The Volkswagen Timeline

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1940s

1940

JanJanuary

The demands of producing armaments leads Volkswagenwerk to meet its labour needs primarily by using forced labour. Establishing a new company without a regular German workforce means that Polish women are the first to be forced to work for Volkswagenwerk. Later they are followed by prisoners of war and by concentration camp inmates. Approximately 20,000 forced labourers who are allocated to the Volkswagen plant during WWII come from European countries occupied, or dominated, by Germany.

The Volkswagen Kübelwagen (short for Kübelsitzwagen, meaning "bucket seat car") was a military vehicle designed by Ferdinand Porsche and built by Volkswagen during World War II for use by the German military (both Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS). Based heavily on the Volkswagen Beetle, it was prototyped as the Type 62, but eventually became known internally as the Type 82. With its rolling chassis and mechanics built at Stadt des KdF-Wagens and its body built by US-owned firm Ambi Budd in Berlin [1], the Kübelwagen was for the Germans what the jeep was for the Allies.

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A second assembly line is set up at the Volkswagen plant for the mass production of military vehicles such as the multi-purpose "Kübelwagen" and the "Schwimmwagen", a four-wheel drive vehicle capable of travelling on land and in water. Its strategic military importance reduces the risk of the plant being requisitioned by the German Air Force. Wolfsburg produces the chassis and engines, the body pressings come from the Ambi-Budd company in Berlin and are conveyed to Wolfsburg for final assembly. By the end of the war, the plant that was built to produce 500,000 passenger cars a year will turn out some 66,285 military vehicles. Between 1940 and 1944, turnover increases from 31 million to 297 million Reichsmarks.

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1940

1941

JanJanuary

Incorporating the Volkswagen plant into Germany's armament industry after 1941 leads to the annexation of its subsidiaries in Luckenwalde and Ustron. In 1943/44, the company is able to enlarge its production capacities by transferring commissions to France and also by constructing underground production sites in tunnels, iron ore mines and asphalt tunnels. The factory is repeatedly bombed and in 1944/45 production processes are moved to provisional sites continuing the decentralising of the company.

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1941

1942

JanJanuary

The VW Type 128 and 166 Schwimmwagen (literally Floating / Swimming Car) were amphibious four-wheel drive off-roaders, used extensively by the German Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS during the Second World War. The Type 166 is the most numerous mass-produced amphibious car in history. All Schwimmwagen were four-wheel drive only on first gear (and reverse gears with some models) and had ZF self-locking differentials on both front and rear axles. Just like the Kübelwagen, the Schwimmwagen had portal gear rear hubs that gave better ground clearance, while at the same time reducing drive-line torque stresses with their gear reduction at the wheels. When crossing water a screw propeller could be lowered down from the rear deck engine cover. When in place a simple coupling provided drive straight from an extension of the engine's crankshaft. This meant that screw propulsion was only available going forward. For reversing in the water there was the choice of using the standard equipment paddle or running the land drive in reverse, allowing the wheel-rotation to slowly take the vehicle back. The front wheels doubled up as rudders, so steering was done with the steering wheel both on land and on water.

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1942

1943

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1943

1944

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1944

1945

JanJanuary

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AprApril

American troops occupy the "Stadt des KdF-Wagens" (City of the KDF-Wagen). The troops put an end to the production of military equipment, liberate the forced labourers and set up a maintenance works for the military vehicles in the Volkswagen factory. During the next few months, the United States Army utilises available parts to produce vehicles and the former inspection manager Rudolf Brörmann is designated as works manager.

Rudolf Brörmann was an inspection manager at the Stadt des KdF-Wagen. He was appointed by the US Army in April 1945 as the Works Director.

MayMay

The British 52nd Division move into the "Stadt des KdF-Wagens", taking over responsibility. They appoint a council which votes to officially change the town's name to "Wolfsburg" turning their backs on a vague past and confronting what the few local residents feel will be an even more uncertain future.

Major Ivan Hirst was a British Army officer and engineer and was instrumental in reviving Volkswagen from a single factory in Wolfsburg, Germany, into a major post war automotive manufacturer. Hirst was commissioned as an Officer into the Duke of Wellington's Regiment in the 1930s. A Captain on the outbreak of the Second World War, he transferred to the Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) as a Mechanical Engineering Officer in November 1941, and then to the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) on its formation in November 1942. In the period after the D-Day landings, he was in charge of a tank repair facility in Belgium. He landed in Germany in the summer of 1945, along with his colleague, Colonel Charles Radclyffe, when the British Army took control of the town of Wolfsburg. The original intention was to scrap the factory and use the proceeds as war reparations. But Hirst found a pre-war prototype Volkswagen in a remote workshop on the site and realised that the factory could be used for producing cars for the British Army. Hence, Hirst and Radclyffe laid the foundations for Volkswagen's successful automotive business.

JunJune

Responsibility for the Volkswagen plant is handed over to the British Military Government to administer it in trusteeship until the day it can be returned to German control. A deployment of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers arrive tasked with setting up a repair depot of British army vehicles in the ruins of the factory. In charge of all motor vehicle operations is Colonel Charles Radclyffe. With his deputy, Major John MacGregor, he appoints Major Ivan Hirst to run the repair depot. Hirst isn't long appointed before some of the existing workers manage to assemble two Beetles from the wreckage, using the only remaining working press.

In June 1945, Charles Radclyffe, as part of a unit of Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers, arrived at the Volkswagen plant and assumed responsibility for setting up a British Army Repair depot. With his deputy, Major John MacGregor, he appointed Major Ivan Hirst to run the repair depot. Hirst wasn't long appointed before some of the existing workers managed to assemble two Beetles from the wreckage, using the only remaining working press. Later in October 1949, Colonel Charles Radclyffe signed the protocol turning over the Volkswagen works to the trusteeship of the federal German government. The State of Lower Saxony assumed responsibility for the administration.

JulJuly

AugAugust

The British Military Government instructs Volkswagen to produce 20,000 saloon cars in order to meet their increased transport needs during the occupation period. This marks the beginning of post war production of Volkswagens. British involvement saves Volkswagen from threatened dismantling and protects the workforce from de-Nazification measures. The Volkswagen plant becomes a British controlled factory and Major Ivan Hirst assumes the position of Senior Resident Officer.

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NovNovember

The Works Council elected in a democratic ballot at the beginning of November 1945 meets for the first time.

DecDecember

In accordance with British initiatives, a service department is set up by the end of 1945. This comprises a replacement parts warehouse, a technical department and a service school.

By order of the British Military Government, the facility in Brunswick is re-integrated in the production processes of Volkswagenwerk GmbH. The plant produces special welding machines, tools and equipment as well as carburettors, clutches, shock absorbers and fuel pumps for the production lines in Wolfsburg. The workforce increases from 218 wage earners and 58 salaried employees in December 1945 to 529 factory workers and 68 office workers in December 1949.

The standard production of the Volkswagen type 1 saloon under British administration begins with the assembly of 55 vehicles.

During the turmoil of the immediate post-war period, smoke above the Volkswagen plant signaled the continuity of production and the hopes of a new beginning. As the largest and most important employer in a region with little industry, Volkswagen guaranteed the survival of the local population. The factory provided work, housing and food. These functions were certainly in the minds of the British Military Government when they took over the administration of the firm in trusteeship in June 1945. Their decision to reinstate peacetime production and the assembly line manufacturing of the Volkswagen sedan was primarily a decision made in their own interest. By assuming the responsibilities of an occupying force, their need for additional means of transport increased, especially since the war diminished the number of available British military vehicles. The production requirement for the occupation forces and British pragmatism saved Volkswagen from threatened dismantling and protected the workforce from drastic denazification measures.

1945

1946

JanJanuary

Sales of the Beetle rose from 945 in 1953 to 5,381 in 1956 despite being described by the British Motor Industry Commission on a visit to Wolfsburg as, "bizarre, noisy, too flimsy "a toy not to be taken seriously" a type of car like this will remain popular for two or three years, if that".

FebFebruary

Dealers and mechanics from authorised workshops receive training at the service department.

The British appoint the lawyer Hermann Münch as the Chief Trustee of the Volkswagen plant, he also becomes General Director on 17 June.

The British appointed the lawyer Hermann Münch as the Chief Trustee and Director General of the Volkswagen plant on 26 February 1946. On 17th June 1946 he became General Director.

MarMarch

The workforce celebrates the production of the 1,000th Volkswagen.

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SepSeptember

The British Military Government's directive to dismantle the Volkswagenwerk GmbH is put on hold for the next four years. One month later, the level of industry plan, which limits the number of German automobiles to 40,000 per year, is revised. The survival of the Volkswagenwerk GmbH is guaranteed.

OctOctober

A sales network is quickly organised following the announcement of selling Volkswagens to the general public. Factory management presses for the establishment of a dealer network. This is made up of 10 main distributors and 28 dealerships. It is supported by two field sales representatives and subjected to strict quality controls. The exchange of experience between dealers and management develops in time into a trusted partnership and becomes profitable for both sides. By the time Volkswagenwerk GmbH is returned to German control the company has established a closely knit sales and service network.

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DecDecember

Overdue sheet metal deliveries, an acute coal shortage and a cold spell during the power crisis of 1946/47 forces the British Works Management to shut down the production of Volkswagens until the beginning of March 1947.

1946

1947

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1947

1948

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1948

1949

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1949

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The Volkswagen Timeline

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Forced Labour at Volkswagenwerk

01 Jan 1940

Kübelwagen

01 Jan 1940

Military vehicles from Volkswagen plant

01 Apr 1940

Production site dispersed

01 Jan 1941

Schwimmwagen

01 Jan 1942

American troops liberate forced labourers

11 Apr 1945

Rudolf Brörmann

11 Apr 1945

KdF-Stadt renamed Wolfsburg

25 May 1945

Major Ivan Hirst

25 May 1945

British assume responsibility for Volkswagen

01 Jun 1945

Colonel Charles Radclyffe

01 Jun 1945

Volkswagen plant meets British demand

22 Aug 1945

First Works Council meets

27 Nov 1945

Service department set up

01 Dec 1945

Volkswagenwerk GmbH workforce increases

01 Dec 1945

55 Volkswagen saloons produced

27 Dec 1945

Beetle

27 Dec 1945

The Beetle, "a toy not to be taken seriously"

01 Jan 1946

Service department training

01 Feb 1946

Chief trustee appointed

26 Feb 1946

Caspar Hermann Münch

26 Feb 1946

1,000th Volkswagen built

01 Mar 1946

Volkswagenwerk survival guaranteed

01 Sep 1946

Volkswagen dealerships established

25 Oct 1946

Hiatus at Volkswagenwerk

06 Dec 1946