On this day: in history (1937), the government of Germany, then under the control of Adolf Hitler formed a new state-owned automobile company, known as “Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mbH.”
Later that year, it was renamed simply Volkswagenwerk, or “The People’s Car Company.”
Volkswagen was headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Hitler’s pet project was the development and mass production of an affordable yet still speedy vehicle that could sell for less than 1,000 Reich marks (about $140 at the time). To provide the design for this “people’s car,” Hitler called in the Austrian automotive engineer Ferdinand Porsche. In 1938, at a Nazi rally, the Fuhrer declared: “It is for the broad masses that this car has been built. Its purpose is to answer their transportation needs, and it is intended to give them joy.” However, soon after the KdF (Kraft-durch-Freude)-Wagen (“Strength-Through-Joy” car) was displayed for the first time at the Berlin Motor Show in 1939, World War II began, and Volkswagen halted production.
After the war ended, with the factory in ruins, the Allies would make Volkswagen the focus of their attempts to resuscitate the German auto industry.
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Created by Okey Obiabunmo
