Anton Philips (original) (raw)

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Dutch industrialist (1874–1951)

Anton Philips
(photo by Franz Ziegler)
Born Anton Frederik Philips(1874-03-14)14 March 1874Zaltbommel, Gelderland, Netherlands
Died 7 October 1951(1951-10-07) (aged 77)Eindhoven, North Brabant, Netherlands
Known for Founding Royal Philips Electronics N.V.
Spouse Anne Henriëtte Elisabeth Maria de Jongh
Children 3 (including Frits Philips)
Parent(s) Frederik Philips (1830–1900)Maria Heyligers (1836–1921)
Relatives Gerard Philips (1858–1942) (brother)Lion Philips (grandfather)Karl Marx (uncle)

Anton Frederik Philips (14 March 1874[1] – 7 October 1951) was a Dutch businessman. He is one of the co-founders of the Royal[_citation needed_] Philips Electronics[_citation needed_] N.V. in 1912 with his older brother Gerard Philips in Eindhoven, Netherlands. His father and Gerard had founded the Philips Company in 1891 as a family business while Anton served as chief executive officer from 1922 to 1939.

Early life and education

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Born to a Dutch family, Anton was the second son to Maria Heyligers (1836 – 1921) and Benjamin Frederik David Philips (1 December 1830 – 12 June 1900). His father was active in the tobacco business and a banker at Zaltbommel in the Netherlands (he was also a first cousin to Karl Marx). Anton had an elder brother, Gerard Philips.

In May 1891 the father Frederik was the financier and, with his son Gerard Philips, co-founder of the Philips Company as a family business. In 1912 Anton joined the firm, which they renamed Philips Gloeilampenfabriek N.V. ("Philips Lightbulb Factory")

During World War I, Anton Philips managed to increase sales by taking advantage of a boycott of German goods in several countries. He provided the markets with alternative products.

Anton (and his brother Gerard) are remembered as being civic-minded. In Eindhoven they supported education and social programmes and facilities, such as the football department of the Philips Sports Association, which is the best known. From it the professional football department developed into the independent Philips Sport Vereniging N.V. (PSV Eindhoven).

Anton Philips brought his son Frits Philips and son-in-law Frans Otten into the company in their times. Anton, Otten and other family members escaped the Netherlands just before the Nazi Occupation during World War II. They went to the United States and returned after the war.

Frits Philips chose to stay and manage the company during the occupation. He was imprisoned for several months at the concentration camp of Vught after his workers went on strike, and he survived. He saved the lives of 382 Jews by claiming them as indispensable to his factory, and enabled them to evade Nazi roundups and deportation to concentration camps. He was honoured with the title Righteous Among the Nations by the State of Israel in 1996.[2]

Anton Philips died in Eindhoven in 1951. He was awarded Order of Saint Sava and other decorations.[3]

There is a museum dedicated to his life in Eindhoven. It recreates the initial factory and the company's journey.

Marriage and family

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Philips married Anne Henriëtte Elisabeth Maria de Jongh (Amersfoort, 30 May 1878 – Eindhoven, 7 March 1970). They had the following children:

  1. ^ Bouman, Pieter Jan (1958). Anton Philips of Eindhoven. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. p. 18.
  2. ^ "World Holocaust Remembrance Center". Yad Vashem. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  3. ^ Acović, Dragomir (2012). Slava i čast: Odlikovanja među Srbima, Srbi među odlikovanjima. Belgrade: Službeni Glasnik. p. 645.