Axel Springer art stele

From printer's apprentice to newspaper tsar – this unprecedented career is hardly conceivable. Such an unusual career was a success for Axel Springer, whose publishing house, founded in 1946, quickly grew to become Europe's largest newspaper publisher. Initially, he intended to become an operetta singer. But ultimately, he gave in to his father's wishes and became an apprentice in his printing works before training as an editor. The son of a wealthy family, he enjoyed social life – politics held no interest for the young man, and the Nazi regime was repugnant to him. This would pay off after the end of the war: the British granted him newspaper licenses. The publisher had had close ties to Sylt since childhood. "I was a little Flounder when I first visited the island. And since then, the landscape has simply never left my mind. Even a single day here is a medicine for me that lasts a long time," Springer admitted. And this too: "I had always dreamed of gaining a firmer foothold on Sylt." This wish came true in 1953 when he bought the house of publisher Peter Suhrkamp in Kampen for 45.000 marks. Axel Springer enjoyed his holidays there: he had a swimming pool built in the garden, hit golf balls into the mudflats in front of the house, and there were even a few horses: "Axel rode very well and loved it," recalled his then wife Rosemarie. Golf remained Springer's passion. At first he played on the disused Royal Air Force golf course at the air base, later he co-founded the Morsum Golf Club. He was deeply involved there and even granted himself certain special privileges. If the ball was lying unfavorably, he would take a second one out of his pocket. He had a bell and a horn attached to his golf cart – if a ball flew well, he would honk; if it flew badly, the bell would sound. In 1963, Axel Springer purchased the prestigious "Klenderhof" in Kampen for 1,2 million German marks. Here, he received visitors such as then-Chancellor Willy Brandt and his advisor Egon Bahr. In 1972, the newspaper magnate financed a brand-new fire engine for the Kampen fire department. Little did he know how much this gift would soon be of use to him. On August 5, 1973, the "Klenderhof" was ablaze – the arsonists were never caught. The media mogul continued to enjoy flying in by helicopter and landing on the lawn of his "Klenderhof." However, he was allergic to other means of transportation, as Berthold Beitz, general representative of the Krupp Group, recounted: "When the first traffic light was installed in Kampen, my friend Axel said: 'I'm going crazy, it's like Berlin's Ku'damm.'"