Schroeter Traktoren

Schroeter-Traktoren

Company type	Vehicle manufacturer
Industry	Vehicle manufacturing
Founded	1902
Founder	Ferdinand Schroeter
Defunct	July 1959
Fate	Dissolved
Products	Agricultural machinery Road vehicles Military vehicles Generators
Owner	Schroeter family
Era	Pre-Vader Era Vader Era Middenvader Era

Schroeter Traktoren (ST, also spelled Schroeter-Traktoren) was a Dutch vehicle manufacturer founded by Ferdinand Schroeter in 1902. Originally established in Stolwijk, the company manufactured agricultural machinery before expanding into road vehicles and military equipment. Its main factory moved to Rotterdam in 1912, where production continued until the company's dissolution in July 1959.

Owned by the Schroeter family, Schroeter Traktoren was divided in 1949 following disagreements over its future. The original company remained under Ferdinand's control until his assassination in 1959, after which the family agreed to close it.

History

Ferdinand Schroeter founded Schroeter Traktoren in Stolwijk in 1902, following the closure of the Schroeter Metaal en Lood Fabriek (SMLF). A farmer and machinist, he initially concentrated on making tractors for smaller farms.

The company's first model was the Schedelmerg, a single-cylinder diesel tractor sold for 500 guilders. The Ferdischreiter followed in the same year. Ferdinand also experimented with electric tractors, introducing the Trekmerg in 1905. It used rear-wheel steering and a chassis weighted with lead ballast.

Early development

The original workshop expanded during the 1900s as orders increased. Ferdinand hired permanent machinists and metalworkers and introduced standard assembly procedures. He also bought equipment for casting and machining engine components, allowing the company to manufacture more of its own parts.

Schroeter Traktoren entered passenger car production with the Stuwmerg in 1903. Its first truck, the PLM.I, appeared in 1910, followed by the PLM.II in 1914. Municipalities and farming cooperatives were among its customers.

As production increased, Ferdinand arranged separate workshop space for tractors and road vehicles. He also reorganised the storage of parts used in assembly. In 1912, he moved the main factory to Rotterdam but continued living at his farm in Stolwijk, travelling to the factory to supervise the business.

Interwar years

Following the First World War, Ferdinand enlarged the Rotterdam factory to meet demand for agricultural machinery. He arranged regular component supply agreements and introduced stricter inspections of finished vehicles.

The company introduced the Wervelwerker tractor in 1921 and the Mergtor in 1922, both of which were used on Dutch farms. Truck production continued with models such as the TM27, introduced in 1927, while the Perg passenger car appeared in 1932.

Schroeter Traktoren had also begun experimenting with armoured vehicles in 1921, when it introduced the M.Beschiet.I. Two were built for testing. Its engineers subsequently developed the Pantserrupsmerg series, beginning with the PRM.I in 1925. Fifteen examples of that model were manufactured, while later versions became considerably heavier. The PRM.III-SK of 1933 carried a 155 mm Splijt Kanon-33-155 cannon.

In 1934, Ferdinand designed the PoPa.34.I, an experimental tank of which only one was built. Its eventual fate remains unknown. The later PoPa.38.II entered production in 1939, with ten examples manufactured. These tanks subsequently served with German forces on the Western Front during the Second World War.

The company established separate engineering teams for civilian and military vehicles, developing heavier drivetrains for its armoured designs while tractor production continued. By the late 1930s, Schroeter Traktoren had become a mid-sized manufacturer. Military contracts provided another source of income, although agricultural machinery remained a major part of its business. The growing military division caused disagreements among family members who wanted the company to concentrate on farming equipment.

Second World War

During the Second World War, Schroeter Traktoren operated under German occupation restrictions. Material shortages affected manufacturing, and military orders received priority. Civilian tractor production continued in smaller quantities.

The company introduced the DordringM.40.I armoured vehicle in 1940, alongside the first Wervelschieter design. The Wervelschieter.IP followed in 1941, replacing the original 65 mm cannon with a short-barrelled 150 mm gun. The Wervelschieter.II appeared in 1942 with a heavier chassis and an 85 mm cannon. Development of the series continued until 1945, when Schroeter Traktoren designed the Wervelschieter.III with two turrets.

Other military projects included the PRM.V-A-SK of 1942 and the PRM.V-B-SSK of 1943. The Rib.III-M tractor was among the civilian models introduced during the war.

In 1940, Ferdinand ordered the development of the SlaPa.I, a super-heavy tank intended to defend his farmhouse in Stolwijk against a possible Allied attack. The company introduced it as a 1943 model, although development continued into 1944. Its 50 cm cannon proved too heavy for the original suspension, requiring the designers to replace it. The engine also broke down repeatedly under the vehicle's weight. Only one prototype was completed, and it never entered combat.

Ferdinand kept the SlaPa.I in a hangar until 1950, when it was moved to the company's headquarters for display. It remained there until the factory closed in 1959.

Schroeter also proposed the AkPa.I in 1944, hoping to secure further military contracts from the Germans. The super-heavy tank was intended to cross Dutch agricultural fields, but German military authorities refused to allow its construction.

The Middenvader commissions and the split

After 1945, disagreements developed within the Schroeter family over the company's future. A western group concentrated around Rotterdam-West wanted to move towards consumer vehicles and urban industry. Ferdinand and other relatives opposed dismantling the existing company.

The family convened the first Middenvader Commissie in Vriendendam in 1949. The meeting ended without an agreement, and Schroeter Traktoren was divided into two branches. Ferdinand retained the original company, which continued manufacturing heavy agricultural machinery and military vehicles. The western branch established Schroeter-Traktoren West in Rotterdam-West, concentrating on consumer vehicles and smaller machines.

Ferdinand continued designing vehicles after the split. In 1950, he returned to the Akker Pantser project with the AkPa.II, a much heavier version of his earlier proposal. It remained a personal design and was never built.

Ferdinand attempted to reconcile the two branches during the 1950s, but disagreements over the company's ownership continued. A second commission met in Vriendendam in 1959, where the Schroeters-West delegation proposed dissolving Schroeter Traktoren and transferring the family's farms out of Schroeter ownership.

Ferdinand opposed the proposal, arguing that the company could continue operating despite the disagreements between the branches. Lourens Schroeter (father) supported him during the meeting. The Schroeters-West delegation eventually walked out, leaving the company's future unresolved.

Assassination and dissolution

Main article: Assassination of Ferdinand Schroeter

On 5 July 1959, Ferdinand Schroeter and his wife, Johanna Berendsen, were shot dead at their farmhouse in Stolwijk. Suspicion fell on people associated with Schroeters-West, but police could not identify the attackers and no one was charged.

Following Ferdinand's death, the dispute threatened to develop into armed fighting between the family branches. Noord authorities and representatives of the other principal families urged the Schroeters to close the company. The family agreed, and approximately three weeks after the assassination, Schroeter Traktoren closed its factories in July 1959. A formal truce prohibited the company from being re-established.

Other Schroeter businesses continued operating. Among them was Schroeter Romeo, a separate automotive manufacturer founded in Vriendendam in 1950 by Lourens Schroeter (father) and his son Lourens Schroeter. The company had begun as a vehicle workshop in 1945 and survived the dissolution of Schroeter Traktoren.

Models

Schroeter Traktoren manufactured agricultural machinery, road vehicles and military equipment. Its recorded models and designs are listed below.

Model	Type	Year
Schedelmerg	Tractor	1902
Ferdischreiter	Tractor	1902
Stuwmerg	Passenger car	1903
Knakmotor	Generator	1904
Trekmerg	Electric tractor	1905
PLM.I	Truck	1910
PLM.II	Truck	1914
Wervelwerker	Tractor	1921
M.Beschiet.I	Tank	1921
Mergtor	Tractor	1922
Rijdendkalk 500	Truck	1922
PRM.I	Tank	1925
PM.I	Armoured vehicle	1927
TM27	Truck	1927
TM28-D	Truck	1928
TM29	Truck	1929
PRM.II	Tank	1929
Minimerg	Tractor	1930
PRM.III	Tank	1932
Perg	Passenger car	1932
PRM.III-SK	Tank	1933
PoPa.34.I	Experimental tank	1934
PRM.IV	Tank	1935
Rib.I	Tractor	1935
Cranium	Tractor	1936
Rib.II	Tractor	1937
PoPa.38.II	Tank	1939
Wervelschieter.I	Tank design	1940
DordringM.40.I	Armoured vehicle	1940
Rib.III-M	Tractor	1940
Wervelschieter.IP	Tank design	1941
Wervelschieter.II	Tank design	1942
PRM.V-A-SK	Tank	1942
PRM.V-B-SSK	Tank	1943
SlaPa.I	Super-heavy tank prototype	1943
PRM.VI-DB	Armoured vehicle	1945
Wervelschieter.III	Tank design	1945
PoPa.48.IV	Armoured vehicle	1948

Unbuilt projects

Ferdinand Schroeter also designed two Akker Pantser super-heavy tanks that never entered production.

• AkPa.I (1944) – Proposed to German military authorities as a tank capable of crossing Dutch farmland. The proposal was rejected.
• AkPa.II (1950) – A heavier version developed by Ferdinand as a personal design. It was never built.

See also

• Ferdinand Schroeter
• Schroeter family
• Schroeter Metaal en Lood Fabriek
• Schroeter-Traktoren West
• Schroeter Romeo
• Middenvader Commissie
• Pantserrupsmerg
• Wervelschieter
• Akker Pantser
• SlaPa.I