Karl Baedeker died, the "Pall Mall Gazette" described a Baedeker guidebook as being "singularly accurate", and in the English version of Jacques Offenbach's musical "La Vie parisienne" this memorable lyric rings out: "Kings and governments may err / But never Mr. Baedeker." Towards the end of his life, Baedeker told friends that he regretted not having accomplished more in his life and wondered whether his work would survive. Little did he know that the name Baedeker would one day become a synonym for a travel guide, whatever its provenance, and that Verlag Karl Baedeker, which still exists and continues to bear his
Baedeker guides. Baedeker would provide the text and Mair the finished product. The Baedeker Autoführer Verlag, Stuttgart was born. The slim guides called "Baedeker-Shell" guides were designed to fit into a man's jacket pocket or in the glove compartment of a car. The first ones covered Germany and were a huge success. Guides on other European countries followed in both German and English. Karl Friedrich was now operating on two fronts. He continued to produce city and regional guides from Malente and with the publication of his 1954 "Berlin" guide in German, English and French, the Baedeker brand had been well