NAZI GERMANY
My COVERS
1937
COVER from STUTTGART
(9th Jan 1937)
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This local cover was sent from Stuttgart on 9th Jan 1937 and has the special cancel used to commemorate the 'Day of the Stamp' from 9th to 11th Jan 1937. The cancellation is inscribed "STUTTGART 1 STADT DER AUSLANDSDEUTSCHEN | WERBE- | AUSTELLUNG | ZUM TAG DER | BRIEFMARKE | 9.-11.JAN.1937" - 'STUTTGART 1 | CITY OF GERMANS LIVING ABROAD | ADVERTISING | EXHIBITION | ON THE DAY OF | STAMP | 9-11 JAN 1937'. Stuttgart issued similar 'Stamp Day' cancellations every year from 1937 until 1945.This cover features a block of 4, 1936 Issue Michel 634 Winter Relief Stamps. The stamps are valued at 3Pf each with an addition 2Pf going towards the annual fund raising for the Winter Relief fund. There were nine stamps issued in the full set featuring modern buildings and designed by Fritz.
STAMP DAY - BERLIN
(10th Jan 1937)
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Like the cover shown above this cover also bears a special cancellation for 'Stamp Day' in 1937. This cover was sent from Berlin to Lausitz on 10th Jan 1937 and the cancellation is inscribed "BERLIN W62 | Tag der Briefmarke" and features an image of an envelope and a post horn. The stamps Michel 617 and Michel 618 are the two lowest values in a set of four stamps issued to commemorate the 1936 Sixth International Congress, held jointly in Berlin and Munich.
NAZI PARTY RALLY
(31st Mar 1937)
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This cover was sent from Nürnberg to Berne (Switzerland) on the 31st Mar 1937. The most prominent feature is the special machine cancel inscribed "STADT DER REICHSPARTEITAGE | Nürnberg" - 'CITY OF THE GERMAN PARTY CONFERENCES | Nuremberg' refering to the annual Nazi Party Rally which by 1937 was staged annually in the city. The image on the special cancel features a Reichs Adler (Empire Eagle) and a view of Nürnberg Castle.The city was very proud of its long association with the Nazi Party and similar special cancels were used every year from 1933 until
. The rally was usually held in Aug or Sep but the special cancel was used widely outside of the week long event, in this case a full 6 months before the actual rally.
The stamps on the cover above are both from the 1933, second Hindenburg Medallion series. The 20Pf light blue stamp is a Michel 521 and the green stamp is a Michel 515 5Pf stamp.
HITLER's 48th BIRTHDAY
(20th Apr 1937)
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Hitler's 48th Birthday on 20th Apr 1937 saw the usual deluge of philatelic related material. The cover below features a special minisheet Michel Block 7 featuring quadruple images of Hitler. This particular example has the special cancel used in BERCHTESGADEN, Hilter's favourite place to chill when things got too hot in Berlin, and the inscription "BERCHTESGADEN | 20th April 1937 | Geburtstag des Führers" - 'BERCHTESGADEN | April 20, 1937 | Birthday of the leader'.The minisheet itself is inscribed "WER EIN VOLK RETTEN WILL | KANN NUR HEROISCH DENKEN" - 'WHO WANTS TO SAVE A PEOPLE | CAN ONLY THINK HEROICALLY', referring to Hitler as the brave leader who alone can save the German people.
Below is another such cover featuring Michel Block 7 and this time with the special cancel used in Munich inscribed "MÜNCHEN | Hauptstadt der Bewegung. Geburtstag des Führers | 20th April 1937" - 'MUNICH | Capital of movement. Birthday of the leader | April 20, 1937'.
The statement 'Capital of the Movement' being a reference to the fact that the Nazi Party was founded in Munich and the image on the cancellation is the Feldherrnhalle, on the Odeonplatz in Munich, the site of the Munich Putsch on 8th/9th Nov 1923 where the Nazi's attempted to sieze power from the Bavarian Government.
AIRMAIL from ESSLINGEN (NECKAR)
(8th May 1937)
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This is a curious cover in that the red, typed inscription reads "Mit dem flugzeug, von Köln, zum dampfer Europa. Mit Luftpost ab New York" - 'By plane from Cologne to the steamer Europa. By airmail from New York' which seems to indicate that it was flow from Cologne to the ship 'Europa', possibly docked in Bremerhaven, ferried across the Atlantic Ocean, then flown onward to New York.The stamps consist of four 1934 issue Airmail stamps (a brown, 25Pf, Michel 533, a dark blue, 20Pf Michel 532 and two light blue, 15Pf Michel 531 stamps). In addition there is a single 1937 issue, 12Pf Michel 645 Luftschutz stamp, for a total of 87Pf in postage fees.
Europa was built for the Norddeutscher Lloyd Company and launched in 1928, a year later than planned due to a fire during construction. She set several Blue Riband trans-Atlantic speed records during the early thirties, and was used as a naval accomodation ship during the Second World War. After the was she was renamed Liberté and ownership transferred to the French Compagnie Generale Transatlantique, until she was scrapped in 1962.
COVER from WIESBADEN
(23rd May 1937)
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This cover was sent from WIESBADEN to GRANSCHÜTZ in Saxony Anhalt, on 23rd May 1937 and features a single Michel 643, 3Pf, brown Luftschutz stamp, part of a set of three issued to commemorate the 4th Anniversary of the Luftschutz (Civil Defence Union) on 3rd Mar 1937.Apart from the regular WIESBADEN CDS cancel there is a special slogan cancel inscribed "Wiesbadens | Maiwochen | 2.-29.5 | Theater-Sport-Kunst" - 'Wiesbaden | May weeks | 2.-29.5 | Theater-sports-art', an advertisment for the 'May Weeks' festivals held from 2nd to 29th May 1937.
COVER from OSNABRUCK
(3rd Jun 1937)
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This registered cover is best described as a late First Day Cover. The amount of postage paid is far in excess of what was required for a Registered letter. One can only assume this was destined to a stamp collector, perhaps the sender even sent it to himself, as both sender and recipient are located in OSNABRÜCK and the stamps are nicely positioned on the cover.The stamps themselves are the complete set of nine 1936 issue Michel 634 to 642 Winter Relief Fund stamps. A nice cover but clearly a philatelic creation.
COVER from LEIPZIG
(29th Nov 1937)
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This domestic cover has a simple CDS from LEIPZIG, dated 29th Nov 1937, and was destined for KÖLN. Although this is only a local cover, it has two 1934 issue, 5Pf Luftpost (Airmail) Michel 529 stamps which were valid for domestic mail as well as airmail. In addition there are two Michel 512 1Pf Hindenburg Medallion stamps, for a total of 12Pf.The reverse of the cover has the sender's details as well as a Cinderella or poster stamp, which was issued to commemorate the annual BRAUNE BAND or BROWN RIBBON horse race which took place in Munich, on 1st Aug 1937. Poster stamps were not issued by the Reichspost and had no value, but were tolerated and their usage was fairly widespread.
