OFFICIAL POSTCARDS
(1940)

This page was last updated
30-Mar-2025 02:43

7. WHW-REICHS-STRASSENSAMMLUNG SCHAFFENDE
P291

VALIDITY: 5th Nov 1940 to 30th Jun 1941

BACKGROUND: Published for the 7th Reich's Street Collection to raise money for the Winter Relief Fund. The postcard is inscribed 'Kampfen, Arbeiten. Opfern', meaning 'fight, toil, sacrifice'. The image is one of a soldier (fight), a blacksmith (work) and a WHW donation tin (Sacrifice). The pre-printed stamp also reflects the theme of toil (hammer) and fight (sword) and includes a 6 + 4 Rpf stamp with the 4 Rpf being a donation to the WHW charity.

There are three variations of this card:

Type (a): White to off-white card stock
Type (b): Beige with a gloss/satin finish card stock
Type (c): Brownish coloured, fibrous card stock.



ABOVE LEFT: White to off-white
ABOVE CENTRE: Beige with gloss finish
ABOVE RIGHT: Beige fibrous card stock

In addition to the normal format there are examples of this card with a shorter first address line.

As well as the official card there are several with additional private printing.

SONDERSTEMPEL: Unlike the 6th Street Collection there were two special cancels available for the 7th, both valid from the 28th to the 31st Mar 1941.

1. The first special cancel is inscribed "7. WHW-Reichs-Strassensammlung | Schaffende Sammeln- | Shaffende | geben" and features a Celandine branch with leaf, flower and a swastika in a gear and was used in the following 13 cities:
BERLIN, NORNA, BRAUNSCHWEIG, GLEIWITZ, KARLSRUHE, MÜNCHEN, NÜRNBERG, SOEST, STETTIN, STOLP, TEPLITZ-SCHÖNAU, WIEN and ZWENKAU.

2. The second special cancel has the same inscription but now features a Ribwort plantain with flower and leaf as well as the swastika in a gear. This cancel was used in the following 11 cities:
BERLIN, CHEMNITZ, FREIBURG, HAMBURG, HILDESHEIM, MÜNCHEN, OSCHATZ, PASEWALK, STETTIN, STUTTGART and WIEN.

VARIANTS TO COLLECT

The following are suggested variants that might make good additions to a collection:

1. Eamples of all three variants
2. Cancelled on first day of issue 5th Nov 1940
3. Cancelled with "WHW" handstamp
4. Cancelled with "WHW" machinestamp
5. Cancelled with SWISS border cancellation
6. As a domestic long-distance card without any special features
7. As a foreign used card with 10 Rpf to Czech Socialist Republic
8. As a foreign used card with 10 Rpf to Hungary
9. As a foreign used card with 15 Rpf
10. As a foreign used card rejected because of the image
11. As a Registered Delivery card
12. As a local delivery Express Delivery card
13. Cancelled as a Hamburg Straβenbahnpost
14. Used as a Rohrpost (pneumatic) card in BERLIN
15. Domestic Airmail usage
16. European Airmail usage
19. Airmail usage to the USA
20. Postally unused
21. Domestic Bahnpost usage
22. Invalid Usage - either after expiration date or with incorrect postage applied
23. With additional private printing
24. With With Shorter Address Line
25. With Special slogan cancels

EXAMPLES of ALL THREE VARIANTS

ABOVE LEFT: White to off-white
ABOVE CENTRE: Beige with gloss finish
ABOVE RIGHT: Beige fibrous card stock

POSTALLY UNUSED

CANCELLED on FIRST DAY of ISSUE

Cancelled on the official issue date 5th Nov 1940

CANCELLED WITH "WHW" HANDSTAMP

CANCELLED WITH "WHW" MACHINE STAMP

1. The following P291(c) card was posted in LEIPZIG and sent to HANNOVER on 4th Mar 1941. It features the machine stamp used to commemorate the WHW War Relief fund and this particular example (a P291-b) also has the shorter first address line.

CANCELLED WITH SWISS BORDER CANCELLATION

DOMESTIC LONG DISTANCE WITHOUT SPECIAL MARKINGS

1. The P291(b) card below has been cancelled in TETTNANG (WURTT) on 11th Jan 1941.




2. The P291(b) card below was an official card from PRAGUE to CHEMNITZ. The card has a special handstamp inscribed "PRAG 2 | DEUTSCHE DIENSTPOST - BÖHMEN-MAHREN" and is dated 11th Jan 1941.




3. The P291(c) card below was posted on 2nd Mar 1941 and was destined for LITZMANSTADT.




4. The P291(c) card below was posted in ARNSTADT on 30th Jan 1941.




5. The next P291(a) card was posted in WILHELMSHAVEN and sent to KAMENZ on 21st Dec 1940




6. The next P291(a) card was posted in LAUTENTHAL on 24th Feb 1941




7. The next P291(a) card was posted in KARLSRUHE on 19th May 1941




8. The next P291(a) card was a local delivery in KOLMAR posted on 5th Jan 1941

FOREIGN USE WITH 10 Rpf to
Czech Socialist Republic

FOREIGN USE WITH 10 Rpf to HUNGARY

FOREIGN USE WITH 15 Rpf

FOREIGN USE REJECTED BECAUSE OF THE IMAGE

REGISTERED DELIVERY CARD

EXPRESS DELIVERY CARD

HAMBURG STRAβENBAHNPOST

Cancelled as a Hamburg Straβenbahnpost

POSTED AS ROHRPOST IN BERLIN

DOMESTIC AIRMAIL

EUROPEAN AIRMAIL

AIRMAIL TO USA

ZEPPELIN POST

GERMAN BAHNPOST

INVALID USAGE

1. This 6 Rpf indicia stamp on this card was only valid for use until 30th Jun 1941 so the example shown below is an invalid usage since it was posted on 3rd Nov 1941. The post office has written a large '9' in blue text indicating that 9 Rpf of postage due was required (6 Rpf x 1.5). The card also has a red rubber stamp inscribed "Nachgebühr" - 'Additional charge'. It was perfectly acceptable to use this card after 30th Jun 1941 but only with the addition of the correct amount of self-adhesive stamps.




2. Below is another example of an invalid usage, this one cancelled on 14th Jul 1942.




3. And another example of an invalid P291b usage can be seen below, this particular one cancelled three months after the validity of the pre-printed stamp had expired (30th Jun 1941), on 27th Sep 1941.

WITH SHORTER ADDRESS LINE

With this version of the card the first address line is shorter than the second line. Otherwise there is no difference from the standard card.

SPECIAL SLOGAN CANCELS

1. The following card features the special "Tag der Briefmarke" cancellation used in STUTTGART to commemorate the Day of the Stamp on 12th Jan 1941.




2. The example below is a P291(b) that features two special commemorative handstamps used at BERLIN NO 18 on 30th Jan 1941.




3. The following example is a P291(a) which has been uprated with an additional 6Rpf 'Tag der Briefmarke 1941' commemorative stamp. The card was cancelled in BRESLAU on 11th Jan 1941 and has a slogan cancel related to the German Red Cross.




4. This next example is a P291(c) version cancelled in WIESBADEN on 19th May 1941 and sent to DÖBERN.




5. The following P291(a) was posted in STRASSBURG (ELS) on 19th Jun 1941 and has a special cancel commemoratng "Ein Jahr Frei" - 'One Year Free'. The destination was the city of AUGSBURG.




6. The next P291(a) postcard was postally used in LEIPZIG and was sent to BERLIN-CHARLOTTENBURG on 21st Dec 1940. The card has a slogan cancel inscribed "FRÜHJAHRS | MESSE | 1941 | BEGINN 2.MARZ" - 'SPRING | FAIR | 1941 | STARTING MARCH 2nd'.




7. The P291(c) card that follows was posted in MAINZ on the Day of the Stamp 12th Jan 1941 and has the special "Tag der Briefmarke" cancellation. The final destination was STUTTGART.




8. The following P291(a) card was posted in LEIPZIG on The Day of the Stamp, 12th Jan 1941 and was sent to feldpost station L29408. At the time of posting this Feldpost number was unassigned.




9. The following P291(b) card was posted in VIENNA, also on The Day of the Stamp, 12th Jan 1941 and was a local delivery which did not required the extra 6Rpf stamp.




10. The following P291(b) postcard was cancelled in WIESBADEN on 12th Jan 1941. Of interest with this card is the blue stamp in the lower left-hand corner inscribed "Commissione Italiana Di Armistizio Delegazione di Collegamento presso la Deutsche Waffenstillstandskommission" - 'Italian Armistice Commission Liaison Delegation at the German Armistice Commission'.




11. The next P291(a) card was posted in DRESDEN and sent to LEIPZIG on 16th Mar 1941. The special slogan cancellation was a common one used to encourage the public to add the house and street number to the address when sending items through the post.




12. The Deutsche Waffenstillstandskommission was a political body based in WIESBADEN, charged with ensuring the smooth transition of occupied France following their defeat to Germany and the signing of the armistice on 25th Jun 1940. The commission existed from 1940 until 1944 and included an Italian delegation since Italy was allied to the Germans and had control of certain areas of southern France.

MAIN REFERENCE SOURCES

1. MICHEL GANZSACHEN DEUTSCHLAND 2018. ISBN: 978-3-95402-225-0
2. BOREK GANZSACHEN-SPEZIAL-KATALOG DEUTSCHLAND ab 1933. ISBN: 3-87091-060-7
3. MICHEL BILDPOSTKARTEN- UND MOTIVGANSACHEN KATALOG DEUTSCHLAND 1997. ISBN: 3-87858-631-0
4. GANZSACHEN-HANDBUCH DES "DITTEN REICHES" 1933-1945 by FRECH. ISBN: UNKNOWN