Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim

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Friedrich Carl Freiherr von Oppenheim , born Friedrich Karl Simon Alfred Freiherr von Oppenheim (born October 5, 1900 in Cologne ; † November 22, 1978 there ) was a German banker and European politician.

Life

Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim was a partner and head of the Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. , one of the largest European private banks of the 20th century. As the son of the banker Simon Alfred von Oppenheim , he completed his commercial training in the family business, at the National City Bank of New York and at the Brazilian bank for Germany in São Paulo . In 1929 he became a managing partner in his parents' private bank. Later personally liable partner and senior boss of his house, Oppenheim remained in Cologne during the National Socialist rule despite his family's Jewish past. He was ostracized by the National Socialists as a second-degree Jewish half- breed . He lost many public and business offices. In 1938 he and his brother Waldemar had to forego taking part in the management of the bank. The banker friend and partner Robert Pferdmenges took over the management of the bank and renamed it Robert Pferdmenges & Co., which was reversed in 1947. In 1942, at the instigation of the Reichsführer SS and head of the German police Heinrich Himmler, the family had to cede the Schlenderhan Stud to the Waffen SS .

Grave slab of the couple from Oppenheim

In 1944 Carl Friedrich was arrested while his brother Waldemar was able to go into hiding in Cologne. He was charged with "undermining military strength" before the People's Court, and at the same time the Gestapo tracked down his aid to persecuted Jews in the Netherlands. Because the war was over, there was no trial: Carl Friedrich was freed and got away with his life. In addition to his professional work, Oppenheim dedicated himself personally to the European unification process. Since 1958 he was President (since 1973 Honorary President) of the non-partisan European Union Germany . In the 1950s and 1960s, Oppenheim, who was controversial because of his luxury-oriented life, managed to set important impulses for European politics in the young Federal Republic from his hometown of Cologne.

The Yad Vashem Memorial , Israel, decided in 1996 to posthumously honor Friedrich Carl Freiherr von Oppenheim as “ Righteous Among the Nations ” for his services to the rescue of Jewish people during the Nazi dictatorship.

Von Oppenheim had married Ruth Helene Margarete Freiin von Zedlitz-Leipe (1908–1988) in Düsseldorf in 1931 . They had two sons and a daughter; the eldest son is Alfred von Oppenheim .

Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim died in 1978 at the age of 78 in his apartment in Cologne-Marienburg . The family burial site is located in the Melaten cemetery in Cologne (HWG, between lit. K + L).

Horse racing

Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim was president of the Cologne racing club. During his presidency, the European Prize was launched in 1963 . The horse race , which is held annually in autumn (earlier in October, now in September) on the racetrack in Cologne-Weidenpesch , is one of the most important horse races in Germany and belongs to the international Europe group 1. For many years the European Prize was considered that German counterpart to the world-famous Prix ​​de l'Arc de Triomphe in France. Due to the crisis in horse racing since the turn of the millennium, the award of the race is no longer appropriate for such a comparison. The first winner of the race was the opponent , ridden by Hein Bollow .

Awards

  • 1963: Bavarian Order of Merit
  • 1970: Large Cross of Merit with a star
  • 1975: Large Cross of Merit with star and shoulder ribbon

literature

  • Jürgen Mittag, Wolfgang Wessels (Ed.): The Cologne European: Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim and European unification. Münster 2005, ISBN 3-402-00404-6 . (2006 in Aschendorff Verlag, ISBN 978-3-402-00404-3 ).
  • Friedrich Carl Freiherr von Oppenheim , in: Internationales Biographisches Archiv 01/1979 of December 25, 1978, in the Munzinger Archive ( beginning of article freely available)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Death certificate No. 10391 dated November 24, 1978, Cologne registry office. In: LAV NRW R civil status register. Retrieved June 28, 2018 .
  2. ^ Gabriele Teichmann: The Oppenheim family - a Rhenish banking dynasty . Portal of the LVR Rheinische Geschichte. Accessed April 2, 2014.
  3. ^ European Union Germany
  4. ↑ http://www.yadvashem.org/yv/de/righteous/stories/oppenheim.asp
  5. ^ Josef Abt, Johann Ralf Beines, Celia Körber-Leupold: Melaten - Cologne graves and history. Greven, Cologne 1997, ISBN 3-7743-0305-3 , p. 52 .
personal data
SURNAME Oppenheim, Friedrich Carl von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Oppenheim, Friedrich Karl Simon Alfred Freiherr von (birth name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German banker and European politician
DATE OF BIRTH 5th October 1900
PLACE OF BIRTH Cologne
DATE OF DEATH November 22, 1978
Place of death Cologne