Mercedes 130 H Cabriolet - 1934
W23
A Mercedes-Benz with the engine at the back, Henri Malartre had said on the phone. Quite rare, he added. Malartre wasn’t interested in the Mercedes. As a result of his experiences during the Second World War, he disliked German cars. But Ghislain Mahy didn’t – and so he set off on another of his journeys to Lyon.
The Mercedes was a 130 H from 1934, one of the three models that Benz built with the engine over the back axle. A ‘heckmotor’ as the Germans called it; hence the ‘H’ in the type name. With some ‘encouragement’ from Adolf Hitler, this was the company’s attempt to design an affordable car for common people. The 130 H was thought to be designed by Hans Nibel, who succeeded Ferdinand Porsche as chief engineer at Mercedes-Benz, although some people believe that Porsche had a hand in at least some of the design. The Mercedes-Benz 130 H that headed towards Ghent on the back of Mahy’s lorry was a first year model, one of just 2500 that were ever made. This was a very low number for what was supposed to be a ‘car for the people’.
It didn’t take long for Mahy to discover the origin of the vehicle, thanks to the extensive Mercedes museum at the company’s home base in Stuttgart. The 130 H was bought new by a Dr. Friedrich Husemann. In 1930, he opened a sanatorium for psychiatric patients in Wiesneck near Freiburg. A safe place – or so it was thought until the evil ideology of the Nazis decided differently. Hitler and his cronies regarded the mentally ill as ‘unfit to live’. As a result, after the Nazis came to power in 1933, sanatoria were forced to engage in an active programme of euthanasia for their patients. With great courage and at risk to his own life, Dr. Husemann was able to prevent all his patients from being murdered in this way. It was a remarkable achievement. After the war, a traumatised Husemann moved into spiritual healing. He died in 1959. His clinic in Wiesneck still exists. So too does his Mercedes-Benz.
Mahy - a Family of Cars
09/09/2021 - 31/10/2021
Vynckier Site
Nieuwevaart 51-53
Gent
Belgium
Mercedes 130 H Cabriolet - 1934
W23
A Mercedes-Benz with the engine at the back, Henri Malartre had said on the phone. Quite rare, he added. Malartre wasn’t interested in the Mercedes. As a result of his experiences during the Second World War, he disliked German cars. But Ghislain Mahy didn’t – and so he set off on another of his journeys to Lyon.
The Mercedes was a 130 H from 1934, one of the three models that Benz built with the engine over the back axle. A ‘heckmotor’ as the Germans called it; hence the ‘H’ in the type name. With some ‘encouragement’ from Adolf Hitler, this was the company’s attempt to design an affordable car for common people. The 130 H was thought to be designed by Hans Nibel, who succeeded Ferdinand Porsche as chief engineer at Mercedes-Benz, although some people believe that Porsche had a hand in at least some of the design. The Mercedes-Benz 130 H that headed towards Ghent on the back of Mahy’s lorry was a first year model, one of just 2500 that were ever made. This was a very low number for what was supposed to be a ‘car for the people’.
It didn’t take long for Mahy to discover the origin of the vehicle, thanks to the extensive Mercedes museum at the company’s home base in Stuttgart. The 130 H was bought new by a Dr. Friedrich Husemann. In 1930, he opened a sanatorium for psychiatric patients in Wiesneck near Freiburg. A safe place – or so it was thought until the evil ideology of the Nazis decided differently. Hitler and his cronies regarded the mentally ill as ‘unfit to live’. As a result, after the Nazis came to power in 1933, sanatoria were forced to engage in an active programme of euthanasia for their patients. With great courage and at risk to his own life, Dr. Husemann was able to prevent all his patients from being murdered in this way. It was a remarkable achievement. After the war, a traumatised Husemann moved into spiritual healing. He died in 1959. His clinic in Wiesneck still exists. So too does his Mercedes-Benz.
Mahy - a Family of Cars
09/09/2021 - 31/10/2021
Vynckier Site
Nieuwevaart 51-53
Gent
Belgium