The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel: Genius, Power, and Deception on the Eve of World War I

In 1898, Diesel and his engineers were fighting an uphill battle to get the engine ready in time for the Munich Power and Works Machine Exhibition. Diesel was the star of the Munich Exhibition, where his partners constructed a massive display booth known as the Pavilion Diesel. Various licensed diesel manufacturers presented their engines, but hasty production resulted in many problems, such as burning out and failing to run entirely. Rudolf spent the exhibition fixing issues as they appeared, but the stress resulted in migraines. It was clear that the diesel engine was not ready for commercial production.

The exhausted Diesel trained a select group of engineers as “First-aiders,” sending them off to various regions of the globe to work with manufacturers. On September 17, 1898, Diesel founded the General Society of Diesel Engines in Augsburg—an information hub connecting Diesel’s international business partners.

In 1900, Diesel’s engine was featured at the World’s Fair in Paris. With over 40 million attendees, it was paramount that Diesel’s engine work, and it did, surpassing any expectations. The engine ran on peanut oil, a fuel with minimal exhaust, compared to coal, gas, or crude oil. Petroleum trusts recognized the technology’s threat to their industry as the number of in-use diesel engines tripled within two years.

In 1898, Diesel built his family an elaborate and richly decorated home over the Isar River. Diesel designed the home to include a workshop and a study, where many of his schematics were tacked onto the walls. The Diesels had made it into German high society, holding balls and parties, and hosting visitors from around the world.

However, Diesel still felt an obligation to uplift the lower classes. At his factory, he implemented an honor system, but giving his employees more autonomy proved ineffective. Diesel stepped down as manager, replacing himself with a more traditionally strict and hands-on one.

Diesel’s leftist views were tempered by his acceptance of military buildup as a safeguard against war. In 1903, he published Solidarismus, a nationalism-inflected treatise stressing the importance of individual well-being within strong community bonds. The essay garnered lukewarm reviews.

In 1904, Rudolf Diesel traveled to the US, keeping detailed records of the ship's coordinates, coal consumption, and speed. His writing reflected his artistic sensibility and scientific rationality. He admired American impulse toward utility, but found it unbalanced in areas such as culture and leisure, believing that its focus on saving time and money undervalued the importance of the arts and sciences.

Diesel noted that US manufacturing centers tended to have inadequate urban planning, as well as no provisions for inclement weather. The haphazard infrastructure was indicative of a quick-fix mindset that explained why the US hadn’t adopted the diesel engine—reconfiguring factories to adopt its use required time, expense, and superior materials. However, Diesel believed that there was unique potential in the US economy, with relatively high wages for the working class and the absence of trade unions.

Brunt argues that Diesel's observations highlight the importance of function over form, as well as the challenges of food, health, and the environment in US life.

At the end of the 19th century, Standard Oil had to overhaul its products and its view of the market. Rockefeller refocused his business, moving from lighting to producing fuel for the internal combustion engine and the increasingly popular automobile. To maintain his monopoly, Rockefeller often hired the Pinkerton National Detective Agency to infiltrate and manipulate labor unions—the agency was infamous for going to extreme lengths to break unions, including inciting violence and, allegedly, murder.

Pinkerton also committed corporate espionage on Standard Oil’s behalf. Rockefeller used information gathered by Pinkerton agents to destroy competitors. One such was electricity: The popularity of Thomas Edison’s incandescent light bulb shifted the market, effectively ending the use of gas lamps. Rockefeller then learned about an attempt to create an electric battery for cars developed by Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. Before the battery could become practical, a mysterious fire burned down Edison’s laboratory, causing massive property damage and effectively forcing the project to be abandoned. With one threat dealt with, Rockefeller still had to handle the impact of the Diesel engine on the fuel economy and likely had the Pinkerton Agency investigating Diesel himself.

The Kaiser recognized the potential of the diesel engine for Germany's navy. Navy head Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz supported this vision and utilized risk theory to analyze the possibility of provoking the UK. As a result, he developed the Fleet Laws, a set of five acts passed between 1899 and 1912 to commit Germany to building a navy equal to that of Britain slowly enough not to instigate conflict. In response to rumors of German naval development, Britain increased its military spending to maintain dominance.

Eventually, Wilhelm II’s naval expenditures led to an even more diplomatically complex set of agreements between countries. Britain joined an alliance with Russia and France. Wilhelm maintained a facade of friendly relations with Britain, but signed a treaty with France in 1904 and also renewed the Triple Alliance with Austria and Italy. The UK, meanwhile, developed an agreement with Japan.

Future British Prime Minister Winston Churchill believed that a strong military was essential to maintaining peace, though he had concerns about the social impact of a more militarized Britain. Nevertheless, recognizing the potential military applications of diesel power helped him rise in the UK Parliament.

The Swedish Nobel family embraced diesel technology for its commercial ventures in Russia. By efficiently transporting oil from their fields, they were able to connect with foreign markets quicker than before. The Nobel brothers also developed the first reversible diesel engine, which the Russian Navy embraced, transitioning all their military to Russian-built diesel engines.

Diesel's friend Frederic Dyckhoff developed small boats with diesel engines that easily navigated channels in France and Belgium. However, his work was prohibited in France in 1903, causing suspicion among other diesel licensees.

As submarine technology progressed, navies around the world sought Diesel's expertise. Admiral John Fisher of the British Royal Navy advocated for diesel engines in submarines, believing they would revolutionize naval combat. Germany also prioritized diesel engines for their submarines. Since engineers trained by Diesel himself had an advantage, the Kaiser decreed in 1911 that these experts could only work for Germany.

In early 1907, Diesel's main patent expired, allowing other companies to pursue and manufacture his designs. He could now work separately from Maschinenfabrik Augsburg Nürnberg AG (now renamed MAN after several mergers and acquisitions), forming many closer business relationships outside Germany. He grew close with Sir Charles Parsons, the inventor of the steam turbine engine, which was used on the British Royal Navy’s dreadnoughts. As the relationship between Diesel, MAN, and the General Society for Diesel Engine crumbled, Diesel continued working on new engine versions, finding as many applications as possible. When Diesel announced he was preparing a new patent for the fuel injection process, MAN sued Diesel, claiming he had to share all his technological advances with the General Society of Diesel Engines—the organization he had set up to share knowledge worldwide. However, the courts eventually rejected MAN's claim, and the General Society was officially dissolved.

Diesel developed a lighter-weight version of his engine for cars, meant to disrupt the growing gas and electric car market. Diesel’s smaller engine won the Grand Prix car race at the Brussels International Exposition in 1910.

Despite the dissolution of the General Society, Diesel wanted to avoid the nationalist limitations on shared progress. He collaborated with non-German companies, such as the English firm Vickers, which was struggling to adopt the diesel engine for the Royal Navy’s submarines. Churchill knew that only Rudolf Diesel could provide desperately needed expertise to advance the new fleet.