Hans Lauda


Hans Lauda was an Austrian industrialist who co-founded the Federation of Austrian Industries and served as president from 1946 to 1960. He was the paternal grandfather of Formula One World Champion Niki Lauda.

Early life

Hans Lauda was born on 25 March 1896 in Vienna. His father Ernst Lauda worked in hydraulic engineering and bridge construction. Lauda studied at the Theresianum, and the University of Vienna, where he earned a doctorate in law. He was known as "Old Lauda". He was interested in Formula One, and drove to the Nürburgring and to Monaco to watch Formula One races.

Career

During the First World War, Lauda served in the Austrian artillery. After the war, he worked for as a commercial secretary, between 1923 and 1925. He then worked for Österreichisch-Amerikanischen Magnesit AG. In 1937, he became the general manager of Veitscher. After the Anschluss, Lauda was removed from his position in the company. After the Second World War, Lauda was reinstated as general manager of Veitscher, and Lauda built a papermaking empire there.
In 1946, Lauda co-founded the Federation of Austrian Industries, and was president of the organisation until 1960. In 1949, he was cited in a New York Times report on the progress of the Marshall Plan. He reported that Austria would employ 20,000 former government officials. He served as chairman of the Association of Industrialists, and in 1951, he proposed a successful bill to freeze wages, to try and counteract inflation in the country. Lauda was also a president of the Austrian Red Cross, from 1956 to 1974.

Relationship with Niki Lauda

Hans Lauda was the paternal grandfather of Formula One World Champion Niki Lauda. Aged 10, Niki accused Hans of "double standards" after he accepted a medal of honour from socialist mayor of Vienna Felix Slavik, someone that Hans was not fond of. Hans was critical of Niki's Formula One ambitions, saying that "A Lauda should be on the economic pages of the newspaper, not the sports pages."
In 1971, Hans and Niki Lauda had an argument, after Hans vetoed funding for Niki to pay for a drive in the 1972 Formula One season with March Engineering. The pair never spoke again. Hans Lauda died in 1974, shortly before Niki's first Formula One victory at the 1974 Spanish Grand Prix.