OFFICIAL POSTCARDS
(1943)

This page was last updated
30-Oct-2023 06:04

OFFICIAL P312

BACKGROUND: This series of nine postcards was released to encourage the population to save vital resources needed for the war effort. The first two cards feature a character called 'Kohlenklau' or the 'Coal Thief', similar to the Squander Bug used by the Allies for the same purpose. Kohlenklau appears on P311, P312/01 and P312/02. The remaining seven cards all have variations on a message asking prople not to use the telephone after air raids as telephone services were vital to the emergency services.

SPECIAL CANCEL: NONE

OFFICIAL P312/09

The same basic design as Michel P311 and P312 but without the Kohlenklau! image and text. Instead the text is replaced by four lines of text 'Der Führer kennt nur kampf, Arbeit und sorge. Wir wollen ihm den Teil abnehmen, Den wir ihm abnehmen können' which transaltes as 'The leader knows only about struggle, work and worry. We want to take away the part that we can take away from him'. This version of the card does not have a 3 line border around the text.

MORE P312/09 POSTCARDS

UNUSED CARDS

DOMESTIC USAGE

1. The domestically used P312/09 card below was sent from PLÖN (HOLT) to HAMBURG on 2nd Nov 1944.




2. The following example was sent from BIRKENWERDER to BAUTZEN on 26th Sep 1944.




3. The following example was sent from VIENNA to NIEDER-DONAU on 4th Nov 1944.

FOREIGN USAGE

This card was sent Airmail from VIENNA to HALMSTAD in SWEDEN on 31st Jan 1945. I'm not 100% convinced that this is a genuine item or a normal example that has been enhanced to make it more interesting.

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