Berthold Beitz secured the lives of 800 individuals during World War II by designating them as essential petroleum technicians. While supervising oil operations in Borysław, he utilized his corporate authority to pull laborers from deportation trains bound for the Belzec extermination camp. This intervention defined his wartime activities, occurring well before his decades-long tenure overseeing the expansion of the Krupp industrial conglomerate.
Wartime Interventions
Starting in 1941, Beitz supervised the Carpathian Oil Company in occupied Ukraine. Confronted with the systematic targeting of the local Jewish population, he provided warnings of impending Nazi actions and falsified work permits. He famously extricated 250 men and women from a transport train in August 1942, falsely labeling tailors and scholars as skilled oil workers. Alongside his wife, Else Beitz, he facilitated these rescues while surviving a Gestapo investigation and his subsequent military conscription in 1944.
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Following the war, Beitz transitioned to the insurance sector as the head of Iduna before Alfried Krupp appointed him chairman of the Krupp steel corporation in 1953. Over the next 60 years, he transformed the entity into a publicly traded conglomerate, eventually overseeing the merger that created ThyssenKrupp. His strategies were instrumental in the re-industrialization of the Ruhr Valley, stabilizing Germany’s economic output during the post-war reconstruction period.
Foundational Work and Public Service
After the death of Alfried Krupp in 1967, Beitz served as executor, directing the heirs to establish the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation. This entity maintained a 25% stake in ThyssenKrupp and funded cultural projects, including the Museum Folkwang in Essen. His public service extended to the International Olympic Committee, where he served as a member from 1972 to 1988, including a tenure as vice president and executive board member.
Legacy and Recognition
In 1973, Yad Vashem recognized Beitz as Righteous Among the Nations for his wartime rescues. He received numerous state honors throughout his life, including the Grand Cross 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1987 and the Leo Baeck Award in 1999. Beitz died in July 2013 at his home on the island of Sylt at the age of 99 and was buried in Friedhof Bredeney.
Fast facts
- Born: 1913, Zemmin, Germany
- Died: 2013, Kampen (Sylt), Germany
- Known for: Saving 800 lives during the Holocaust
- Primary Industry: Steel manufacturing
- IOC Service: 1972–1988
- Righteous Among the Nations: 1973
- Religion: Protestantism
Questions readers ask
What was the motivation behind the rescues in Borysław?
Beitz stated his motives were purely humane and moral, reacting to the sight of civilians being executed while he was in a position to intervene.
What is the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation?
It is a charitable organization established by Beitz that holds a 25% interest in ThyssenKrupp and funds cultural institutions like the Museum Folkwang.
Achievements
- Order of Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia — 1986
- Order of Merit of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania — 2012
- State Prize of North Rhine-Westphalia — 2011
- Grand Cross 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany — 1987
- Great Cross with Star and Sash of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany — 1979
- Worked as entrepreneur, resistance fighter and banker
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