BMW: one of the largest automobile companies
in Germany. For over a century, BMW has produced engines
and cars that have excelled in their respective industries. But, as with any German company that old,
there is a particular segment of BMW’s history that isn’t very ethical. Today, however, we won’t be looking at the
history of BMW itself. Instead, we’ll learn the much darker and
lesser known story of BMW’s largest shareholders: the Quandt family. Although the Quandt family is the richest
one in Germany today, even a century ago they were still among the most prominent industrialists. The source of their wealth dates back to World
War 1 and it’s thanks to this man: Günther Quandt. He was born to a family of textile manufacturers
in Brandenburg and had made a fortune selling uniforms to the German Empire during the First
World War. After the war, he used his wealth to acquire
many businesses that were struggling during the infamous hyperinflation. In the span of just ten years Günther expanded
his textile company into a nationwide conglomerate. He branched out into numerous industries:
electronics, crude oil, weapons and battery manufacturing. In 1918, however, Günther’s wife died of
the Spanish flu, leaving him with a single son, Herbert Quandt. Three years later, Günther would marry again,
this time to a young blonde twenty years younger than he was: Magda Ritschel. Unfortunately for Günther, Magda eventually
got bored of him and asked for a divorce in 1929. Now this is where things get interesting,
cause you’d assume a divorce wouldn’t be the high point of someone’s life, but
Günther found incredible opportunity in it. You see, Magda had left Günther to marry
none other than Joseph Goebbels, the man who would later head the Ministry of Propaganda
of Nazi Germany. Günther was surprisingly welcoming of his
ex-wife’s new relationship, so much so that he offered up his own mansion for their wedding. Magda and Joseph would marry on December 19th,
1931 and the wedding’s best man was none other than Adolf Hitler. Günther saw great potential in these newfound
connections of his, but he decided to play it safe. He wouldn’t publicly support the Nazi Party
until after they had won the elections in March 1933. But now Hitler was in power and remilitarization
was at the top of his agenda. Günther Quandt became one of his most important
allies: his factories became a cornerstone of the Nazi war machine. His greatest asset by far was his battery
factory, AFA. The batteries produced in it would eventually
power the submarines and tanks of Germany, as well as Hitler’s “miracle weapon”,
the V-2 rocket. In 1937 Hitler appointed Günther as “Wehrwirtschaftsführer”
or Leader of the War Economy. In the wake of Hitler’s conquests, Günther
was the first in line to appropriate the seized factories throughout Europe. Starting in 1941, forced laborers began to
fill the ranks of Günther’s factories, as all the able-bodied Germans were dragged
to the Eastern front. While forced labor became prevalent in many
German businesses at the time, Günther’s factories became infamous among Jewish circles
as being particularly harsh. The working conditions in AFA’s battery
plants were exceptionally brutal; workers were offered no protection and the vast majority
would die of lead poisoning in less than six months. Overseeing personnel at AFA was Günther’s
son, Herbert Quandt. He had been involved in his father’s businesses
from a young age and like him was a member of the Nazi Party. In 1943, Herbert would collaborate with the
SS in the construction of a concentration camp directly alongside their battery factory
in Hanover. Similar arrangements would later be made for
AFA factories in Berlin and Vienna. Of course, eventually the German war machine
would crumble and along with it the vast business empire of the Quandts would come under threat
by the occupying Allies. Now, you’d assume the fall of Nazi Germany
would be the end for Günther, but despite being one of the leading industrialists of
the time, he was never indicted. When the Americans got hold of Günther, they
interned him in Camp Moosburg. This was formerly Nazi Germany’s largest
prisoner-of-war camp, but the Americans had turned it around and were now using to hold
all of the Germans suspected of collaborating with the Nazi regime. However, after a year and a half in that camp,
Günther was released and walked away scot free. According to documents at the time, there
was insufficient evidence linking Günther with the Nazis. Now, unlike his father, Herbert ended up in
the British occupation zone when the Nazi’s surrendered. Because he carried relatively little “political
baggage”, as the British called it, Herbert was granted an operating permit in just a
few weeks. In the eyes of the British, Germany’s biggest
priority was to rebuild its economy, and people like Herbert and Günther were seen as necessary
to that end. And just in case you’re thinking that it’s
just the Quandts who made it out intact, even the industrialists who were indicted at the
Nuremberg trials would eventually be set free under the same pretext. Now, Günther died in 1954, leaving Herbert
in charge of the family’s wealth. Much like his father, Herbert found it incredibly
lucrative to buy up struggling companies, and that’s exactly what he did with BMW. Unlike the Quandt family’s business empire,
BMW wasn’t having a good time after World War 2. Their factories had been heavily bombed and
those in Eastern Germany were even seized by the Soviet Government. In fact, BMW wasn’t allowed to produce cars
until 1952, and to make ends meet before that they resorted to manufacturing kitchen equipment
from salvaged material. Suffice to say, BMW’s post-war reboot wasn’t
doing well. By 1959 the company was on the verge of bankruptcy
and looking desperately for anyone willing to buy them out. Herbert did exactly that, and it was thanks
to his capital injection that BMW were able to produce their saving grace, the BMW 1500. The small, but feisty sedan would become the
basis for the modern BMW. It was the first of BMW’s “New Class”
designs, which would re-establish the BMW brand and would push the company to record
profitability. But, the fact remains that the money used
to rebuild BMW came from blatant war profiteering. What’s more concerning is the fact that
the Quandts evaded owning up to their history until very recently. Other big German companies came forward with
apologies and donations in the late 1990s, but the Quandts remained silent until October
2007, when a very explicit documentary shared this story with the general public. Since then, the Quandts have issued public
apologies and all that, but regardless of that they still remain the richest Germans
by a wide margin. Herbert’s daughter, Susanne Klatten, is
the wealthiest woman in Germany, while his son Stefan is the single largest shareholder
of BMW, controlling just over 25% of the company. Today, the Quandts are a dynasty to be reckoned
with: for example, they are one of the largest political donors to the Christian Democrats,
Germany’s largest political party. And sure, while the grandchildren of Günther
can hardly be held responsible for his crimes, it’s still pretty interesting to see the
direct link between Nazi Germany’s war machine and the German elite of today. Thanks for watching guys. Now, this particular story was much darker
than the ones we usually cover, but I think it had to be done. Let me know in the comments below if you agree
and also mention which company you’d like me to feature next. If you like what I do and you want to support
me you can check out my Patreon page, where you can get perks like early access to future
videos and HD versions of the music I use. Once again, thanks for watching and until
next time: stay smart.
Thx
As a BMW enthusiast, this really has nothing to do with it's origins but only it's rebirth after the war.