Ivan Hirst

Ivan Hirst
Born	(1916-03-04)4 March 1916 Saddleworth, Yorkshire, England
Died	10 March 2000(2000-03-10) (aged 84)
Resting place	Saddleworth, Yorkshire, England
Nationality	British
Citizenship	British
Alma mater	University of Manchester
Occupation	Engineer
Known for	post-WW2 revival of Volkswagen
Spouse	Marjorie Hirst (died (1992-02-21)21 February 1992)

Major Ivan Hirst (4 March 1916 – 10 March 2000), was a British Army officer and engineer who was instrumental in reviving Volkswagen from a single factory in Wolfsburg, Germany, into a major postwar automotive manufacturer.

Education

Born in Saddleworth, Yorkshire, England. Hirst's family had founded the Hirst Brothers Company, a manufacturer of watches, clocks and optical components in Oldham. Hirst studied optical engineering at the University of Manchester, prior to forming his own company repairing optical instruments.

World War II

Hirst was commissioned as an Officer into the Duke of Wellington's Regiment in the 1930s. A Captain on the outbreak of the Second World War, he transferred to the Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) as a Mechanical Engineering Officer in November 1941, and to the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) on its formation in November 1942. In the period after the D-Day landings he was in charge of a tank repair facility in Belgium. He landed in Germany in the summer of 1945, along with his colleague, Colonel Charles Radclyffe, when the British Army took control of the town of Wolfsburg. The original intention was to scrap the factory and use the proceeds as war reparations. But Hirst found a pre-war prototype Volkswagen in a remote workshop on the site and realised that the factory could be used for producing cars for the British Army. Hence, Hirst and Radclyffe laid the foundations for Volkswagen's successful automotive business.

Much of the machinery had survived the bombing, having been stored in various outbuildings. Cars were put together with old-stock and whatever could be found, many using parts from the Kübelwagen until 1946, when the factory produced about 1000 cars a month.

Hirst was fascinated by the potential of a four-wheel drive "Commanderwagon", which he was confident would sell to the French and Canadian foresty industries. He also liked the proven versatility of the Volkswagen chassis demonstrated by Ambi Budd, Karmann and other coachworks.

Hirst ended the war as a Major.

Post War Specials

Two of the most significant 'special' cars developed by Volkswagen while under the control of the British were the 'Radclyffe Roadster', and a four-seater convertible, both custom-built by Rudolph Ringel. The Radclyffe was a two-seater roadster that was the transport of Colonel Charles Radclyffe over the summer months of 1946. The four-seater convertible was Ivan Hirst's personal transport.

Karmann were asked to build a four-seater, and Hebmüller were asked to make a two-seater roadster. The design of the roadster was not unlike the 'Radclyffe Roadster', with similar hood and side windows, the rear engine cover, however, was a hand-formed panel, and not a converted front bonnet as was the Radclyffe version.

REME

The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) to which Hirst belonged, has a relationship with Volkswagen began in 1945 with REME detachment using the factory to repair captured enemy vehicles and later to overhaul Jeep and other British Army engines. Major Ivan Hirst, the Control Commission for Germany’s British Senior Resident Officer arrived at the Volkswagen factory in August of that year.

From 1946 the Volkswagen factory focus was on repairing and reconditioning Volkswagens and became known as No 2 REME Auxiliary Workshop. As the company’s prospects improved, the unit became essentially civilian run but directed by the Army. The REME link ended when, on 6th September 1949, ownership transferred to the German Government. Since then VW have recognised the role Ivan Hirst and REME played in their rise from the ashes of WW2. A close bond exists between Volkswagen and REME to this day.

Memories

Hirst had strong memories of his time at Wolfsburg which he would share with his local Volkswagen enthusiasts. The one strongest memory he would refer to regularly was the smell of the fish glue used to fix the cardboard headlinings in early cars. In later life, he became somewhat more reticent about his involvement, often saying that it was only by chance that he had been involved and that if he hadn't done it someone else would have.

Being a keen amateur photographer, his home was littered with photos taken in the early days at Volkswagen, including one really early photo of a prototype coupe which was very similar to the Hebmüller cars of the early 1950s.

Presentation of the model cars

Maj. Hirst once showed a friend a scale model of a Volkswagen Beetle that he had been presented with by Volkswagen. The 1:10 scale model, now on display in the REME Museum, was one of three made by Koch in Cologne. The second model was given to Colonel Charles Radclyffe and the third model was presented to Heinrich Nordhoff, whom the British occupying authorities appointed Managing Director of Volkswagen in early 1948.

Later life

Ivan Hirst died on 10 March 2000(2000-03-10) (aged 84). Just one month earlier, he had appeared in an edition of the British Top Gear magazine, which revealed the story of how Major Hirst revived the Volkswagen car plant. He was also photographed driving a new front-drive, front-engined Beetle in the magazine. Ivan Hirst had no children.

References

• Richter, Ralf (2003). Ivan Hirst - British Officer and Manager of Volkswagen's Postwar Recovery (PDF). Historical Notes, Volume 4, A series of publications from the Volkswagen AG Corporate History Wolfsburg. Wolfsburg: Volkswagen AG. ISBN 3-935112-13-0. ISSN 1615-1593. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
• http://www.mishalov.com/Hirst.html
• Anders Ditlev Clausager (18 March 2000). "Obituary of Ivan Hirst - Englishman who made Volkswagen part of the German economic miracle". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 16 December 2009.