Press releases

Essen, 13. Dezember 2024 – The reappraisal project initiated by the Krupp Foundation in 2022 on the position of its founder Alfried Krupp to National Socialism continues: The second phase of the project has commenced, and is dedicated to in-depth research based on the results and identified sources of the first section of the project. The multidisciplinary team of eight authors discussed relevant issues as part of an initial workshop, and will focus on various main topics in the coming months to obtain as multifaceted an impression as possible of Alfried Krupp from the 1920s until his death in 1967. The goal is to produce an anthology of contributions based on multiple perspectives, also in English, to be published by the Society for Business History. A digital application is to be developed concurrently with this with the aim of conveying the topic as barrier-free and location-independent as possible, with the particular intention of reaching young target groups.

Essen, September 3, 2024 — The American Academy in Berlin and Krupp Foundation initiated a new fellowship for the in honor of the former chairman of the Krupp Foundation, Berthold Beitz, one of the most distinguished Germans of the twentieth century. The Berthold Beitz Berlin Prize Fellowship will commence in fall 2024 and bring one scholar annually to the Academy’s Hans Arnhold Center for a semester-long residency in Berlin. The fellowship’s focus is on economic and political history. The inaugural Beitz Fellow is Zachary Shore, Professor of History at the Naval Postgraduate School; Senior Fellow at the Institute of European Studies, University of California, Berkeley; and a National Security Visiting Fellow and Stanford University’s Hoover Institution

Essen, 14 July 2023 – The research project initiated by the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation in February 2022 and led by Professor Dr. Eckart Conze has unearthed sources that could shed light on Alfried Krupp’s attitude towards National Socialism. These are to be examined and assessed within the course of further research and will result in a publication. Aspects to be examined in more detail include Alfried Krupp’s memberships in Nazi organisations as well as the so-called ‘Landsberghilfe’, an informal support network for Krupp’s fellow prisoners in the Landsberg Allied war crimes prison, as well as the ‘forced labour’ range of topics. A panel of experts which discussed the results of the research project recommended continuance of the research and a multi-perspective publication project.

Professor Dr. Eckart Conze is Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Philipps University Marburg and an expert on the history and impact of National Socialism. The aim of the project led by him was to research historical sources that would enable the person of Alfried Krupp to be more closely examined and to shed more light on his relationship to National Socialism.

Essen, 24 February 2022. – Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach’s entrepreneurial action under National Socialism have already been discussed in the context of the Krupp trial and in later academic studies. However, a comprehensive study of his relationship to National Socialism has not yet been conducted, which is especially true for the period after his pardon in 1951. What did the National Socialist past actually mean for his work at executive level? Did he ponder his responsibility? Did he take into consideration his actions while establishing the Foundation? An academic biography focusing on these questions has yet to be published.