Werner Gruner
| Werner Gruner | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 7, 1904 Zschadraß (since 2011 a district of Colditz) |
| Died | June 29, 1995 (aged 91) Dresden |
| Nationality | German |
| Occupation | engineer (before 1945 small arms, later agricultural machinery), university teacher |
| Known for | designing the MG 42 |
Werner Gruner (1904–1995) was a small-arms designer, mechanical engineer, university teacher and from 1958 to 1961 rector of the Dresden University of Technology.
Gruner was born on June 7, 1904 in the village Terpitzsch, then belonging to the municipality Zschadraß, which since January 1, 2011 is part of the town Colditz on the banks of the Zwickauer Mulde near its confluence with the Freiberger Mulde to form the Mulde 3.5 km north of the town.
His father taught in a Volksschule and he attended the Realgymnasium in Döbeln. In 1923 Werner Gruner ended his secondary education in Leipzig with the abitur and was enrolled at the Technical University of Dresden in the same year. He studied mechanical engineering from 1923 to 1928 and after graduating (Dr.-Ing.) worked there as a research assistant for another four years till 1932, when he became a technical designer for the Metall- und Lackwarenfabrik Johannes Großfuß (Metal and lacquer ware factory Johannes Großfuß) in Döbeln.
On May 1, 1933 he joined the NSDAP. In his role as constructor at Großfuß during the 1930s Werner Gruner is credited with the invention of the well-known machine gun MG 42, the development of which was ordered by the Waffenamt after shortcomings of the MG 34 had been recognized. Named like its predecessor after the year of entry into active service, the MG 42 first supplemented and later replaced the MG 34 in the last years of World War II.
In 1943 Gruner was appointed as lecturer in the field of non-cutting shaping of sheet metal at the Braunschweig University of Technology, an appointment to the RWTH Aachen University in late 1944 was hindered by the advance of the Western Allies. In May 1945 he witnessed the arrival of the Red Army in Döbeln.
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