Ernst Wilhelm Sachs

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Ernst Wilhelm Sachs (born April 23, 1929 at Mainberg Castle near Schweinfurt , † April 11, 1977 in Val-d'Isère ) was a German-Swiss industrialist and heir to millions.

Ernst Wilhelm ("EW") Sachs was the older son of Fichtel & Sachs sole proprietor Willy Sachs and his first wife Elinor von Opel , a granddaughter of Opel founder Adam Opel . When his parents divorced in 1935, his mother took him to Switzerland with his younger brother Gunter . In the dispute over custody, with the support of Himmler and Göring in 1941, the father only managed to bring the older son back to Schweinfurt for a short time . From the end of 1943 he lived again with his mother in Switzerland.

In preparation for his later role in the management of his father's company, he completed various internships. After the death of his father, he joined the board of Fichtel & Sachs AG in 1958 and finally took over the chairmanship of the board. In doing so, he consciously placed himself in the family tradition of father and grandfather. His friendly and sociable manner was appreciated by everyone. However, his entrepreneurial decisions were not very happy. The entry into refrigeration technology that he advocated was a failure. When losses began to arise for the first time after many years of upturn, the 38-year-old had to retire from the company's management in 1967. Together with his brother Gunter, he sold the majority of shares in Sachs AG to the British GKN group in 1976 . This sale was prohibited by the antitrust authorities after his death.

In 1957 Sachs had married Eleonora Vollweiler, called Lo Sachs (born March 17, 1935, † August 17, 2005). The marriage resulted in the three daughters Monica (* 1959), Eva Eleonore (* 1960) and Carolin (* 1963). The marriage ended in divorce in 1973. Sachs then led an unsteady Playboy life until his death.

During his activity in Schweinfurt he lived with his family in an inconspicuous house in Weingartenweg until autumn 1968, then mainly in Munich and Switzerland. In order to avoid the German inheritance tax, he and his brother Gunter took on Swiss citizenship in 1976.

Sachs had a fatal accident in an avalanche accident near Val-d'Isère in April 1977.

In addition to hunting, one of his hobbies was racing. At the Hockenheimring a building, a street in the city and a curve on the track (Sachskurve) is named after him.

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