Alfred Escher vom Glas was the most influential politician and entrepreneur in 19th century Switzerland. Born into an influential family of traders and politicians (his father had restored the family's fortune in the Americas), Escher pioneered in new fields of fast-growing economic activity. He was founder or co-founder of the Swiss Federal Railways (then the privately owned Schweizerische Nordostbahn), the Swiss bank Credit Suisse (formerly called Schweizerische Kreditanstalt-SKA), the Swiss insurance company SwissLife (formerly known as Schweizerische Rentenanstalt), the technical university Eidgenössisch Technische Hochschule (ETH), and the driving force – together with engineer Louis Favre (1826-1879) – behind the planning and construction of the Gotthardbahn, a tremendous technical and human undertaking to cross the Alps between Zurich and Milano, which included the drilling of a 15,003-metre (49,222 ft.) long double-track railway tunnel as of September 1872. When the tunnel finally opened in January 1882, hundreds of workers had died of accidents and diseases, and the venture proved to be a financial disaster that ruined Escher's health and reputation. While Alfred Escher's upbringing had doubtlessly instilled a set of liberal values into him, he was nevertheless widely accused of monopolism and autocratic behaviour – a scheme publically denounced as "System Escher". More recently, the question has been raised again, whether the wealth of Escher's father Heinrich (1776-1853), which Alfred Escher had inherited, was based mainly on slave labour in Cuba.
Alfred Escher vom Glas was the most influential politician and entrepreneur in 19th century Switzerland. Born into an influential family of traders and politicians (his father had restored the family's fortune in the Americas), Escher pioneered in new fields of fast-growing economic activity. He was founder or co-founder of the Swiss Federal Railways (then the privately owned Schweizerische Nordostbahn), the Swiss bank Credit Suisse (formerly called Schweizerische Kreditanstalt-SKA), the Swiss insurance company SwissLife (formerly known as Schweizerische Rentenanstalt), the technical university Eidgenössisch Technische Hochschule (ETH), and the driving force – together with engineer Louis Favre (1826-1879) – behind the planning and construction of the Gotthardbahn, a tremendous technical and human undertaking to cross the Alps between Zurich and Milano, which included the drilling of a 15,003-metre (49,222 ft.) long double-track railway tunnel as of September 1872. When the tunnel finally opened in January 1882, hundreds of workers had died of accidents and diseases, and the venture proved to be a financial disaster that ruined Escher's health and reputation. While Alfred Escher's upbringing had doubtlessly instilled a set of liberal values into him, he was nevertheless widely accused of monopolism and autocratic behaviour – a scheme publically denounced as "System Escher". More recently, the question has been raised again, whether the wealth of Escher's father Heinrich (1776-1853), which Alfred Escher had inherited, was based mainly on slave labour in Cuba.
Gravesite Details
This grave was relocated from Zürich-Enge in 1925.
Family Members
Children
Advertisement
Explore more
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
