The Role of Miele in National Socialism

Founded in 1899 and family-owned for four generations, Miele is primarily known worldwide as a manufacturer of household appliances. However, the company was also involved in bicycle and even automobile manufacturing during the first half of the 20th century. Due to the increasingly difficult economic conditions during the time of National Socialism, it was decided in 1937, two years before the outbreak of World War II, to enter the armaments production by manufacturing an artillery fuse. This marked the beginning of a development that led Miele, like countless other companies, into complete dependence on the National Socialist war economy in the following years – including the use of forced laborers, forced workers, and prisoners of war. Initiated and supported by the owning families, this study for the first time traces the role of the entrepreneurs and the company during the years of National Socialism. It also reveals how those in charge attempted to reconcile the economically necessary with the morally right in the context of their time. However, they could not avoid contradictions, such as the dutiful fulfillment of armament requirements on one hand and the ideological distance from the dictatorship on the other. Yet, it was precisely the rejection of the regime that allowed the owners personally, as well as Miele as a company, to have a hopeful future after the war.