Oppenheimer and Son by Anthony Hocking

Description

Oppenheimer and Son is the story of Sir Ernest and Harry Oppenheimer, South Africa’s gold and diamond magnates. For more than half a century their influence has been felt in every corner of the world, and at every level of society, since their enterprises are at the roots of the world’s economy. In their own country they have reigned as uncrowned kings, and together they have helped shape the destiny of many African countries. Yet strangely, this is the first time their story has been told.

It is a fascinating tale of driving ambition and high ideals and yet of essential humanity and deep-rooted patriotism. Ernest Oppenheimer arrived in South Africa in 1902, sent out by a London diamond merchant to manage his office near the mines of Kimberley. From that humble beginning he made his way to the head of the famed De Beers Consolidated Mines and the world diamond industry, and at the same time to the chair of the great gold mining house which he himself conceived and nursed into being: the Anglo American Corporation of South Africa.

Published in 1973 by McGraw-Hill Book Company, Johannesburg