Interesting version of DWM's company history

[graf98a]

Well done Vlim, - don't forget Arthur & Julius Simson though!

Though on retrospect they were darn lucky, escaped to Switzerland in 36, immigrated to the US in 1937 and died peaceful lives in CA and NY along with many family members they also helped escape.

I hear Steyr was managed by a Jewish businessman up until 1938, he survived too, - Steyr of course was largely owned by the Austrian government (essentially- through Creditanstalt Bankverein which was largely government owned.)
Interestingly enough it wasn’t nazis who dismissed Steyr’s Jewish General Director, but rather Eric Heller who since 1931 was a member of the Board of Management for Creditanstalt (he was also President of Steyr-Daimler-Puch).

It was Eric Heller who placed a top Austrian nazi dirtbag, friend of Göring and high ss contacts, Georg Meindl to run the show until Steyr was taken over by the Reichswerke (who strong-armed VIAG, Creditanstahl, and few others out of their shares)

Eventually Steyr, like Simson before it, was given massive loans for expansion (ironically through Creditanstalt). In Steyr’s case the typical nazi leadership was employed- the infamous Wilhelm Voss as the big cheese. (head of the Reichswerke weapons branch, head of almost every occupied territory armament firm- in Czechoslovakia especially..)

Anyway, very complicated 1933-1936, and after the Four Year Plan and creations of organizations like the Reichswerke and Gustloff Stiftung it became even more complicated!

Vlim, your posts are the best I have encountered on any forum on German military firearms. Truly first class!