Five Generations of the Mærsk family

The founding family of the A.P. Moller Group comprises 150 years’ experience in shipping and world trade – from sailing ships to container vessels, from general cargoes in steam ships to oil cargoes in ultra large crude carriers, from telegrams to modern information technology and communication, from regional trades to global reach.

Peter Mærsk Møller supported his son A.P. Møller who in 1904 established what would later become A.P. Moller - Maersk. A.P. Møller’s son, Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller, was the third generation and now Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller’s daughter Ane Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller is the Chair of both the A.P. Moller Foundation and its investment company A.P. Moller Holding, where her son, Robert Maersk Uggla, is the CEO.

Peter Mærsk Møller

Captain Peter Mærsk Møller (1836-1927) was part of one of the most significant changes in shipping; the move from sail to steam in the late 1800’s.

After 20 years as a master of sailing ships and the unfortunate wrecking of the schooner ‘Valkyrien’ in 1883, Peter Mærsk Møller completed the examinations to become a steamship master. In 1886, Captain Peter Mærsk Møller acquired the small steamer ‘Laura’, which supported the livelihood of his family of ten children by ploughing the waters of the Baltic and North Sea.

Peter Mærsk Møller had nearly 50 years’ experience in shipping when he stepped ashore in 1899 and devoted his efforts to supporting his children’s endeavours.

Peter Mærsk Møller was instrumental in acquiring the needed share capital to buy the company’s first ship in 1904 and remained interested in the business as it evolved until his death in 1927.

A.P. Møller

Arnold Peter Møller (1876-1965) and his father, Peter Mærsk Møller, founded what would later become A.P. Moller - Maersk in 1904. Prior to this, A.P. Møller had worked in Denmark, England, Germany and Russia.

Initially, the family business was mainly focussed on shipping. In 1928, A.P. Møller founded Maersk Line and acquired the company’s first five tankers. He also oversaw the company’s expansion abroad, starting in the United States in 1919, and continuing with the establishment of offices in Japan, the UK, Thailand, Hong Kong and Indonesia.

To enhance the company’s portfolio. A.P. Møller established several other businesses in the shipbuilding, agriculture and retail sectors. In 1962, he was awarded a concession to conduct explorations and extract raw materials from the Danish subsoil - an activity that eventually led to the formation of Maersk Oil.

A.P. Møller secured his family’s continued ownership control of the company, he built, when he established the foundation that now has the majority shareholding in A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S. When A.P. Møller passed away in 1965, his son Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller assumed presidency of the family’s foundations.

Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller

Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller (1913-2012) continued to develop and expand the company with the establishment of new business units, the expansion of the exploration and production of oil and gas and the transition into container transport. A.P. Moller - Maersk was transformed into a group of businesses with global reach.

In addition to serving as CEO of A.P. Moller - Maersk and chairing the family foundations, Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller also served on the board of IBM Corporation from 1970 to 1984, on the Advisory Board of IBM from 1984 to 1993 and as a member of the International Council Morgan Guaranty Trust Co. from 1967 to 1984.

Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller set the direction with a Group wide strategy in 1970 and remained the CEO until 1993 where he initiated the next phase: the introduction of non-family management with the founding family retaining ownership control via the A.P. Moller Foundation.

In 2003, Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller introduced five ‘Core Values’ based on A.P. Møller’s leadership principles and personal example. Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller stepped down from most presidency in the A.P. Moller Group in 2003, but remained strongly committed to the company and Chair of the A.P. Moller Foundation until his death in 2012.

Ane M. M. Uggla

Ane Mærsk Mc-Kinney Uggla (1948-) is the youngest daughter of Emma and Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller. After completing a degree in foreign languages, Ane M. M. Uggla married Colonel Peder Uggla and settled in Stockholm, where she completed an additional degree in philosophy.

Ane M. M. Uggla has served as a board member of the A.P. Moller Foundation and the A.P. Moller Relief Foundation since 1986. When her father passed away in 2012, Ane M. M. Uggla assumed the presidency of both foundations.

Ane M. M. Uggla led the formation of A.P. Moller Holding in 2013 and subsequently the changes in the organisational structure of the A.P. Moller Group that were started in 2016.

In addition to chairing both family foundations and A.P. Moller Holding, Ane M. M. Uggla serves as Vice Chair of the A.P. Moller - Maersk Board of Directors. Outside the family firm, Ane M. M. Uggla has worked for the Swedish Red Cross since 1986.

Robert M. Uggla

Robert Maersk Uggla (1978-) is the son af Ane M. M. Uggla. He studied at the Stockholm School of Economics and later at the Univerità Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, Harvard Business School, The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and IMD.

After a brief stint in the finance industry, Robert M. Uggla joined the A.P. Moller Group in 2004, initially in the Mergers & Acquisitions field. During 2006-2016, Robert M. Uggla held various leadership positions in Maersk Line, Maersk Tankers and Svitzer before joining A.P. Moller Holding as CEO in 2016.

Robert M. Uggla has led the build-up of the A.P. Moller Holding team to become the investment arm of the A.P. Moller Foundation.