Ludvig Immanuel Nobel ( ; russian: Лю́двиг Эммануи́лович Нобе́ль, Ljúdvig Emmanuílovich Nobél’; sv, Ludvig Emmanuel Nobel ; 27 July 1831 – 12 April 1888) was a Swedish-Russian
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
, a noted businessman and a
humanitarian
Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...
. One of the most prominent members of the
Nobel family
The Nobel family ( , ) is a prominent Swedes, Swedish and Russians, Russian family closely related to the history both of Sweden and of Russia in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its legacy includes its outstanding contributions to philanthropy and ...
, he was the son of
Immanuel Nobel
Immanuel Nobel the Younger ( , ; 24 March 1801 – 3 September 1872) was a Swedish engineer, architect, inventor and industrialist. He was the inventor of the rotary lathe used in plywood manufacturing. He was a member of the Nobel family and ...
(also an engineering pioneer) and
Andriette Nobel
Karolina Andriette Nobel (born Karolina Andriette Ahlsell; 30 September 1803 – 7 December 1889) was a Swedish woman and the mother of scientist Alfred Nobel. Andriette was the daughter of Carolina Roospigg, and her father worked as a head clerk ...
, and the older brother of
Alfred Nobel
Alfred Bernhard Nobel ( , ; 21 October 1833 – 10 December 1896) was a Swedes, Swedish chemist, engineer, inventor, businessman, and Philanthropy, philanthropist. He is best known for having bequeathed his fortune to establish the Nobel ...
(founder of the
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
). With his brother
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
, he operated
Branobel, an oil company in
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
,
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
which at one point produced 50% of the world's oil. He is credited with creating the Russian oil industry. Ludvig Nobel built the largest fortune of any of the Nobel brothers and was one of the world's richest men. Following the
Bolshevik revolution
The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolsheviks, Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was ...
, the communists confiscated the Nobel family's vast fortune in Russia.
Early history
Nobel was born in
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
. At 28 years old, he was given by his father's creditors the technical management of the family business, Fonderies et Ateliers Mécaniques Nobel Fils, a factory making war supplies such as
mines and
steam engines. The company had been facing financial difficulties since the end of the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
in 1856 due to a severe cut in the military budget ordered by the new
Tsar Alexander II
Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Fin ...
, and eventually, in 1862, Immanuel's firm was sold by his creditors.
With some funds he had managed to save, Ludvig opened a new firm, the Machine-Building Factory Ludvig Nobel. Initially producing chilled cast-iron shells, the factory became in a few years one of the largest producers of
gun carriages of Russia.
Early success in Russia
While running the factory in
St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Ludvig obtained a large contract to manufacture rifles for the Russian government and he needed wood for the rifle stocks. He sent his oldest brother,
Robert Nobel
Robert Hjalmar Nobel ( , ; 4 August 1829 – 7 August 1896) was a Swedish businessman, industrialist and investor. He was the founder of Branobel, and a pioneer in the Russian oil industry.
Biography
Robert Nobel was born in Maria Magdalena p ...
in 1873 to procure Russian walnut wood in the Caucasus region of southern Russia. Without consulting his brother, Robert spent the 25,000 rubbles that Ludvig entrusted to him for buying wood – "walnut money" – and instead bought a small refinery in
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
. Ludvig sent additional funds to Robert to invest in modernisation and refinery efficiency. By 1876, the Nobel brothers established themselves as the most competent refiner in Baku and sent the first shipment of illuminating oil to St. Petersburg.
[ Yergin, Daniel (2009). '' The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power''. Simon & Schuster. . p. 42] By 1879, Ludvig turned the initial business into a shareholding company,
Branobel, of which he was the major shareholder and had as partners his brothers Robert and
Alfred Nobel
Alfred Bernhard Nobel ( , ; 21 October 1833 – 10 December 1896) was a Swedes, Swedish chemist, engineer, inventor, businessman, and Philanthropy, philanthropist. He is best known for having bequeathed his fortune to establish the Nobel ...
.
Inventions
Ludvig Nobel invented oil tankers, and better
refineries,
pipelines. Before 1880 the United States was Russia's teacher in most aspects of the oil business. The roles were reversed in some respects by Nobel. The oil business lacked technical know-how and scientific methodology. To rectify this, Nobel established technical chemical research labs in Baku. These research centers were very active and when something of commercial interest was found, Nobel was fast in trying the new products out on a large scale. Dozens of scientists were employed, finding ways to treat oil, developing new uses for oil, and developing products derived from oil
Nobel first experimented with carrying oil in bulk on single-hulled barges. Turning his attention to self-propelled tankships, a primary concern was to keep the cargo and fumes well away from the engine room to avoid fires. Other challenges included allowing for the cargo to expand and contract due to temperature changes, and providing a method to ventilate the tanks.
The world's first successful
oil tanker
An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crud ...
was Nobel's ''Zoroaster''. He designed this in
Lindholmen-Motala
Lindholmens or Lindholmen varv was a shipyard on the Göta älv in Gothenburg, Sweden. Named after the small leaf linden that grew on the island, Lindholmen was founded in 1848 and closed in 1976. It was at one time the largest employer in Goth ...
in Sweden with Sven Almqvist. The contract to build it was signed January 1878, and it made its first run later that year from
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
to
Astrakhan
Astrakhan ( rus, Астрахань, p=ˈastrəxənʲ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in Southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the ...
. The design was widely studied and copied, with Nobel refusing to patent any part of it. In October 1878, he ordered two more tankers of the same design: the ''Buddha'' and the ''Nordenskjöld''. The first tank steamer of the United States was built after drawings and calculations of Nobel after his 1888 death in
Cannes
Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...
.
Humanitarian efforts
Nobel was a strong humanitarian as well as a businessman, full of ideas and visions. He introduced profit sharing and worked actively to improve working conditions in his factories. His humanity and social approach was unique for the time
In 1885 he started a cooperative bank, sparkasse, for the workers. In Baku, social areas were built for the workers like dining rooms, billiard rooms, libraries and conference rooms where speeches and discussions were held. Near his estate, Villa Petrolea, several houses for the workers were built and a shuttle boat was offered between the city and the harbour. The company donated funds to schools and ran a hospital. Ludvig and Robert created a large park, still existent, in the "Black City" section of Baku near
Villa Petrolea
Villa Petrolea is a historical district located in the Keshla municipality of Baku, Azerbaijan. Built by the Petroleum Production Company Nobel Brothers (also known as Branobel) in 1882, it served to accommodate workers of the company. It curren ...
.
See also
*
Branobel
*
Immanuel Nobel
Immanuel Nobel the Younger ( , ; 24 March 1801 – 3 September 1872) was a Swedish engineer, architect, inventor and industrialist. He was the inventor of the rotary lathe used in plywood manufacturing. He was a member of the Nobel family and ...
*
Marta Nobel-Oleinikoff
Marta Helena Nobel-Oleinikoff (Russian: Марта Людвиговна Нобель-Олейникова), née Marta Helena Nobel (9 October 1881, Saint Petersburg – 1973, Stockholm), was a Russian-Swedish physician and philanthropist and mem ...
*
Nobelite Nobelite was the common designation of the tens of thousands of employees of the companies owned by the Nobel family in Russia during the 19th century and until the Russian Revolution, such as Branobel and the Machine-Building Factory Ludvig Nobe ...
References
Further reading
*
* Schück, Henrik, Ragnar Sohlman, Anders Österling, Carl Gustaf Bernhard, the Nobel Foundation, and Wilhelm Odelberg, eds. Nobel: The Man and His Prizes. 1950. 3rd ed. Coordinating Ed., Wilhelm Odelberg. New York: American Elsevier Publishing Company, Inc., 1972, p. 14. (10). (13). (Originally published in Swedish as Nobelprisen 50 år: forskare, diktare, fredskämpar.)
* Yergin, Daniel (2003): The Prize: the Epic Quest for Oil, Money and Power, Free Press, p. 58.
* Åsbrink, Brita (2001): Ludvig Nobel: "Petroleum har en lysande framtid!" Wahlström & Widstrand, p. 19.
*
Documents of Life and Activity of The Nobel Family. Under the editorship of Professor
Arkady Melua. Series of books. St Petersburg
Humanistica 2009-...
External links
*
The Tsaritsyn Heritage of the Nobel Brothers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nobel, Ludvig
19th-century Swedish engineers
19th-century Swedish inventors
1831 births
1888 deaths
Businesspeople from the Russian Empire
Ludvig
Ludvig is a Scandinavian given name, the equivalent of English ''Lewis'' or ''Louis''. People with the name include:
* Ludvig Almqvist, Swedish politician
* Ludvig Aubert, Norwegian Minister of Justice
* Ludvig Bødtcher, Danish lyric poet
* Lud ...
19th-century Swedish businesspeople
Inventors from the Russian Empire
Burials at Smolensky Lutheran Cemetery