Audi representatives are shocked by the revelations about the Nazi past of the company's founder

30

Employees of the German auto giant Audi are shocked by the revelations about the Nazi past of their "founding father" Richard Brun. It is noteworthy that the automakers themselves wanted to learn more about its activities and about Audi's predecessor, Auto Union, the automakers. The results of the investigation showed that during the Second World War there existed several concentration camps where cars were made for fascists.

For Auto Union, the predecessor company of Audi, seven concentration camps were built in which they produced vehicles for the Nazis. The founder of the concern, Richard Brun, was responsible for the brutal exploitation of prisoners and was closely associated with the top Nazi leadership. Such unflattering facts came to light as a result of an investigation commissioned by the automaker itself, according to the German portal The Local.

The authors of the 500-page report were historians Martin Kukovski and Rudlph Boch. According to their data, in the Nazi concentration camps, Auto Union worked around 3700 prisoners. At the same time, about 16 thousand people worked at factories in Saxony. The company expressed concern about such facts and do not exclude that they will pay compensation to those prisoners who are still alive.

After the war, Richard Brune revived the company in Ingolstadt, receiving funding under the Marshall Plan. He was even awarded the Order of Merit for the Federal Republic of Germany for his contribution to the development of the country as an entrepreneur.

Now the mayor of the city of Ingolstadt declares that, perhaps, some streets, named after Brun, will have to be renamed. And representatives of the automaker Audi itself said that they would change Brun’s online profiles. At the same time, on the company's English-speaking websites around the world, the businessman is still described as a “very competent manager of the enterprise” in the pre-war period and a person who “preserved the good reputation of the company” after the war, which made it possible to obtain funding for the revival of the automaker.

Audi - the last of the major German automakers, which conducted a detailed investigation of its Nazi past. Previously, so did Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW.
Our news channels

Subscribe and stay up to date with the latest news and the most important events of the day.

30 comments
Information
Dear reader, to leave comments on the publication, you must sign in.
  1. Vlad Gore
    +11
    28 May 2014 08: 30
    Objectively evaluate the past. That's what humanity is missing today. Yes
    1. +3
      28 May 2014 08: 42
      The facts are certainly not hospitable, but show me at least one state that, especially during the war, did not use the labor of prisoners. And when using such labor, it is hardly believed that any state created comfortable working conditions for prisoners.
      1. +10
        28 May 2014 09: 06
        Even Germans are ashamed of their Nazi past. And the crested don't care. "That is not a jump, then m.s.s.k.a.l." .... D.E.b.i.l.i.z.m in the last stage ....
      2. The comment was deleted.
      3. SMV
        SMV
        +1
        28 May 2014 11: 23
        Exactly. The Germans built houses with us.
    2. +1
      28 May 2014 09: 21
      To be honest, I was surprised that AUDI did not exist before the 70s, but then UPS and all the secrets sooner or later become apparent. Merkel hello.
      1. +2
        28 May 2014 13: 40
        Quote: Alexander Romanov
        To be honest, I was surprised that AUDI did not exist before the 70s, but then UPS and all the secrets sooner or later become apparent. Merkel hello.

        At the moment, it looks just like another way to promote, Audi has existed since 1909.
    3. +1
      28 May 2014 09: 49
      I don’t see anything wrong with this news, Porsche generally worked on the Panzervaff and what.
    4. The comment was deleted.
  2. +5
    28 May 2014 08: 32
    So this is not a sin! The Americans all industrialists working on the Reich otmazyvali still in 45-47 gg.
  3. +5
    28 May 2014 08: 35
    Well, one way or another, all German companies used prisoners. This is not news.
  4. calocha
    +3
    28 May 2014 08: 36
    Not for that, the Fascists (capitalists) set up experiments to objectively evaluate everything ... There is a war in the info field ...
  5. +5
    28 May 2014 08: 38
    Today Audi, tomorrow Ford, they like Luntiki, just picked up history books ????
  6. +1
    28 May 2014 08: 39
    Let them dig, maybe at least someone's brains will fall into place.
    1. +3
      28 May 2014 08: 43
      quote - Employees of the German auto giant Audi shocked by the revelations about the Nazi past of their "founding father" Richard Bruhn. It is noteworthy that the automakers wanted to learn more about its activities and about Audi's predecessor, Auto Union, themselves. The results of the investigation showed that during the Second World War there were several concentration camps where cars were made for the Nazis.

      It is not surprising, by the way, and Daimler Benz, Volkswagen and Opel there too.
      1. +2
        28 May 2014 09: 23
        Quote: Apollon

        It is not surprising, by the way, and Daimler Benz, Volkswagen and Opel there too.

        Apollo, BMW also lit up in the warrior with its motorcycles, but initially the BMW badge itself is an airplane propeller - 1 world hi
        1. +2
          28 May 2014 09: 31
          Quote: Apollon
          It is not surprising, by the way, and Daimler Benz, Volkswagen and Opel there too.

          And the Porsche, the Maybach engines ... everything, the German engineering industry worked for the Nazis, I don't understand why be surprised? "Business and NOTHING except business" ...
      2. +2
        28 May 2014 09: 53
        Opel, let it be known to you, also belonged to the American GM during the war - and regularly produced those same Opel Blitz, and the profits from their sale to the Wehrmacht were received in Detroit. It's the same story with Coca-Cola - the factories of the concern in Germany worked properly, only when it became problematic to import concentrate from the United States, the Germans came up with ersatz cola - they called it "fanta" ...
  7. +2
    28 May 2014 08: 42
    Here is an example for the Ukropov after so many years looking for the truth and trying to at least do something for those who were harmed by the Nazis, not to mention the names of the streets. But the crested
    1. +2
      28 May 2014 09: 24
      Quote: Zamachus
      Here is an example for Dill after so many years looking for the truth

      After many years, the junta and smell will not remain today. Everyone will say, it's not us.
  8. 0
    28 May 2014 08: 45
    The authors of the original article are dreary deer. "AUDI" is the Latin translation of the surname of the company's founder, Horch, made by him after the war to slightly retouch his not entirely impeccable past: the Horch brand was also among Hitler's favorites, like Mercedes, by the way.
    The emblem after the merger (Horch's purchase of the competitors) remained from "Auto Union" - four intertwined rings, and the name of the concern became "AUDI". Which later became part of the "Volkswagen Grup".
    1. +1
      28 May 2014 09: 26
      Do not write what you do not know.
      Horch & Cie. August Horch founded Motorwagen Werke on November 14, 1899 in the city of Cologne.
      And in 1909, after former colleagues from Horch removed Horch from business (due to friction between colleagues, creditors and Horch himself, because the company was put on the brink of bankruptcy due to a new 6-cylinder engine designed and built by Horch, which turned out to be unsuccessful) Audi Automobil-Werke was created, in 1910 Audi launched the first car. In 1932, the Audi, Horch, DKW, and Wanderer plants merged into Auto Union AG. Four rings became its symbol.
      In 1964, Auto Union became part of Volkswagen.
      ..
      Well, really, there is Google.
  9. +1
    28 May 2014 08: 49
    I don’t understand ... what is it that the Germans suddenly periodically build girls out of themselves ...
    Their first chancellor, Adenauer, was generally an SS ... so what ??? ... well, everyone, to one degree or another, was drawn into and supported Nazism.
  10. +2
    28 May 2014 08: 53
    More precisely, they will pay compensation to those prisoners who, if they are still alive.
  11. +1
    28 May 2014 08: 56
    And how are they shocked? All German factories worked for the Nazis. Almost all Germans worked for the war, or fought. If we do not know some names of the founders of factories, then the name of Porsche, Hitler’s favorite, is known to all.
  12. 0
    28 May 2014 09: 07
    Better late than never.
  13. +1
    28 May 2014 09: 11
    I imagine how the representatives will be shocked when they accidentally learn that Putin was a member of the CPSU and worked in the all-powerful KGB department in Germany, which caused her some damage.
    Ah yes news. With such, right away to Kiev.
  14. 0
    28 May 2014 09: 13
    It is good that the new leaders of Audi took such a step, very brave and "honest" (if, of course, there will be compensation). The past must be remembered no matter what it was, how to try to forget it or embellish it.
  15. vitosia
    0
    28 May 2014 09: 19
    Better American companies to check and oblige in the logo must write helped Hitler
  16. +1
    28 May 2014 09: 20
    Now I know for sure what the emblem means - barbed wire rings.
  17. 0
    28 May 2014 09: 22
    The article smacks of duck. The company itself conducted an investigation !? What a fright. During World War II, almost all German industrialists used prison labor. To understand this fact, you do not need to dig deep.
  18. 0
    28 May 2014 09: 55
    The most important thing is that mankind should draw certain conclusions for itself from this terrible past and not repeat them in the future. But I have the impression against Ukraine that millions of deaths in this terrible war have taught us nothing.
  19. Wolland
    0
    28 May 2014 10: 16
    I DO NOT LOVE THE GERMAN CAR INDUSTRY ..... ON THE SUBCONSCIOUSNESS ... TECHNOLOGIES AT THE PRICE OF HUMAN LIFES ....
  20. 0
    28 May 2014 11: 25
    Well, who would have thought! In fact, capitalism never once interferes with fascism and Nazism, and vice versa. These forms of state and social structure are the forms of capitalism, which is surprising here.

"Right Sector" (banned in Russia), "Ukrainian Insurgent Army" (UPA) (banned in Russia), ISIS (banned in Russia), "Jabhat Fatah al-Sham" formerly "Jabhat al-Nusra" (banned in Russia) , Taliban (banned in Russia), Al-Qaeda (banned in Russia), Anti-Corruption Foundation (banned in Russia), Navalny Headquarters (banned in Russia), Facebook (banned in Russia), Instagram (banned in Russia), Meta (banned in Russia), Misanthropic Division (banned in Russia), Azov (banned in Russia), Muslim Brotherhood (banned in Russia), Aum Shinrikyo (banned in Russia), AUE (banned in Russia), UNA-UNSO (banned in Russia), Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People (banned in Russia), Legion “Freedom of Russia” (armed formation, recognized as terrorist in the Russian Federation and banned)

“Non-profit organizations, unregistered public associations or individuals performing the functions of a foreign agent,” as well as media outlets performing the functions of a foreign agent: “Medusa”; "Voice of America"; "Realities"; "Present time"; "Radio Freedom"; Ponomarev; Savitskaya; Markelov; Kamalyagin; Apakhonchich; Makarevich; Dud; Gordon; Zhdanov; Medvedev; Fedorov; "Owl"; "Alliance of Doctors"; "RKK" "Levada Center"; "Memorial"; "Voice"; "Person and law"; "Rain"; "Mediazone"; "Deutsche Welle"; QMS "Caucasian Knot"; "Insider"; "New Newspaper"