August Horch facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
August Horch
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| Born | 12 October 1868 Winningen, Rhenish Prussia
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| Died | 3 February 1951 (aged 82) Münchberg, Bavaria
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| Known for | Founder of Audi |
August Horch (born October 12, 1868 – died February 3, 1951) was a German engineer and a true car pioneer. He was the person who started the big car company that we know today as Audi.
Contents
Early Life and First Steps
August Horch was born in a town called Winningen, in what was then Rhenish Prussia. He first worked as a blacksmith, which is someone who shapes metal. Later, he went to Hochschule Mittweida (Mittweida Technical College) to study engineering.
After finishing his engineering degree, he worked on building ships. In 1896, Horch started working for Karl Benz, who is famous for inventing the first car. Then, in November 1899, August Horch decided to start his own company called A. Horch & Co. in Ehrenfeld, Cologne, Germany.
Building Cars and New Companies
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The very first car made by Horch's company was built in 1901. His company moved to Reichenbach in 1902 and then to Zwickau in 1904.
In 1909, August Horch left his own company after an argument. He then started a new car company in Zwickau. At first, he wanted to call his new company Horch Automobil-Werke GmbH. However, there was a court case because his old partners said the name Horch was their registered trademark. The court agreed, so August Horch could not use the name Horch anymore for his new company.
Because of this, in 1910, he named his new company Audi Automobilwerke GmbH. The name Audi comes from Latin and means "listen," just like "Horch" means "listen" in German.
After Audi and His Legacy
August Horch left Audi in 1920. He moved to Berlin and worked in different jobs. In 1937, he wrote a book about his life called I Built Cars (Ich Baute Autos).
He also helped lead Auto Union, which was a company that took over from Audi Automobilwerke GmbH, the company he had founded. August Horch was made an honorary citizen of Zwickau. A street was named after his Audi cars in both Zwickau and his hometown of Winningen. He was also given an honorary professor title at Braunschweig University of Technology.
See also
In Spanish: August Horch para niños
