With up to 50,000 slave labourers "employed" across Germany during World War II, BMW certainly were a beneficiary of the Nazi regime. As profits for the owners soared from the production of BMW 132 Luftwaffe engines and motorcycle parts, a large proportion of the forced workers died as a result of the brutal conditions and extremely-long shifts. What's more concerning is that BMW was also able to snap up a huge number of Jewish businesses once anti-Semitic laws took hold in Nazi Germany and citizens were stripped of their property. The use of former Jewish property and businesses to build the machinery used to conquer Eastern Europe and kill a greater number of Jews - now that really is a harrowing thought.
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
