Krupp (family)
Krupp is the name of a German family dynasty of industrialists from the 19th and 20th centuries who built up the largest company in Europe , Friedrich Krupp AG, based in Essen . Since the merger with Thyssen AG in 1999 , the group has been called ThyssenKrupp .
history
Beginnings
Arndt Krupp, who immigrated from the Rhineland to the still rural city of Essen - the former women's monastery - was mentioned in 1587 as the first Krupp in the register of the Essen merchants' guild . He was the one who, as a trader of, for example, spices, wine, iron and cattle, laid the foundation for the family's prosperity and used the proceeds to purchase land, among other things. When Essen also suffered from the plague around 1600 , the Protestant-minded Arndt Krupp stayed in Essen and bought houses and land from refugees at now low prices. Arndt Krupp already sold weapons to all parties to the now emerging Thirty Years' War . His son Anton Krupp survived the Thirty Years' War and traded in rifles. The still insignificant food was already considered the city of gunsmiths .
In general, the Krupps, who belong to the wealthier class, devoted themselves to trade in the 17th century and also appeared as councilors and holders of the most important municipal offices such as rent masters and mayors . Members of the Krupp family worked as city secretaries of Essen for over 112 years for three generations.
Path to the industrial family
The success of the companies founded by Friedrich Krupp on November 20, 1811 and led to economic prosperity under the management of his son Alfred , as well as the sheer size of the Krupp factory premises, significantly shaped the image of the city of Essen from high industrialization even decades after the end of the Second world war .
In 1852/1853, Alfred Krupp had the seamless tire patented as a safe, break-proof railway wheel . Krupp sold its wheel tires to most North American railways for decades, thus establishing the success of his company. The three rings of the company symbol introduced in 1875 are a reminder of this to this day as an element in the ThyssenKrupp AG logo.
On October 17, 1912, Krupp applied for a patent for the "manufacture of objects that require high resistance to corrosion ...". In 1922 the trademark "Nirosta" ( stainless steel ) was protected . The stainless steel area experienced steady growth in the following decades.
With the exception of the Weimar Republic , the Krupps sought to be close to every German government. The weapons they made were present on the battlefields of Europe from 1866 to 1945. The most famous gun was the fat Bertha mortar used in the First World War .
During the First World War, Krupp increased its arms production thanks to government contracts; after the end of the war, the Versailles Peace Treaty prohibited arms production. Krupp therefore tried its hand at new business areas. Trucks , locomotives , excavators, but also a motorized runner (today: a motor scooter ) and cash registers were supposed to compensate for losses due to broken arms orders.
In the era of National Socialism , production was resumed weapons.
During the Second World War, Friedrich Krupp AG deployed forced labor , like all German mining companies, at the request and instruction of politicians and as a replacement for permanent workers who had been drafted. In 1947/48 Alfried Krupp had to answer criminally at the Nuremberg trial .
After the end of the war, Krupp lost a large part of its substance through reparations and the interim expropriation. Mining and steel works had to be sold on the instructions of the Allies . Krupp appointed Berthold Beitz as general representative, who restructured and greatly expanded the group in the following years.
After the death of Alfried Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach on July 30, 1967 and when his only son Arndt von Bohlen and Halbach renounced the inheritance , the entire family assets were transferred to the non-profit Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation .
Merger negotiations between Krupp and Thyssen had started in the 1980s. In 1983 a planned union failed. The integration process began in 1997 and was formally concluded on March 17, 1999 with the entry of the new company ThyssenKrupp AG in the commercial register.
At the Walkmühle Friedrich Krupp built his first Reckhammer.
The Krupp parent company has been stylized as the starting point for the Krupp company.
The crucible cast monument in the area of the former Krupp cast steel factory in Essen
Symbol of German heavy industry: the three seamless railway tires from the Krupp Group
Destroyed Krupp cast steel factory in Essen in 1945
Family members
The most important family members in chronological order:
Friedrich Krupp is considered the founder of the company, contemporary silhouette
Alfred Krupp led the company to international recognition
Friedrich Alfred Krupp took over the management of the company from 1887 to 1902
Margarethe Krupp , wife of Friedrich Alfred, company manager in trust and founder of the foundation
Bertha Krupp became the sole heir in 1902 and married Gustav von Bohlen and Halbach
Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach , headed Friedrich Krupp AG from 1908 to 1943
Arndt von Bohlen und Halbach (1st from left) and his father Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (far right), the last owner of the family-owned Krupp company
Family tree
The following is the family tree of the Krupp family in the form of a list of descendants . It begins with the first generation of Arnold Krupp, who immigrated from the Netherlands , and extends to the twelfth generation.
1. Arndt Krupp († 1624), from the Rhineland, officiated as town clerk and rent master
- 2. Anton Krupp (1588–1661), gun dealer in Essen
- 3. ...
- 4. Bernhard Heinrich Krupp, pastor in Lünern
- 5. Wilhelm Karl Krupp (1710–1774), merchant and councilor in Lübeck
- 4. Bernhard Heinrich Krupp, pastor in Lünern
- 3. ...
- 2. Georg Krupp (1590–1623)
- 3. Matthias Krupp (1621–1673), city secretary in Essen
- 4. Arnold Krupp (1660 - April 4, 1734), Dr. jur., was mayor of the city of Essen from 1703 to 1734, ⚭ Anna Gertrud Burckhardt,
- 5. Friedrich Jodocus Krupp (1706–1757), businessman, senator and landlord for the city of Essen ⚭ Helena Amalia (Amalie) Ascherfeld (1732–1810), businesswoman
- 6. Peter Friedrich Wilhelm Krupp (1753–1795) ⚭ Petronella Forsthoff (1757–1839)
- 7. Friedrich Krupp (1787–1826), company founder, ⚭ Therese Helena Johanna Wilhelmi (1790–1850)
- 8. Ida Krupp (1809-1882)
- 8. Alfred Krupp (1812–1887), built Krupp into what was then the largest industrial company in Europe, ⚭ Bertha Eichhoff (1831–1888)
- 9. Friedrich Alfred Krupp (1854–1902) ⚭ Margarethe Freiin von Ende (1854–1931), trustee group manager and founder of the foundation
- 10. Bertha Krupp (1886–1957) ⚭ Gustav von Bohlen and Halbach (1870–1950)
- 11. Alfried Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach (1907–1967), the last Krupp ⚭ 1st marriage (1937): Anneliese Lampert, b. Bahr (1909–1998) 2nd marriage (1952): Vera Knauer b. Hossenfeld (1909–1967)
- 12. Arndt von Bohlen and Halbach (1938–1986); 1966 renunciation of inheritance in favor of the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation
- 11. Arnold Gustav Hans von Bohlen and Halbach (1908–1909)
- 11. Claus Arthur Arnold von Bohlen and Halbach (1910–1940) ⚭ Sita von Medinger (1912–1997)
- 12. Arnold von Bohlen and Halbach (* 1939)
- 11. Irmgard Sophie Margarethe von Bohlen and Halbach (1912–1998) ⚭ Johann (Hanno) Freiherr Raitz von Frentz
- 11. Berthold Ernst August von Bohlen and Halbach (1913–1987) ⚭ Edith von Maltzan (1919–2009)
- 12. Eckbert von Bohlen and Halbach (* 1956)
- 11. Harald Georg Wilhelm von Bohlen and Halbach (1916–1983) ⚭ Doerte Hillringhaus
- 12. Friedrich von Bohlen and Halbach (* 1962)
- 12. Georg von Bohlen and Halbach (* 1963)
- 12. Sophie von Bohlen and Halbach (* 1966)
- 11. Waldtraut Elisabeth Mechthild von Bohlen and Halbach (1920–2005) ⚭ 1st marriage (1942) Henry Thomas 2nd marriage (1961) Walter Burckhardt
- 12. Diana Maria Friz (* 1944)
- 12. Regina (* 1945)
- 11. Eckbert Wolfgang Eberhard von Bohlen and Halbach (1922–1945)
- 11. Alfried Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach (1907–1967), the last Krupp ⚭ 1st marriage (1937): Anneliese Lampert, b. Bahr (1909–1998) 2nd marriage (1952): Vera Knauer b. Hossenfeld (1909–1967)
- 10. Barbara Krupp (1887–1972) ⚭ Tilo von Wilmowsky (1878–1966), have two sons and four daughters
- 10. Bertha Krupp (1886–1957) ⚭ Gustav von Bohlen and Halbach (1870–1950)
- 9. Friedrich Alfred Krupp (1854–1902) ⚭ Margarethe Freiin von Ende (1854–1931), trustee group manager and founder of the foundation
- 8. Hermann Krupp (1814–1879), founder of the Berndorfer Metallwarenfabrik in Berndorf in Lower Austria
- 9. Arthur Krupp (1856–1938), entrepreneur and key designer of the city of Berndorf
- 8. Friedrich Krupp (1820–1901), left the Krupp company completely in the middle of the 19th century
- 7. Friedrich Krupp (1787–1826), company founder, ⚭ Therese Helena Johanna Wilhelmi (1790–1850)
- 6. Peter Friedrich Wilhelm Krupp (1753–1795) ⚭ Petronella Forsthoff (1757–1839)
- 5. Friedrich Jodocus Krupp (1706–1757), businessman, senator and landlord for the city of Essen ⚭ Helena Amalia (Amalie) Ascherfeld (1732–1810), businesswoman
- 4. Arnold Krupp (1660 - April 4, 1734), Dr. jur., was mayor of the city of Essen from 1703 to 1734, ⚭ Anna Gertrud Burckhardt,
- 3. Matthias Krupp (1621–1673), city secretary in Essen
- 2. Catharina Krupp
- 2. Margaretha Krupp
Representations of the family
After the portrait photographer Nicola Perscheid took group photos of the then nine-member family in 1928, they served as a template for the monumental family portrait (oil painting by George Harcourt ) in 1931 , which is now owned by the Krupp Foundation and is exhibited in the entrance hall of Villa Hügel.
Movie
- Krupp - a German family . Germany 2009. 3-part TV biography. First broadcast on March 22, 23 and 25, 2009 on ZDF .
literature
- Krupp 1812-1912. On the 100th anniversary of the Krupp company and the cast steel factory in Essen Published on the centenary of Alfred Krupp's birthday . Publishing house by Gustav Fischer, Jena 1912.
- Delia Bösch: Discover Krupp. On the trail of the three rings . Essen 2011, ISBN 978-3-8375-0520-7 .
- Lothar Gall: Krupp in the 20th century . Berlin 2002. ISBN 3-88680-742-8 (current research status).
- Lothar Gall: Krupp . Berlin 2000. ISBN 3-88680-583-2 (current research status).
- Diana M. Friz: The steel giants . Frankfurt / Main 1990. ISBN 3-548-34691-X (double biography of Alfried Krupp and Berthold Beitz).
- William Manchester : Krupp . Munich 1968 (often quoted, despite numerous errors in content).
- Frank Stenglein: Krupp - ups and downs of an industrial company . Munich 1998, ISBN 3-430-18762-1 (expanded and completely revised new edition: Essen 2011, ISBN 978-3-8375-0518-4 ),
- Peter Märthesheimer: Krupp or the invention of the bourgeois age . (Radio play WDR), 2002 (fictional).
- Thomas Rother: The Krupps: through five generations of steel . Bergisch Gladbach 2003. ISBN 3-404-61516-6 .
- Dietmar Lautscham: Arthur, the Austrian Krupp . ISBN 3-902447-12-5 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Diana Maria Friz: Alfried Krupp and Berthold Beitz - The heir and his governor . 2nd Edition. Orell Füssli Verlag, Zurich 1988, ISBN 3-280-01852-8 .
- ^ Erwin Dickhoff: Essener streets. City history as reflected in the street names. Richard Bacht publishing house, Essen 1979, ISBN 3-87034-030-4 , p. 167
- ↑ Krupp 1812-1912. For the 100th anniversary of the Krupp company and the cast steel factory in Essen. Published on the hundredth birthday of Alfred Krupp . Publishing house by Gustav Fischer, Jena 1912, p. 4 (signature WDL 123 Krupp in the Bochum city library).
- ↑ Family research as of August 4, 2011
- ↑ Alfried Krupp in front of the family portrait in the Villa Hügel in Essen , taken on July 17, 1945 by the photo reporter Margaret Bourke-White
Web links
- ThyssenKrupp AG - history from the company homepage
- Trace of an industrial family , an article about Essen and the Krupps at Monumente Online
- Newspaper article about Krupp in the 20th century press kit of the ZBW - Leibniz Information Center for Economics .