The family first appeared in
Hammelburg in the 15th century. The family has a long history in pharmacy going back to the 17th century, starting in 1668 when
Friedrich Jacob Merck bought a pharmacy in
Darmstadt. The Merck family controls a majority of 70.3% of the company's shares. An American former subsidiary of the Merck company,
Merck & Co. (MSD), was also established by the Merck family and still carries the family's name, but, unlike its former parent company, is no longer owned by the Merck family, since it was nationalized by the American government in 1917 because of
World War I and the
Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917 and the stock was bought back by
George F. Merck in 1919. Merck & Co. was also led by family member
George W. Merck (son of George F. Merck) from 1925 until 1950. During the
Nazi era the family maintained a close relationship with the
Nazi Party. A branch of the family descended from Heinrich Johann Merck (1770–1853) belonged to
Hamburg's ruling class of
Hanseatic merchants. His family founded the merchant bank
H. J. Merck & Co. and several family members served as
senators in Hamburg, while his son
Carl Merck (1809–1880) was
Syndicus (foreign affairs head) of Hamburg 1847–1880. Another son, the merchant banker
Ernst Merck, who had been the Austrian consul-general in Hamburg, was ennobled by the Austrian emperor
Franz Joseph I in 1860 and received the title of
Baron. ==Family members==