Founding of Volkswagen

Volkswagen, meaning the people's car, was founded in May 1937 in Berlin as a state project of Nazi Germany, under the name Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens. The aim was to build a small, cheap car for the German family, designed by Ferdinand Porsche, and a large factory was started at what became Wolfsburg. Civilian production hardly began before the Second World War, and the plant turned to military vehicles using forced laborers. After the war the factory came under British control and began making the Beetle in large numbers, which became a symbol of German economic recovery. The company grew into a global group that includes Audi, Porsche, SEAT and Škoda, and the Beetle was among the best-selling cars ever made.

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