Hermann Josef Abs

Early Life and Education

Hermann Josef Abs was born on October 15, 1901, in Bonn, Germany, into a devout Catholic family. His father, Josef Abs, was a lawyer and board member of a lignite mining company, while his mother, Katharina Lückerath, came from a textile manufacturing family. The Abs family, originally rooted in farming and weaving, had risen to the professional middle class. Hermann, the youngest of three sons, lost both brothers during World War I. Initially drawn to music (he played piano and harpsichord) and mathematics, he was persuaded against academic pursuits by his teachers. Instead, after graduating from the Ernst-Moritz-Arndt Gymnasium in Bonn, he began a banking apprenticeship at the Jewish-owned Louis David private bank in Bonn, where his potential was recognized early. He briefly attended evening courses in law and economics at the University of Bonn and Cologne but prioritized practical experience over formal degrees.

Early Career and International Exposure

Abs’s banking career began in earnest in the 1920s. After his apprenticeship, he worked at private banks in Cologne and Amsterdam, gaining expertise in international finance. In 1925, he spent time in London, developing fluency in English and an admiration for British culture, reinforced by earlier years in England (1919–1921) as a tutor for a Catholic family. Further stints in France, Spain, and the United States broadened his global perspective. By 1929, he joined the prestigious Delbrück, Schickler & Co. in Berlin, becoming a partner in 1935 amidst the financial turmoil of the 1931 crash and the rise of the Nazis. His linguistic skills and international experience positioned him as a rising star in German banking.

Role During the Third Reich

In 1938, Abs joined the managing board of Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest bank, where he oversaw foreign operations until 1945. He also served on the boards of 44 companies, including IG Farben, a chemical conglomerate that used slave labor from Auschwitz. As a key figure in Nazi-era finance, Abs was described by economic journalist Adam LeBor as “the lynchpin of the continent-wide plunder,” facilitating the regime’s economic exploitation, including the “Aryanization” of Jewish assets, such as the 1939 takeover of Mendelssohn Bank, which he claimed was at the owners’ request.

Despite his role, Abs was not technically a member of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) but none the less facilitated its activities. In January 1946, the Allies arrested him as a suspected war criminal, but British intervention secured his release after three months, and German courts dropped all charges. A Zagreb court reportedly sentenced him in absentia to 15 years for war crimes which included the financial transactions of theft of property during the war.

Post-War Career and Economic Reconstruction

After the war, Abs played a central role in West Germany’s “economic miracle.” In 1948, he became deputy supervisory board chairman of the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), which distributed Marshal Plan funds to rebuild German industry. The Marshall Plan funds were used to set up the extensive stay behind units of Operation Gladio and led by Allen Dulles and the Gehlen Organization, later the West Germany's BND (CIA's counterpart).

As head of the German delegation to the London Debt Conference (1951–1953), he negotiated the London Debt Agreement, halving Germany’s foreign debts and restoring its creditworthiness, a cornerstone of economic recovery. In 1952, Abs rejoined Deutsche Bank, initially at its Süddeutsche Bank subsidiary, becoming spokesman of the managing board in 1957 and chairman of the supervisory board from 1967 to 1976, when he was named honorary chairman. His influence extended to 24 supervisory boards, including Daimler-Benz and Lufthansa, prompting the 1965 “Lex Abs” law limiting board memberships to 10, with his positions grandfathered in. As a close adviser to Chancellor Konrad Adenauer (who approved the use of Operation Gladio and SS Nazi General Reinhard Gehlen’s placement as their key intelligence agent), Abs shaped investment policies for heavy industry and served as a “financial diplomat.”

Controversies and Allegations

Abs’s Nazi-era role remained contentious. In 1974, artist Hans Haacke’s Manet-PROJEKT ‘74 exposed Abs’s wartime activities by tracing the ownership of Édouard Manet’s Bunch of Asparagus, purchased for the Wallraf-Richartz Museum, where Abs was a key benefactor. The museum rejected Haacke’s display, reflecting Abs’s lingering influence. In the 1980s, the Simon Wiesenthal Center criticized Pope John Paul II for appointing Abs to advise the Vatican Bank, citing his Nazi ties. Allegations of receiving kickbacks from Lockheed in the 1960s, tied to Lufthansa aircraft sales, surfaced via former salesman Paul White.

Cultural and Philanthropic Contributions

In 1983, he acquired the 12th-century Evangeliar Heinrichs des Löwen for 32.5 million DM at Sotheby’s, donating it to Germany; it was the world’s most expensive book until Bill Gates’s purchase of the Codex Leicester. In 1987, he donated 1 million DM to the Beethoven-Haus in Bonn, funding a chamber music hall. He co-founded the Deutsche Nationalstiftung in 1993 with Helmut Schmidt and others and was a long-time patron of the Melos Quartett. Abs also led the Verein Beethoven-Haus (1960–1994), served as a Max-Planck-Gesellschaft senator, and represented the Vatican at the International Atomic Energy Agency. His practical Catholicism earned him a knighthood in the Order of the Holy Sepulchre in 1955.

Personal Life and Legacy

In 1928, Abs married Inez Schnitzler, from a respected Cologne family. Abs died on February 5, 1994, in Bad Soden am Taunus, aged 92. His legacy is dual-edged: he was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit (1953). Abs was also a member of the Sovereign Knights of Malta, an honor given to most of the leadership of Operation Gladio and NATO's secret armies.