Fritz Leonhardt's Contribution to the Construction of New Main Station of Munich (1939-1942)

Fritz Leonhardt (1909–1999) is one of the best known constructing engineers of the 20th century. He was not only an outstanding representative of his profession, but his vita is as well interesting as his role in the Weimar Republic, under the Nazi dictatorship, and as an influential figure of the Federal Republic of Germany. In this paper, Leonhardt's role in the national socialist system with its major building projects is investigated and put into its historical context. Fritz Leonhardt's contributions to the replanning of the city of Munich by Hermann Giesler from 1939 to 1943 will be explained in their technical aspects of the light weight structure. From a historical point of view, the personal networks created by Leonhardt during this time are of special interest: his contacts to architects like Paul Bonatz, Gerd Lohmer, and engineers like Otto Graf in Stuttgart were formative for his rapid advancement in post-war Germany.