Krupp: A History of the Legendary German Firm

by Harold James

A history of the steel and arms maker that came to symbolize the best and worst of modern German historyThe history of Krupp is the history of modern Germany. No company symbolized the best and worst of that history more than the famous steel and arms maker. In this book, Harold James tells the story of the Krupp family and its industrial empire between the early nineteenth century and the present, and analyzes its transition from a family business to one owned by a nonprofit foundation.Krupp founded a small steel mill in 1811, which established the basis for one of the largest and most important companies in the world by the end of the century. Famously loyal to its highly paid workers, it rejected an exclusive focus on profit, but the company also played a central role in the armament of Nazi Germany and the firm's head was convicted as a war criminal at Nuremberg. Yet after the war Krupp managed to rebuild itself and become a symbol of Germany once again—this time open, economically successful, and socially responsible.Books on Krupp tend to either denounce it as a diabolical enterprise or celebrate its technical ingenuity. In contrast, James presents a balanced account, showing that the owners felt ambivalent about the company's military connection even while becoming more and more entangled in Germany's aggressive politics during the imperial era and the Third Reich.By placing the story of Krupp and its owners in a wide context, James also provides new insights into the political, social, and economic history of modern Germany.

Genres: History, Business, Economics

362 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 10, 2011

About the author

Harold James is Claude and Lore Kelly Professor in European Studies and Professor of History and International Affairs at Princeton University.

Reviews

[Reza Amiri Praramadhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Krupp, among others, was a firm that came to symbolize the might of German Industry, right from the emergence of German Empire, right through the Nazi era, down to postwar Germany economic miracle. Specialized in steel, Krupp became better (in)famously known for its cannons, which blasted through europe in two world wars.

In this book, we followed the Krupp history of five generations of family ownership, beginning with the not-so-successful-commercially-but-ultimately-innovative start with Friedrich Krupp, his son, Alfred Krupp, succeeded in marrying innovation with profits, while cultivating a strong, company ethic of 'Kruppianer', a rather patriarchic view of dedication to work combined with patriotism and loyalty to Krupp, both to the company and to the Old Man Krupp himself as the "father" of the company. His successor was Friedrich Alfried Krupp, the arch-monarchist, who came to put Krupp so synonymous with German Empire's industrialization efforts. After his death, the ownership of the firm fell to his daughter Bertha, although the day-to-day operation was handled by his husband, Gustav von Bohlen und Halbach, and his son Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach. Under their leadership Krupp entered its most exciting period of history, in which its name became so vilified due to its roles in arming German military through two world wars, and then came the postwar period, in which Krupp sought to rebuilt its war-torn industry while rehabilitating its much-vilified reputation.

It was also after the Second World War that Krupp began its process of transforming from a family business into a foundation, then to a joint-stock company, under the leadership of Alfried's preferred successor due to his sons unreliability and/or incompetence, Berthold Beitz. The final part saddened me for the Kruppianer culture was unable to stand the test of time, came to be crushed under shareholding capitalism, in which the company's goals were to become beholden to shareowners, and to seek the most profit, in which various motives such as nationalism, patriotism, and workers' welfare were sidelined. While this book discussed the growth of Krupp as a firm and its transformations, I am more interested to see the social effects of Krupp's philosophy, both under family ownership and under the family foundation, a theme which I felt still not explored enough in this book.

[Bernie4444 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly focusing on the Nazi Era.

You cannot have too many books that tell the story of the Krupp family and how they work. There are a few plates or black and white photos so you can see what the people and weapons looked like.

There is a two-page bibliography as a scrawny index.

Peter Batty also produced a television presentation for the BBC called “The fall and rise of the house of Krupp”

[Bernie4444 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly focusing on the Nazi Era.

You cannot have too many books that tell the story of the Krupp family and how they work. There are a few plates or black and white photos so you can see what the people and weapons looked like.

There is a two-page bibliography as a scrawny index.

Peter Batty also produced a television presentation for the BBC called “The Fall and Rise of the House of Krupp”

[Kyrre Kjellevold · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read that sums up important sides of Germany´s history the last 200 years. Especially the parts about the German business life´s contribution to the war economy is terrific reading.