How Mercedes powered Hitler’s motorsport arms race

In the build-up to the 1934 German Grand Prix, the already formidable Nürburgring was transformed. Gone were the days of packing a race track with nothing but enthusiasts; under the control of new chancellor Adolf Hitler, motorsport was the ideal venue in which to display the might of his new, robust Germany under the Third Reich.

Track facilities were draped in swastika flags, while a regiment of brownshirts had marched for weeks from Berlin to be present at the July event. Over 150,000 spectators had descended on the rural track, keen to lay eyes on the new German racing machines that promised to be unstoppable — The Mercedes W25, and the Auto Union P-Wagen. 

Marvels of automotive innovation, these Grand Prix cars were heavily funded by the German government and looked set to dominate the European racing scene in just the same way that Hitler was hoping to dominate the entire continent: Resoundingly, quickly, and packed with pageantry designed to inspire a nationalistic zeal.

This month on “Deadly Passions, Terrible Joys,” we're digging deep into Nazi participation in Grand Prix racing with a two-part series, with each episode focusing on one of the two state-funded automotive programs. We'll be starting off with Mercedes, then dig deeper into the exploits of Auto Union in the next show with an eye to understanding the complex and often uncomfortable role that motorsport played in the revitalization of the German military after the country was devastated by the First World War. 

Over the next two episodes, we'll trace the origins of the automobile in Germany and investigate the impact of the Treaty of Versailles on both industry and national image in order to link Hitler's ascension to power with his emphasis on revitalizing the automotive and motorsport industries. Naturally, we're going to begin with a titan: Mercedes.

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Episode Bibliography: 

• Faster: How a Jewish Driver, an American Heiress, and a Legendary Car Beat Hitler's Best by Neal Bascomb

• A Race with Love and Death: The Story of Britain's First Great Grand Prix Driver, Richard Seaman by Richard Williams

• Grand Prix Driver by Hermann Lang