The history of the electric motor

The Danish physicist Hans Christian Oersted discovered in 1820 that electric current has a magnetic effect. This was the cornerstone for the research into electromagnetism and thus also for the development of the electric motor.

In 1834, the German-Russian physicist and engineer Hermann Jacobi developed the first practical electric motor with approx. 220 W. He installed it in St. Petersburg in a 12-person boat. This was the first practical application of an electric motor.

The breakthrough of the electric motor began in 1866 with the development of the dynamo. This was the invention of the German researcher Werner von Siemens. His invention made it possible for the first time to generate electrical energy on a large scale. When the first electricity networks and power plants were set up in many countries at the end of the 19th century, the electric motor achieved its final breakthrough.

This invention also had an impact on people's private lives. Their houses could be supplied with electricity and there was now electric light in private households.