Krupp Steelworks, Essen

Krupp Steelworks, Essen

The Krupp family, a prominent 400 year old German dynasty from Essen, have become famous for their production of steel, artillery, ammunition, and other armaments. Friedrich Krupp built a pioneering steel foundry in Essen in 1810. His son Alfred invested heavily in new technology to become a significant manufacturer of steel rollers and railway tires. He also invested in the revolutionary Bessemer process and acquired many mines in Germany and France. The company began to make steel cannons in the 1840s. Low non-military demand and government subsidies meant that the company specialized more and more in weapons: by the late 1880s the manufacture of armaments represented around 50% of Krupp's total output. At the time Krupp's was the world's largest industrial company and the largest private company in the German empire. When Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933, the Krupp works became the center for German rearmament. The choices of the Krupp family and firm during the Nazi era, including support of Hitler and use of forced labour, are part of the legacy. No photographer credited, undated.

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4500 x 3167 px | 40.8 MB

38.1 x 26.8 cm | 15.0 x 10.6 in (300 dpi)