List of German companies by employees in 1907

This is a list of German companies by employees in 1907. The largest 127 companies of the German Empire

German Empire

The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

in 1907 accounted for 7.8 percent of all employees in the German Empire; excluding railways and state-owned enterprises the share was only 3.6 percent. This compares to corresponding percentage shares of 8.2 respectively 4.6 for the United Kingdom at the same time. The largest German companies were predominantly in the heavy industries (mining, coal, iron, iron ore, steel and metals), accounting for 38.7 percent of all employees and the transport and communication sector (railways, postal service, shipping), accounting for 45.4 percent of all employees. State-owned enterprises such as the state railways companies

Länderbahnen

The German term Länderbahnen generally refers to the state railways of the German Empire in the period from about 1840 to 1920 when they were merged into the Deutsche Reichsbahn after the First World War....

, the postal administration, the Prussian state mines, military workshops and the Imperial shipyards are dominant among the very largest companies.

Companies by employees

The list is based on Wardley (1999), who compiled data from three different sources: the work of Kocka

Jürgen Kocka

Jürgen Kocka is a German historian.A university professor and former president of the Social Science Research Center Berlin , Kocka is a major figure in the new Social History, especially as represented by the Bielefeld School...

and Siegrist (1979) and Fiedler (1999) on German companies in 1907, and the work of Kunz (1990) on Prussian state-owned enterprises in 1913. Given the shortage of historical employment data some employment numbers are only estimates and some companies might be missing from this list. Employment numbers are including all subsidiaries as long as the parent company is the majority shareholder, that is, holds more than 50 percent of the stock. Employee numbers are not including those employed in foreign subsidiaries. The only two companies in 1907 with large foreign subsidiaries were Siemens

Siemens

Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...

with 19.9 percent of the workforce employed abroad (8,542 employees) and Mannesmann

Mannesmann

Mannesmann AG was a German corporation with headquarters in Düsseldorf. The company was founded in 1890 originally to produce seamless steel tubes. It was traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The company had 130,860 employees worldwide and revenues of €23.27 billion.Over time, Mannesmann...

with 34 percent of the workforce employed abroad (2,680 employees). With the de Wendel'sche Berg-und Hüttenwerke the list also includes the German subsidiary of the French de Wendel

De Wendel family

The de Wendel Family is an industrialist family from Lorraine, France.In the 19th and 20th centuries the family gained might both industrial and political...

group. Originally this establishment was located in France, but became part of the German empire with the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine

Alsace-Lorraine

The Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine was a territory created by the German Empire in 1871 after it annexed most of Alsace and the Moselle region of Lorraine following its victory in the Franco-Prussian War. The Alsatian part lay in the Rhine Valley on the west bank of the Rhine River and east...

in 1871.

Rank	Company	Employees	Industry	Source
1.	Preußische Staatseisenbahnen Prussian state railways The term Prussian state railways encompasses those railway organisations that were owned or managed by the State of Prussia...	486,318	Railway	Fiedler
2.	Deutsche Reichspost	277,116	Postal administration	Fiedler
3.	Preußische Berg-, Hütten-und Salinenverwaltung (Prussian state mines)	180,000 (1913 data)	Mining	Kunz
4.	Friedrich Krupp Krupp The Krupp family , a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, have become famous for their steel production and for their manufacture of ammunition and armaments. The family business, known as Friedrich Krupp AG Hoesch-Krupp, was the largest company in Europe at the beginning of the 20th...	64,354	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
5.	Bayerische Staatseisenbahn Royal Bavarian State Railways As a nation-state, Germany did not come into being until the creation of the German Empire in 1871 from the various German-speaking states such as Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, Baden and Württemberg. By then each of the major states had formed its own state railway and these continued to remain...	55,295	Railway	Fiedler
6.	Sächsische Staatseisenbahn Royal Saxon State Railways The Royal Saxon State Railways were the state-owned railways operating in the Kingdom of Saxony from 1869 to 1918...	40,000	Railway	Fiedler
7.	Siemens Siemens Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG... (Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske Siemens & Halske AG was a German electrical engineering company that later became part of Siemens AG.It was founded on 12 October 1847 as Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske by Ernst Werner von Siemens and Johann Georg Halske... and Siemens-Schuckert Siemens-Schuckert Siemens-Schuckert was a German electrical engineering company headquartered in Berlin, Erlangen and Nuremberg that was incorporated into the Siemens AG in 1966.... )	34,324	Electrical engineering	Fiedler
8.	Elsass-Lothringen Reichseisenbahn Imperial Railways in Alsace-Lorraine The Imperial Railways in Alsace-Lorraine were the first railways owned by the German Empire.They emerged in 1871, after France had ceded the region of Alsace-Lorraine to the German Empire under the terms of the peace treaty following the Franco-Prussian War...	32,545	Railway	Fiedler
9.	Phoenix AG für Bergbau und Hüttenbetrieb Phoenix AG Phoenix AG is an international company headquartered in Hamburg in Germany which specialises in products made of rubber, including sound and vibration insulation, conveyor-belt systems, and specialist industrial hose systems....	32,000	Mining and steel	Fiedler
10.	Gelsenkirchener Bergwerks-AG	31,261	Mining and steel	Fiedler
11.	Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft AEG Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in 1883 by Emil Rathenau....	30,667	Electrical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
12.	Preußische Rüstungswerkstätten (Prussian military workshops)	30,000(1913 data)	Mechanical engineering	Kunz
13.	Kaiserliche Werften	27,000(1913 data)	Shipbuilding	Kunz
14.	Harpener Bergbau	26,317	Mining	Fiedler
15.	Badische Staatseisenbahnen Grand Duchy of Baden State Railway The Grand Duchy of Baden was an independent state in what is now southwestern Germany until the creation of the German Empire in 1871. It had its own state-owned railway company, the Grand Duchy of Baden State Railways , which was founded in 1840...	25,709	Railway	Fiedler
16.	Norddeutscher Lloyd	25,000	Shipping	Fiedler
17.	Vereinigte Königs- und Laurahütte	24,885	Mining and metals	Fiedler
18.	Gutehoffnungshütte	21,657	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
19.	Mansfeld'sche Kupferschiefer-bauende Gewerkschaft	21,283	Mining and metals	Kocka & Siegrist
20.	Württembergische Staatseisenbahnen Royal Württemberg State Railways The Royal Württemberg State Railways were the state railways of the Kingdom of Württemberg between 1843 and 1920...	20,234	Railway	Fiedler
21.	Bergwerksgesellschaft Hibernia	19,109	Mining	Fiedler
22.	Gewerkschaft Deutscher Kaiser	18,931	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
23.	Gebrüder Stumm GmbH	17,000	Steel	Fiedler
24.	Hamburg-Amerika Linie Hamburg America Line The Hamburg Amerikanische Packetfahrt Actien Gesellschaft was a transatlantic shipping enterprise established in Hamburg, Germany during...	17,000	Shipping	Fiedler
25.	von Giesche Erben Bergwerksgesellschaft	13,291	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
26.	de Wendel'sche Berg-und Hüttenwerke De Wendel family The de Wendel Family is an industrialist family from Lorraine, France.In the 19th and 20th centuries the family gained might both industrial and political...	12,500	Mining and steel	Fiedler
27.	Hohenlohe-Werke	12,367	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
28.	Kattowitzer AG für Bergbau und Hüttenbetrieb	12,218	Mining and steel	Fiedler
29.	Bochumer Verein	12,173	Mining and steel	Fiedler
30.	Felten & Guilleaume	11,848	Electrical engineering	Fiedler
31.	Dortmunder Union	11,605	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
32.	Oberschlesische Eisenbahnbedarf	11,500	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
33.	Deutsch-Luxemburgische Bergwerks- und Hütten-AG	11,038	Mining and steel	Fiedler
34.	Ludwig Loewe & Company Ludwig Loewe Ludwig Loewe was a German merchant, manufacturer, philanthropist and a member of the Reichstag. Loewe's companies became involved in the production of armaments, employing famous designers and creating notable guns....	11,000	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
35.	Vereinigte Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg	10,908	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
36.	Große Berliner Straßenbahn	10,391	Public transport	Fiedler
37.	Borsig	10,000	Rail vehicles	Fiedler
38.	Elsässische Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden Elsässische Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden The Elsässischen Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden was a heavy industry firm located at Grafenstaden in the Alsace, near the city of Strasbourg....	10,000	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
39.	Schichau-Werke Schichau-Werke The Schichau-Werke was a German engineering works and shipyard based in Elbing, formerly part of the German Empire, and which is today the town of Elbląg in northern Poland. It also had a subsidiary shipyard in Danzig .-Early years:...	10,000	Shipbuilding	Fiedler
40.	Schlesische AG für Bergbau und Zinkhütten	10,000	Mining and metals	Kocka & Siegrist
41.	Eschweiler Bergwerksverein	9,648	Mining and steel	Fiedler
42.	Oberschlesische Eisenindustrie	9,500	Metals	Kocka & Siegrist
43.	Rheinische Stahlwerke	9,435	Mining and steel	Fiedler
44.	Rheinpreußen Gewerkschaft	9,277	Mining	Fiedler
45.	Hoesch Eisen-und Stahlwerk Hoesch AG The Hoesch AG was an important steel and mining company with locations in the Ruhr area and Siegen.Hoesch was taken over by Krupp in 1991.-Nazi involvement:...	9,183	Mining and steel	Fiedler
46.	Gräflich Henckel von Donnersmarckische Verwaltung	9,122	Metals	Kocka & Siegrist
47.	Badische Anilin-& Soda-Fabrik BASF BASF SE is the largest chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Germany. BASF originally stood for Badische Anilin- und Soda-Fabrik . Today, the four letters are a registered trademark and the company is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Zurich Stock...	8,877	Chemicals	Kocka & Siegrist
48.	Fürstlich Pless'sche Kohlenbergwerke	8,560	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
49.	Donnersmarckhütte	8,000	Mining and steel	Kocka & Siegrist
50.	Henschel Henschel & Son Henschel & Son was a German company, situated in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment, including locomotives, trucks, buses and trolleybuses, and armoured fighting vehicles and weapons....	8,000	Rail vehicles	Kocka & Siegrist
51.	Norddeutsche Wollkämmerei	8,000	Textiles	Kocka & Siegrist
52.	Röchling'sche Eisen-und Stahlwerke	8,000	Steel	Kocka & Siegrist
53.	Villeroy & Boch Villeroy & Boch Villeroy & Boch is a large manufacturer of ceramics with the company headquarters located in Mettlach, Germany.-Company history:The company began in the tiny French village of Audun le Tiche, where François Boch set up a pottery company with his three sons in 1748. Later, the company moved to...	8,000	Ceramics	Fiedler
54.	Farbenfabriken Bayer Bayer Bayer AG is a chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in Barmen , Germany in 1863. It is headquartered in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and well known for its original brand of aspirin.-History:...	7,811	Ceramics	Kocka & Siegrist
55.	Mathias Stinnes	7,700	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
56.	Bismarckhütte	7,505	Steel	Fiedler
57.	Georgs-Marien-Bergwerks- und Hüttenverein	7,296	Mining and steel	Fiedler
58.	Rombacher Hüttenwerke	7,120	Steel	Fiedler
59.	Schalker Gruben- und Hüttenverein	7,091	Steel	Fiedler
60.	Stettiner Maschinenbau Vulkan	6,748	Shipyard	Fiedler
61.	Ewald bei Herten Gewerkschaft	6,500	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
62.	Kaiserliche Werft Kiel Kaiserliche Werft Kiel Kaiserliche Werft Kiel was a German shipbuilding company founded in 1867, first as Königliche Werft Kiel but renamed in 1871 with the proclamation of the German Empire...	6,500	Shipbuilding	Fiedler
63.	Thyssen & Co.	6,489	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
64.	Arenbergische AG für Bergwerk und Hüttenbetrieb	6,292	Steel	Fiedler
65.	Consolidation Bergwerks AG	6,000	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
66.	Hoechster Farbwerke Hoechst AG Hoechst AG was a German chemicals then life-sciences company that became Aventis Deutschland after its merger with France's Rhône-Poulenc S.A. in 1999...	6,000	Chemicals	Kocka & Siegrist
67.	Zollverein Gewerkschaft Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex The Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex is a large former industrial site in the city of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany...	5,958	Mining	Fiedler
68.	Gerresheimer Glashüttenwerk	5,800	Glass	Fiedler
69.	Preußische Bergwerksdirektion Recklinghausen	5,745	Mining	Fiedler
70.	Concordia Bergbau	5,741	Mining	Fiedler
71.	Constantin der Große Verein Gewerkschaft	5,583	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
72.	Leop. Engelhardt & Biermann Cigarettenfabrik	5,523	Tobacco	Fiedler
73.	Ilseder Hütte	5,400	Steel	Fiedler
74.	Deutsch-Österreichische Mannesmannröhren-Werke AG Mannesmann Mannesmann AG was a German corporation with headquarters in Düsseldorf. The company was founded in 1890 originally to produce seamless steel tubes. It was traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The company had 130,860 employees worldwide and revenues of €23.27 billion.Over time, Mannesmann...	5,200	Steel	Fiedler
75.	Continental-Caoutchouc-Companie Continental AG Continental AG, internally often called Conti for short, is a worldwide leading German manufacturer of tires, brake systems, vehicle stability control systems, engine injection systems, tachographs and other parts for the automotive and transport industries. The company is based in Hanover, Germany...	5,185	Rubber	Fiedler
76.	König Ludwig Gewerkschaft	5,157	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
77.	Graf von Ballestremische Güterverwaltung	5,000	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
78.	Gräflich Schaffgotschische Werke GmbH	5,000	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
79.	Mülheimer Bergwerksverein	4,933	Mining	Fiedler
80.	Julius Pintsch Julius Pintsch Carl Friedrich Julius Pintsch was a German tinsmith, manufacturer and inventor who is primarily known for the invention of the eponymously named Pintsch gas....	4,918	Mechanical Engineering	Fiedler
81.	Essener Steinkohlenbergwerke	4,840	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
82.	Eisenhüttenwerke Thale	4,795	Steel	Fiedler
83.	Lothringer Hüttenverein Aumetz-Friede	4,700	Steel	Fiedler
84.	Blohm + Voss Blohm + Voss Blohm + Voss , is a German shipbuilding and engineering works. It is a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems; there were plans to sell 80% of Blohm + Voss to Abu Dhabi Mar Group, but talks collapsed in July 2011.-History:It was founded on April 5, 1877, by Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss as a...	4,630	Shipbuilding	Fiedler
85.	Breslauer AG für Eisenbau-Wagenbau Linke-Hofmann Linke-Hofmann was a German manufacturing company established in Breslau to produce locomotives and rolling stock. Its origins lay in the wheelwright business of Gottfried Linke, begun in 1834...	4,600	Rail vehicles	Fiedler
86.	Gewerkschaft des Steinkohlenbergwerks Neumühl	4,600	Mining	Fiedler
87.	Strassen-Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft Hamburg	4,500	Public Transport	Fiedler
88.	Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik	4,500	Metalware	Fiedler
89.	Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...	4,439	Banking	Fiedler
90.	Buderus'sche Eisenwerke	4,400	Steel	Kocka & Siegrist
91.	Vereinigte Gummiwaaren-Fabrik	4,320	Rubber	Fiedler
92.	Oberschlesische Kokswerke & Chemische Fabrik	4,259	Coal products and chemicals	Kocka & Siegrist
93.	Graf Bismarck Gewerkschaft	4,234	Mining	Fiedler
94.	Riebeck'sche Montanwerke	4,104	Chemicals	Kocka & Siegrist
95.	Friedrich der Große Gewerkschaft	4,076	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
96.	Aktien-Gesellschaft Weser AG Weser Aktien-Gesellschaft Weser was one of the great German shipbuilding companies, located at the Weser River in Bremen. Founded in 1873 it was finally closed in 1983. Altogether, AG Weser built about 1400 ships of different types, including many war ships...	4,059	Shipbuilding	Fiedler
97.	AG für Bergbau-, Blei-und Zinkfabrikation	4,025	Metals	Kocka & Siegrist
98.	Bergmann Elektricitäts-Werke	4,000	Electrical engineering	Fiedler
99.	Chemische Fabrik Griesheim-Elektron	4,000	Chemicals	Kocka & Siegrist
100.	Deutsche Gasglühlicht (Auer-Gesellschaft) Auergesellschaft The industrial firm Auergesellschaft was founded in 1892 with headquarters in Berlin. Up to the end of World War II, Auergesellschaft had research activities in the areas of gas mantles, luminescence, rare earths, radioactivity, and uranium and thorium compounds. In 1934, the corporation was...	4,000	Electrical engineering	Fiedler
101.	Luxemburger Bergwerk und Saarbrückener Eisenhütte	4,000	Steel	Fiedler
102.	Rheinische Metallwaren-und Maschinenfabrik Rheinmetall Rheinmetall AG is a German automotive and defence company with factories in Düsseldorf, Kassel and Unterlüß. The company has a long tradition of making guns and artillery pieces...	4,000	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
103.	Sächsische Maschinenfabrik Sächsische Maschinenfabrik The Sächsische Maschinenfabrik in Chemnitz was one of the most important engineering companies in Saxony in the second half of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th century. Including its various predecessor businesses, the firm existed from 1837 until its liquidation in 1930, and...	4,000	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
104.	Königsborn AG für Bergbau	3,927	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
105.	Lauchhammer AG	3,774	Steel	Fiedler
106.	Saar-und Mosel Bergwerks Gesellschaft	3,758	Mining	Fiedler
107.	Hannoversche Maschinenbau AG Hanomag Hanomag was a German producer of steam locomotives, tractors, trucks and military vehicles. Hanomag first achieved international fame by delivering a large number of steam locomotives to Romania and Bulgaria before World War I....	3,744	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
108.	Dortmunder Steinkohlebergwerk Louise Tiefbau	3,724	Mining	Fiedler
109.	Orenstein & Koppel	3,700	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
110.	Bergwerksgesellschaft Dahlbusch	3,600	Mining	Fiedler
111.	Maschinenfabrik Gritzner	3,595	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
112.	Gasmotorenfabrik Deutz Deutz AG Deutz AG is an engine manufacturer, based in Cologne, Germany.-History:The company was founded by Nikolaus Otto, inventor of the four-stroke internal combustion engine, in 1864 as N. A...	3,470	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
113.	Maschinenbauanstalt Humboldt Maschinenbauanstalt Humboldt The Maschinenbauanstalt Humboldt was a German mechanical engineering firm in Cologne-Kalk and a precursor to the firm of Deutz AG. It was founded in 1871 as Maschinenbau A.G. Humboldt, liquidated due to debts in 1884 and reformed as Maschinenbauanstalt Humboldt A.G..Its predecessor was a company...	3,470	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
114.	Essener Bergwerksverein König Wilhelm	3,277	Mining	Fiedler
115.	Zeche Königin Elisabeth	3,150	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
116.	Berlin Anhaltische Maschinenbau	3,117	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
117.	Deutsche Reichsbank Reichsbank The Reichsbank was the central bank of Germany from 1876 until 1945. It was founded on 1 January 1876 . The Reichsbank was a privately owned central bank of Prussia, under close control by the Reich government. Its first president was Hermann von Dechend...	3,084	Banking	Fiedler
118.	Adlerwerke vormals Heinrich Kleyer Adler (automobile) Adler was a German automobile and motorcycle manufacturer from 1900 until 1957. Adler is German for eagle.-History:The Adler factory produced bicycles, typewriters, and motorcycles in addition to cars...	3,000	Mechanical engineering	Fiedler
119.	Berliner Maschinenbau Schwartzkopff Berliner Maschinenbau Berliner Maschinenbau AG was a German manufacturer of locomotives.The factory was founded by Louis Victor Robert Schwartzkopff on 3 October 1852 as Eisengießerei und Maschinen-Fabrik von L. Schwartzkopff in Berlin ....	3,000	Rail vehicles	Fiedler
120.	Kammgarnspinnerei Stöhr	3,000	Textiles	Kocka & Siegrist
121.	Gewerkschaft Lothringen	3,000	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
122.	Gewerkschaft Mont Cenis	2,978	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
123.	Saar- und Mosel-Bergwerks-Gesellschaft	2,933	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
124.	Gebrüder Körting	2,800	Mechanical engineering	Kocka & Siegrist
125.	Gewerkschaft Vereinigte Helene & Amalie	2,598	Mining	Kocka & Siegrist
126.	Gebrüder Stollwerck Stollwerck Stollwerck GmbH is a German food company known for the production of chocolate. In 1998 it acquired Sarotti.In 2002 it was bought by the Barry Callebaut AG, who sold it in 2011 to the Baronie Groep in Veurne, Belgium.- History :...	2,500	Food	Kocka & Siegrist
127.	Portland-Cement-Fabrik AG Heidelberg HeidelbergCement HeidelbergCement is a German cement and building materials company. It is currently the world's third largest cement producer, the market leader in aggregates and fourth in ready-mix concrete. In 2010 the company produced around 78 million tonnes of cement...	2,500	Cement	Kocka & Siegrist

External links

Big Business webpage by Peter Wardley

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Companies by employees

See also

External links