well-known one-offs for royal houses were made for Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands , for example, or in 1935 a Mercedes 540K based on Figoni & Falaschi design for the King of Iraq .

Beeskow and Peters' brother Richard made numerous trips to England and Beeskow was inspired by the design there, especially that of J. Gurney Nutting .

War-related descent

When Friedrich Peters had to retire due to illness in 1936 (he died in 1937), his brother Richard Peters took over the company, which was doing well until the outbreak of war in 1939. From then on, the company had to focus on repairs again, in the very sparse literature there is talk of the equipment of Siebel Si 204 , Focke-Wulf Fw 200 and Breguet aircraft , they were probably Air Force aircraft. In the early 1940s, the factory and its archive burned down in a bomb attack , which explains the poor information available about the history. 1943-44 the remaining employees moved into alternative quarters in Trebbin in Fläming .

In 1949 Erdmann & Rossi built one last body on the chassis of a Maybach SW 42, but the problems with the destruction, difficult economy and sudden island situation in West Berlin were too great to be able to return to the pre-war period. Since then, the company has only been involved in body repairs, most recently under Richard Peters' son Günter.

New start in the 21st century

In 2011, a Berlin entrepreneur began restarting Erdmann & Rossi. Automobile Erdmann & Rossi Licensing Services GmbH & Co. KG is again offering unique Erdmann & Rossi items worldwide.

literature

Web links

Commons : Erdmann & Rossi  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ [p. 28]
  2. ↑ Classic Car Consultants ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.classiccarconsultants.de
  3. ↑ Image October 29, 2013, "Rebirth of the legendary Horch 853 Coupé racing car"
  4. ^ [Rupert Stuhlemmer: The coachwork of Erdmann & Rossi, p. 210]
  5. ^ Coachbuild.com