The step-grandchildren of Nazi propaganda chief Joseph Goebbels are billionaires, although their wealth comes mostly from their biological relatives, Bloomberg's David de Jong reports.
Here's how the relationship works:
- In 1931, Goebbels married Magda Quandt, who'd previously been married to industrialist Guenther Quandt (as well as another man before).
- Harald Quandt (actually the son of Magda's first husband) wound up living with Goebbels after the marriage.
- When Guenther — himself implicated as a Nazi follower though not involved in the regime’s crimes — died, Harald and his half-brother Herbert Quandt inherited his fortune.
That included ownership of two large manufacturing firms as well as stakes in Daimler-Benz and potash miner Wintershall AG.
Today, Herbert's widow Johanna Quandt, 86, and their children Susanne Klatten and Stefan Quandt remain BMW’s dominant shareholders, de Jong says. Meanwhile, he writes, "the billionaire daughters of Harald Quandt -- Katarina Geller-Herr, 61, Gabriele Quandt, 60, Anette-Angelika May-Thies, 58, and 50-year-old Colleen-Bettina Rosenblat-Mo -- have kept a lower profile."
Goebbels poisoned himself and his biological children as the war was ending.
Click here to read the full story from de Jong >
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