![Wilhelm_Jakobs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Wilhelm_Jakobs.jpg)
Wilhelm Jakobs was a German railway engineer and construction advisor.
Life
Early years and education
Wilhelm Jakobs was born on 10 February 1858 in Diezenkausen as the eldest child of Wilhelm Jakobs (1832–1913) and Luise, born as Luise Simon. The father, a respected farmer and blacksmith, took public office, possessed poetic inclinations, and was known to the foresters as a "poet behind the plow."
The young Wilhelm attended the elementary school in Waldbröl, and followed the higher citizen school. Since 1874 he visited the real department of the Friedrich-Wilhelm Gymnasium in
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
, until graduation on 17 July 1877. On October 9, 1877, he enrolled on mechanical engineering at the Berlin
Gewerbeakademie (the later Technical University). On 22 November 1882 there he passed the first state examination for mechanical engineering.
After various practical activities in railway workshops and military service as a one-year volunteer at the railroad regiment, he then worked on locomotive construction in
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
. In the years 1886 to 1888, he passed the locomotive examination and from 16th July 1888 was a Railroad official at the railway directorate in Cologne.
On 28. August 1895 he married Else Luyken and founded his first household in St. Johann. With Else, he had a total of 5 sons, who were born in the years 1896 to 1905. In 1896 Wilhelm was called back to Cologne, but in 1900 he retired from civil service after he became the head of the
Rastatt
Rastatt () is a town with a Baroque core, District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the Murg river, above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 50,000 (2011). Rastatt was an ...
wagon factory. On 10. April 1901, the Imperial Patent Office granted him the patent for a "passenger car consisting of several articulated sections, two of which each rest on a common bogie with the ends facing each other". The latter, named after him the
Jakobs bogie
Jacobs bogies (named after Wilhelm Jakobs,, 1858–1942, a German mechanical railway engineer) are a type of rail vehicle bogie commonly found on articulated railcars and tramway vehicles.
Instead of being underneath a piece of rolling stock, ...
is used today by many railcars and multiple units all over the world. In this construction, two adjacent car body ends of railway vehicles are based on a common
bogie
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...
from which effort and weight can be saved.
In the spring of 1914, the Association of German wagon factories was founded in Berlin. Jakobs became one of the two managing directors and moved with his family to
Berlin-Dahlem
Dahlem ( or ) is a locality of the Steglitz-Zehlendorf borough in southwestern Berlin. Until Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it was a part of the former borough of Zehlendorf. It is located between the mansion settlements of Grunewald and L ...
.
First World War
Wilhelm Jakobs advanced at the beginning of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
on the second day of mobilization as
Captain of the reserve and Company Leader of the Reserve Railroad Company 9, and in the middle of August with his company
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
where the train station
Libramont
Libramont-Chevigny (; wa, Libråmont) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium.
On 1 February 2015, the municipality, which covers 177.86 km², had 10,955 inhabitants, giving a population density of 61,5 ...
was restored.
From September to November 1914, the war railway bridges over the
Mesh
A mesh is a barrier made of connected strands of metal, fiber, or other flexible or ductile materials. A mesh is similar to a web or a net in that it has many attached or woven strands.
Types
* A plastic mesh may be extruded, oriented, ex ...
at
Charleville Mezieres, about the
Scheldt
The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of Netherlands, the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corr ...
at
Ename
Ename is a Belgian village in the Flemish province of East Flanders. It stands on the right side of the river Scheldt and it is part of the municipality of Oudenaarde.
The territory was inhabited during Prehistoric and Roman times, and became a t ...
and at
Audenarde
Oudenaarde (; french: Audenarde ; in English sometimes ''Oudenarde'') is a Belgian municipality in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Oudenaarde proper and the towns of Bevere, Edelare, Eine, Ename, H ...
built, the railway Sodeghem
Kortrijk
Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Regio ...
restored with stations and made operational. Then the train was from
Roeselare
Roeselare (; french: Roulers, ; West Flemish: ''Roeseloare'') is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Roeselare proper and the towns of Beveren, Oekene and Rumbeke.
The ...
after
Moorslede
Moorslede () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Dadizele, Slypskapelle and Moorslede proper. On 1 January 2006, Moorslede had a total population of 10,618. The total area is ...
and
Ypern put into operation. At the turn of the year 1914/15 were the railways
Torhout
Torhout (; french: Thourout; vls, Toeroet) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Torhout proper, the villages of Wijnendale and Sint-Henricus, and the hamlet of De Dri ...
–
Ostend
Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...
and Thourout Ypres taken over and expanded. At Ostend the heavy guns were brought to the dunes and the lighthouse was set up for blasting. In April 1915, Wilhelm Jakobs led the railway business to
Attack on Ypres and during the subsequent battles. In July 1915 he became the 5th. Army (Crown Prince Army) transferred and appointed chief of the Baudirektion of this army; on 30 November 1915 he was promoted to
major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
in reserve.
In the winter of 1915/16, with the subordinate tram companies and temporarily assigned troop departments, the supply and attack routes to attack Verdun in the area of the 5th Army prepared and maintained during the time of the attack and the fighting before Verdun. Also was started by repairing the locks, the Maas canal after
Verdun
Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department.
Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...
to become operational again in the autumn of 1916, Wilhelm Jakobs, the
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...
II and I. Class and that
Ritterkreuz I was recalled from the field to re-enter the leadership of the Association of German Wagon Factories, as the need for new railway wagons became necessary for the war. At the same time Wilhelm was also active in the vehicle committee until its dissolution.
The further development of the war filled him with bitterness increasing bitterness and anxiety and, all those who gave the
All-German Association and its far-reaching war aims. So he supported the appearance of the so-called 1917/18
Fatherland Party. On 28. October 1918, a few days before the end of the monarchy, he was awarded by becoming the "Royal Building Council". As "Jakob's Building Council" he remained in the memory of the Waldbröler until after death.
The lost war, the revolution and
the Versailles Treaty hit him hardly. Still in December 1918 he participated in the founding of the
German National People's Party
The German National People's Party (german: Deutschnationale Volkspartei, DNVP) was a national-conservative party in Germany during the Weimar Republic. Before the rise of the Nazi Party, it was the major conservative and nationalist party in Wei ...
he also ran for office at parliamentary elections without gaining a seat. In March 1921, the Association of German wagon factories was dissolved and the association of German wagon factories was founded and also dissolved in October 1923 and lay of Wilhelm Jakobs. He already was in the age of 65, but forced retirement made him hard to deal with for a long time. The 1920s production based on his invention ''
Jakob joint car'' was a certain satisfaction on which he occasionally participated.
Death
In October 1926, Wilhelm Jakobs sold his house in Berlin-Dahlen and moved with his wife to Bergstrabe in
Bensheim
Bensheim () is a town in the Bergstraße district in southern Hessen, Germany. Bensheim lies on the Bergstraße and at the edge of the Odenwald mountains while at the same time having an open view over the Rhine plain. With about 40,000 inhabita ...
, but already in 1931 he moved to his home village Diezenkausen. In 1939, at the age of 80, Wilhelm Jakobs also gave up the house in Diezenkausen and moved with his wife to a pension in
Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...
where he succumbed to a stroke on 3 February 1942.
Further reading
* (German) Karl Sachs: ''Elektrische Triebfahrzeuge.'' Huber, Frauenfeld 1953.
References
[Gelenkwagen für Eisenbahnzüge, Patentnummer]
AT 11 726 B
/ref>
External links
*(German) Biography Wilhelm Jacobs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jakobs, Wilhelm
German railway mechanical engineers
Train drivers
1858 births
1942 deaths