There had already been two similar attempts to assist the Nazi Party in gaining control of the government: a petition by the Wirtschaftspolitische Vereinigung Frankfurt (Frankfurt Socio-economic Union) on July 27, 1931 and a declaration by 51 professors published in July 1932 in the Nazi Party newspaper Völkischer Beobachter.
The idea for the Industrielleneingabe had emerged at the end of October 1932 in the Freundeskreis der Wirtschaft (or "Keppler circle"; Keppler-Kreis) and was supported by Heinrich Himmler, who worked as a liaison to the Brown House.
The drafting of the letter was aided especially by Hjalmar Schacht, who was the only member of the Keppler-Kreis with any significant political experience.
The Industrielleneingabe was first published in 1956 in the Zeitschrift für Geschichtswissenschaft and has been used as evidence to support the idea that big business played a central role in the rise of the Nazi Party.
[1] The sixteen initial signatories were:[2] Signatures of the following personalities were submitted afterwards: Whether Engelbert Beckmann, the president of the Westphalian Land Association, signed in any form is controversial.