Karl Elsener (inventor) his grandson Carl Elsener senior (1922-2013) and his great-grandson Carl Elsener Jr. (born 1958) led the Victorinox company. Karl Elsener (inventor) Karl Elsener (9 October 1860 - 26 December 1918) was a Swiss cutler, inventor and entrepreneur. Karl Elsener completed an apprenticeship as a knife maker in Zug. After some journeyman years he opened a factory in Ibach, Switzerland in 1884 for the manufacture of knives and surgical instruments. He invented the Swiss army knife in 1891 and developed his knife manufacturing company into what has become Victorinox. From 1912 to 1918 Elsener was a member of the cantonal parliament
Karl Rothenburg Belarus and was posthumously promoted to Generalmajor. Karl Rothenburg Karl Rothenburg (8 June 1894 – 28 June 1941) was a German officer in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of both the Pour le Mérite (of World War I) and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. Between wars he served as a commander in the police force, before returning to the Wehrmacht in 1934. During World War II he was the commander of a Panzer Regiment of the 7th Panzer Division. Rothenburg was killed six days into the invasion of the Soviet