Rise from the post-war Ruins (1946-1956)

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Rise from the post-war Ruins (1946-1956)

In 1946 the publisher Hinrich Springer (66) and his son Axel (34) established the limited company Axel Springer Verlag GmbH with a nominal capital of 200,000 reichsmarks. The same year saw the launch of NORDWESTDEUTSCHE HEFTE and HÖRZU. Following the West German currency reform in 1948, these publications were joined by HAMBURGER ABENDBLATT, BILD and BILD am SONNTAG. Axel Springer went on to purchase DIE WELT, DIE WELT am SONNTAG and DAS NEUE BLATT. He then acquired a stake in Ullstein-Verlag, the publisher of B.Z. and BERLINER MORGENPOST. Meanwhile in Hamburg the company's first office building and printing works rose like a mighty ship's bow above today's Axel-Springer-Platz. The publishing house, its founder and its print titles became symbols of the German economic miracle. Within the space of a single decade a major publishing group had emerged.

1950: Editor-in-chief Eduard Rhein presents Axel Springer with the one millionth copy of HÖRZU.

1946

Launch of the NORDWESTDEUTSCHE HEFTE and the radio and TV magazine HÖRZU.

1948

Launch of the evening newspaper HAMBURGER ABENDBLATT, the first daily created by Axel Springer.   

1950

The foundation stone of the Hamburg offices in the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Strasse is laid.  

The first edition of BILD-Zeitung, dated 24th June 1952.

1952

Launch of the popular daily BILD.

1953

Axel Springer Verlag buys the publishing house DIE WELT, including the daily paper DIE WELT and the Sunday paper WELT am SONNTAG.  

1956

First edition of sunday paper BILD am SONNTAG.

1956: Ten years after the foundation of Axel Springer the company's 13-storey headquarters building rose like a ship's bow between Kaiser-Wilhelm-Strasse and Fuhlentwiete.