There’s no doubt that Ferdinand Porsche was an exceptional man. His genius as an engineering visionary underpinned the formation of what’s become one of the world’s premier car brands.
However, he didn’t create his legend without the support of many other talented, driven and highly committed individuals. This is the story of Ghislaine Kaes, just one of those unsung heroes. He was Ferdinand Porsche’s ever-present assistant who supported him from 1929, before the genesis of Porsche cars, throughout the war years, and was at Ferdinand’s bedside when he died in 1951. The fascinating tale of this remarkable man is made even more incredible by the fact that he was British.
Ghislaine (pronounced “Gis-lane” by his family, but known as Gilain, pronounced “Gi-line”, to his Porsche colleagues), was born in London in 1910. His parents, Otto and Margaret Kaes, had moved there from Austria and Otto was the general importer of Austro-Daimler vehicles to the UK. The Kaes’ family connection to Porsche arose when Otto’s sister, Aloisa Kaes (Ghislaine’s aunt), married Ferdinand Porsche in 1903.
The Kaes family were in London at the time Ghislaine was born because Ferdinand was employed as the chief engineer of Austro-Daimler. It was no coincidence that Otto Kaes (Ferdinand’s brother-in-law) was their representative in the UK. His role was to demonstrate the company’s vehicles to potential English customers. This
