Hapag-Lloyd AG · Ballindamm 25 · 20095 Hamburg ·
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Hapag-Lloyd Corporate Communications 05/2019 © Hapag-Lloyd AG · Ballindamm 25 · 20095 Hamburg · www.hapag-lloyd.com 1 2 Ballin House, Ballindamm 2 3 Hapag-Lloyd arose on 1 September 1970 from Hapag was founded by local merchants in Anchoring in the merger of two shipping companies, the Hamburg in 1847. At first, it primarily transport- Hamburg-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Actien- ed European emigrants to the United States, a Gesellschaft (Hamburg-American Line, or Hapag) booming business at the time. At the end the world´s and Norddeutscher Lloyd (North German Lloyd, of the 1880s, Hapag had its first express or NDL). But the roots of the company – which steamers built, placing it at the forefront of the remains one of the largest liner shipping com- North Atlantic trade – where Hapag-Lloyd still panies in the world – go back much further. numbers among the leaders, though transpor- ports – at home ting containers rather than people. Shortly before the turn of the century, Hapag rose to the top as the shipping company with the world’s on Ballindamm largest tonnage under Albert Ballin (1857-1918), its subsequent Director-General. 1857 ca. 1897 NDL FOUNDED IN BREMEN HAPAG IS WORLD’S LARGEST SHIPPING COMPANY 1847 HAPAG WAS FOUNDED IN HAMBURG Dome in the canteen, ground floor Ballindamm 4 5 REVIVED TWICE Their fleets were lost once more to the victorious powers or had already sunk to the bottom of the However, when the First World War ended, what oceans in the war, which lasted until 1945. remained of the fleet was lost under the Treaty Beginning in 1950, when Hapag and NDL got of Versailles. In the Weimar Republic, Hapag, back into the liner shipping business, they were like NDL, managed to push its way back up to already doing so with jointly operated services the top of international shipping. In 1929, just for the most part. Towards the end of the 1960s, ten years after the Hamburg shipping company when the rapid growth in container traffic made had forfeited its ships, it once again employed it necessary to invest heavily in containers and a staff of 18,000 on land and at sea. But the new vessels, the two shipping companies com- short post-war respite known as the “Golden bined their strengths by merging in 1970. The 20s” were quickly over, only to be followed by a headquarters of the new company, recession and yet another war. Hapag-Lloyd AG, was the building on the Inner Alster Lake. 1970 HAPAG AND NDL MERGE INTO HAPAG-LLOYD AG 1918 1945 2005 FLEET LOST FLEET LOST AGAIN ACQUISITION OF CP SHIPS AFTER FIRST WORLD WAR AFTER SECOND WORLD WAR Column in the canteen, ground floor Ballindamm 6 7 ASCENT THROUGH ACQUISITIONS Despite all the major turning points in the com- In 2005, Hapag-Lloyd acquired the British- pany’s history, one thing has not changed since Canadian shipping company CP Ships, thereby the early days of Hapag and North German climbing into the ranks of the top 5 liner ship- Lloyd: The company is clearly structured, com- ping companies in the world. It subsequently mercially successful, forward-looking and global- strengthened this position by integrating the ly oriented – and has been so for more than 170 container-shipping business of the Chilean years. Yet another of the company’s core values shipping company CSAV in 2014 as well as the is societal engagement. Thus, to mark the 100th Dubai-based United Arab Shipping Company anniversary of the death of Albert Ballin in 2018, (UASC) in 2017. The ranks of Hapag-Lloyd’s Hapag-Lloyd conferred Albert Ballin Awards for anchor shareholders, which had previously been global action and globalisation research for the the City of Hamburg and Kühne Maritime, now first time. “The World Is My Oyster” – the old incorporate international major stakeholders in Hanseatic motto that welcomes employees and the form of CSAV and the Gulf states of Qatar guests in the foyer of the Ballin House – and Saudi Arabia. Since the end of 2015, continues to hold true. Hapag-Lloyd has once again been a publicly listed company. 2015 2018 STOCK-MARKET LISTING FIRST PRESENTATION OF THE ALBERT BALLIN AWARDS 2014 2017 INTEGRATION OF CSAV ACQUISITION OF UASC CONTAINER BUSINESS DIVISION Stucco and marble arch in the Ballin Hall, ground floor Ballindamm 8 9 The success story of Germany’s largest liner Haller also constructed Hapag’s offices in the The Ballin House – shipping company began in 1847 with the Renaissance style popular at the time. In 1903, founding of the Hamburg-Amerikanische Pa- the three-storey building on Alsterdamm was cketfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft – abbreviated as ready for occupancy. It was topped by a the history “HAPAG” back then but usually as “Hapag” seven-meter-high statue of Neptune with a today. At first, the company primarily trans- trident and steeds galloping over the waves, the ported emigrants to the United States. Its first work of a 33-year-old, as-yet-unknown artist headquarters, at 7 Deichstrasse, were replaced from Holstein named Ernst Barlach. The figures of a landmark in 1890 by a magnificent Renaissance building can unfortunately no longer be seen, as they at 19-20 Dovenfleet. At this stage, the com- were melted down during the First World War. pany’s headquarters started rapidly expand- ing. In 1897, when Hapag celebrated its 50th anniversary, 137 employees worked there. As the building on Dovenfleet grew too cramped, the company’s leadership decided in 1899 to purchase a row of properties directly adjacent to the Inner Alster Lake. Known then as Alster- damm (and today as Ballindamm), the area had been built up in 1842 from the rubble left over by the Great Fire of Hamburg. Martin Haller, who had previously designed the tower-crowned building on Dovenfleet, was commissioned to construct the new administra- tive building. He was Hamburg’s most famous architect at the time, and some of his typical villas can still be seen around the Alster Lake today. His best-known work is the Hamburg Town Hall. 1900 CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON FIRST HAPAG BUILDING ON ALSTERDAMM (ARCHITECT: MARTIN HALLER) 1903 CONSTRUCTION COMPLETED Lettering at Ballin House, Ballindamm 10 11 A MAP OF THE WORLD FROM 1903 The new office building was a huge, magnificent THE HAPAG HEADQUARTERS For the Hapag building, however, Höger had STILL ON DISPLAY structure that perfectly fit with the prevailing NEEDS TO EXPAND to work without his favourite material, as the tastes of the time. It was ornately decorated, pre-existing building made it necessary to use Hapag’s new headquarters building was de- particularly on the main façade facing the Alster The widespread, sharp criticism did not go light-coloured sandstone. A decision had been signed to be extremely spacious inside, and it Lake. Four powerful, elaborate sandstone cary- unheeded. When the headquarters once again made to organically incorporate the older simultaneously served as a check-in space for atids – the works of the sculptors Börner and became too small, the contract for the expan- structure, double its size and combine the two the passenger services. First-class passengers Cauer – flanked the entrance. sion went this time to Fritz Höger, a modern parts into a single entity. booked their passages in the domed hall that architect influenced by expressionism. Together now houses the company canteen. Hanging The statues were meant to symbolise the four with Fritz Schumacher, this Holstein native Höger wanted to do justice to Hamburg’s great over the entrance is a large map of the world continents with which the shipping company (1877-1949) was regarded as the “father” of a Hanseatic tradition – but just not with excessive showing the shipping lines Hapag operated at had ties, but there was only limited enthu- new type of Hamburg architecture. Instead of pomp, voguish adornments and too much the time. siasm for them in Hamburg. For example, Alfred plaster, which was fashionable at the time, they harkening back to bygone eras. On the side Lichtwark, the influential director of the city’s art used a traditional material from the region: facing the Alster, Höger added another storey Contemporary newspapers in Hamburg made museum, is said to have come up with the im- red brick. In fact, Höger is regarded as one of onto the existing building and then united both extensive comments about the company’s aginary conversation between a Hamburg native the most important exponents of Brick Expres- parts of the building by covering its entire length relocation from the Kontorhaus office district to and a visitor about the colossal figures, which sionism. Perhaps his best-known clinker brick with a single, unified façade and roof. Although the Inner Alster Lake. Apparently, readers were quickly spread through the stock exchange and building is the Chilehaus in Hamburg, which the old building could no longer be seen from particularly interested in knowing where “Director beyond: was built in the 1920s and whose shape is outside, its interior spaces were preserved. Ballin’s” office would now be. The HAMBURGI- “Tell me, what are these four figures supposed reminiscent of a large ship’s prow. SCHER CORRESPONDENT revealed the de- to represent?” tails: “First floor, on the right, with an antecham- “The five senses.” ber, of course!” “Five? But there are only four!” “Exactly. Taste is missing …” 1921 COMPLETION OF THE EXPANDED HAPAG HOUSE 1913 CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON EXPANSION OF HAPAG BUILDING (ARCHITECT: FRITZ HÖGER) Banister, staircase Ballindamm 12 13 A TECHNICAL MASTERPIECE Construction began in 1913, and the building was occupied in 1921. But by then the world What sounds so easy was actually a tech- was a different place, and the zeitgeist had nical and artistic masterpiece – but one that still radically changed.