Heinrich Brenzinger

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Family coat of arms

Heinrich Julius Brenzinger (born June 20, 1879 in Freiburg im Breisgau ; † November 23, 1960 ibid) was a German civil engineer , building contractor , art collector and sponsor.

Life

From 1886 on, Heinrich Brenzinger attended elementary school in Freiburg for four years. He then went to the Grand Ducal Realschule from 1890 to 1896, which later became the Oberrealschule ( Rotteck-Gymnasium Freiburg ). Between 1896 and 1897 he did an apprenticeship in an architecture office. Heinrich Brenzinger studied construction at the Technical University of Karlsruhe from the winter semester 1897/1898. At that time he joined the Corps Saxonia Karlsruhe . - Participation in a scale length resulted in multiple cracks and the loss of multiple teeth. In March 1901 he successfully passed his exams and finished his studies. The Karlsruhe sculptor Konrad Taucher (1873–1950) was one of his teachers . A stay in Berlin followed after his studies to study the latest reinforced concrete construction methods. From 1901 to 1903 he did his military service. Further stays in Berlin followed. During this time he already took part in board meetings of the German Concrete Association. From January 1, 1905, he was a partner in Brenzinger & Cie. On June 8, 1905 Heinrich Brenzinger married Annemarie Ganz (1884–1968).

Time of the First World War

From 1914 until almost the end of the war, Brenzinger was deployed in the war. He only temporarily replaced his sick father in the management of the company. Until 1918 Brenzinger was still convinced of the possibility of a victory for the German Empire . He found it difficult to come to terms with defeat. His statements suggest that Heinrich Brenzinger also believed in the stab in the back legend . For a time Brenzinger identified himself as a supporter of the German People's Party .

time of the nationalsocialism

After he had been a member of the advisory board of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry since 1913 , he was even deputy president from 1930 to 1933. From April 4, 1933 he was a member of the German National People's Party . A promotion of the Stahlhelm, Bund der Frontsoldaten is also known from this time . In 1933, he looked to his wife Anne Marie hostility for the sake of the Jewish ancestors Nazis suspended. His fraternity therefore excluded him from their ranks. Heinrich Brenzinger formed the Treue Saxen or the Elf Faithful with ten others in May 1935 . In November 1938, he told the outlet as a supporting member of the SS after "it was already difficult for me only to draw the minimum amount, was one in which terror that was exercised, serve to explain the emergence courage ..." 1942 his politically motivated resignation from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry took place.

From April 22, 1945 to May 11, 1945 the house in Freiburg's Goethestrasse was confiscated. Heinrich Brenzinger's assessment at the time of National Socialism is not clear, as Brenzinger's well-known statements range from enthusiasm to rejection.

post war period

Heinrich Brenzinger was already one of four vice presidents of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in May 1945. In October 1946, however, he was dismissed again because he was accused of being a member of the National Socialist Front Fighters Association, the (albeit small) promotion of the Schutzstaffel , the negative attitude towards trade unions and the public recognition of Nazi leaders . The suffering inflicted on his wife, himself and his family during the Nazi era did not work in his favor. A request for revision was unsuccessful. Heinrich Brenzinger was not rehabilitated until May 7, 1953. Heinrich Brenzinger's son-in-law Helmut Wolfgang Dyllick-Brenzinger took over the management of Brenzinger & Cie. In 1956, but he was still intensively and diversely involved in the company's business. Heinrich Brenzinger died on November 23, 1960 in Freiburg.

Economic commitment

After his father Julius, Brenzinger became managing director of the construction company Brenzinger & Cie. Founded in 1872. The company's economic development followed the ups and downs of German history. During his apprenticeship in Berlin, Brenzinger a. a. got to know the many possible uses of the new concrete construction methods at the German Concrete Association . In addition to some turn-of-the-century villas, the Freiburger Wasserschlössle am Sternwald, the Ochsenbrücke, the railway bridge over Merzhauser Straße and the college building (I) of the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg are examples of construction projects before the First World War. In 1912 Brenzinger & Cie. Freiburg's largest construction company with over 400 employees. Heinrich Brenzinger managed the company until 1956.

social commitment

Clubs and organizations

Heinrich Brenzinger was a diverse, socially committed person with numerous memberships in clubs and organizations. He promoted u. a. the Freiburg Minster Construction Association and the Freiburg Art Association , various artists, the Breisgau History Association and, for example, on March 18, 1933 he founded the Freiburg Rotary Club . On the twenty-fifth anniversary of the association, Freiburg's chief building director Joseph Schlippe emphasized the special importance Brenzinger had for its founding. In the regional association Badische Heimat he met u. a. Hermann Eris Busse (managing director of the regional association Badische Heimat), Paul Schwoerer (regional commissioner) and the artist Fritz Geiges . With the support of Brenzinger, Geige's book could appear on the medieval windows of the Freiburg Minster . Heinrich Brenzinger paid particular attention to the support of the Baden homeland and the Breisgau history association Schau-ins-Land . He also held numerous offices, for example in the employers' association and in the Chamber of Commerce and Industry . A specialty is certainly the support of numerous artists, such as For example: Reis, Kaiser, Franke, Dischler, Glattacker, Dieter, Hans Adolf Bühler , and Daur.

Social entrepreneurship

Family grave of the Brenzinger family in Freiburg's main cemetery from 1924

After the death of his mother, Heinrich Brenzinger had a representative tomb built in the Freiburg main cemetery based on a design by the Freiburg architect Carl Anton Meckel . The execution was carried out in concrete and reinforced concrete with cladding made of artificial stone until August 1924, executed by Brenzinger & Cie. A second pavilion with further graves was used from the end of 1939 for the burial of well-deserved, long-term employees of the company. A memorial was set up by the company for those who died in the First and Second World War. Heinrich Brenzinger's longstanding commitment to his former Technical Director Ludwig Friedländer also speaks for the great loyalty to his employees. From the beginning of the hostility because of his Jewish origin until well after the end of the Second World War, Brenzinger stood up for him. With Brenzinger's help, Friedländer was able to emigrate to India in 1938 .

Honors

Heinrich Brenzinger did not accept every honor with the utmost enthusiasm, in a letter to Ludwig Friedländer he wrote that: ... Honors [...] (Kzrat. Gr. Merit Cross, Honorary Senator of the University) are signs of old age.

Fonts

literature

  • Heinrich Brenzinger: The Brenzinger family. Laupp, Tübingen 1949.
  • Renate Liessem-Breinlinger: Heinrich Brenzinger 1879-1960. Engineer, entrepreneur, historian. Biography of a Freiburg resident. In: Journal of the Breisgau-Geschichtsverein, "Schau-ins-Land" , 109th annual issue (1990), pp. 165–177.
  • Festschrift Heinrich Brenzinger: Dr.-Ing. E. h. Dedicated to Heinrich Brenzinger on the occasion of his 65th birthday on June 20, 1944. Freiburg, Breisgau-Verein Schauinsland, 1944, 2 volumes.
  • Andrea Haußmann: Heinrich Brenzinger (1879-1960) . Freiburg (Breisgau), 1996.
  • A life story that tells a piece of city history. The biography of the Freiburg entrepreneur and honorary citizen Heinrich Brenzinger has now been published. In: Badische Zeitung from Saturday, February 8, 1997 (published on the not publicly available biography of his grandson Frank Dyllick-Brenzinger)

Web links

Commons : Heinrich Brenzinger  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Biographical information on Heinrich Brenzinger in the regional history portal for Baden-Württemberg (LEO-BW)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879-1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 13
  2. ^ Johann Peter Blank (Ed.): Large Corps List of Saxonia Karlsruhe , Karlsruhe 1973
  3. ^ Sculpture in Freiburg. 19th century art in public spaces , Michael Klant (Ed.), Freiburg im Breisgau 2000, ISBN 3-922675-77-8 , p. 30
  4. ^ Inscription on the Brenzinger family grave , May 7, 2010
  5. ^ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 23ff.
  6. ↑ He laid out his political creed in 1920 in a letter to his cousin Julius Brenzinger, in which, as is often the case, concern for his company is reflected: “With our company, we depend on the viability of German industry and if it is ruined and the millions of proletarians take to the streets, then woe to us and the whole world! That is our view ... As you write: 'The government has no backbone and does not allow itself to stand up against the proletariat' - is probably even more valid with us than with you! As a result, all of us who understand, long for the old regime, which the Social Democrats describe as rotten, but which used to secure us prestige and prosperity as we now steer towards the abyss. Because of this conviction, I am part of the German (liberal) People's Party, which wants to preserve the legacy of the old national liberal party. I take the position that at the head of a state there should be a head carried by responsibility, as every business needs. A leading personality whose initiative must be guided by the will of the people, but who must have as much freedom of decision as is necessary for the management of any successful undertaking. From this emerges the standpoint for a monarchy rooted in the people in a modern view. The parliamentary system does not suit the German, as the last 1 1/2 years have shown: So many heads in the government, so much sense! Everything is crying out for a powerful dictator who will finally restore order. [...] This is my political creed. ” - Andrea Haußmann: Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960). Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, pp. 26-27.
  7. ↑ cf. about his family relationships in: Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960), Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, pp. 120–121.
  8. ↑ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879-1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 144.
  9. ^ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 184.
  10. ↑ Heinrich Brenzinger, according to his daughter Annibet, commented on reading Mein Kampf with grace and God . Elsewhere, however, he spoke of the great goals of the Führer , Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960), Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, pp. 153–154.
  11. ^ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, pp. 182–186.
  12. ^ Heinrich Brenzinger 1879–1960. Engineer, entrepreneur, historian. Biography of a Freiburg resident. , Renate Liessem-Breinlinger, in: magazine of the Breisgau history association Schau-ins-Land , 109th annual issue, 1990, p. 170. Title of the work: Fritz Geiges: The medieval window decorations of the Freiburg Cathedral. Its history, the causes of its disintegration and the measures taken to restore it; at the same time a contribution to the history of the building itself . Freiburg, Breisgau-Verein Schau-ins-Land, 1931 (Simultaneously volume 56–58 of Schau-ins-Land).
  13. ↑ In 1930 Brenzinger had 84 memberships, for example Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 63.
  14. ↑ They were buried there a. Wilhelm Schrempp (civil engineer, worked for Brenzinger & Cie. For 67 years, father of Günter and Jürgen Schrempp ), Carl Friedrich Vetter (civil engineer, worked for Brenzinger & Cie. For 61 years), Joseph Schindler (asphalt worker, worked for Brenzinger & Cie. For 44 years .), Fritz Krieg (businessman, 43 years with Brenzinger & Cie.), Georg Ritter (civil engineer, 52 years with Brenzinger & Cie.), Josef Andris (driver of family vehicles, 48 ​​years with the family and the Brenzinger company & Cie.). The long-time daughter of the Brenzinger family, Edith Else Maria Baither, was also buried there.
  15. ^ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879–1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 184; Brenzinger's letter of appeal dated October 16, 1946 against the decision of the Baden Ministry of Economics, according to which he must be viewed as a Nazi burden . Heinrich Brenzinger also represented Ludwig Friedländer to the State Office for Restitution in Freiburg , cf. on this, the Office's decision of March 18, 1955 about an advance payment of DM 4,000 for reparation. The correspondence between Heinrich Brenzinger and Ludwig Friedländer is in the Freiburg City Archives.
  16. ↑ Heinrich Brenzinger (1879-1960) , Andrea Haußmann, Freiburg (Breisgau) 1996, p. 121.
  17. ^ Letter from Brenzinger to Friedländer, dated April 13, 1953
personal data
SURNAME Brenzinger, Heinrich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Brenzinger, Heinrich Julius (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German civil engineer, contractor, art collector and sponsor
DATE OF BIRTH June 20, 1879
PLACE OF BIRTH Freiburg in Breisgau
DATE OF DEATH November 23, 1960
Place of death Freiburg in Breisgau