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Group of 10 World War II propaganda publications, 1943–1945, ranging in size from 4 x 5 to 8.5 x 13, produced by both the Allies and Germany, comprising nine different designs. The four Allied pieces were printed in German for enemy soldiers and civilians:
- Issue of the Allied newspaper Nachrichten für die Truppe, Nr. 209, November 11, 1944, four pages, coded "T.209." Its front-page lead, "Antwerpen 'seit Wochen unter V2-Beschuss,'" relays the German High Command's claim that the port of Antwerp had been under heavy V-1 and V-2 fire for weeks and reports on the Reich's propaganda push around the V-2. The story continues on page four under "V-2 Beschuss."
- British leaflet contrasting Hitler's September 4, 1940, vow to "ausradieren" British cities and Göring's September 9, 1939, promise that the enemy would drop no bombs with the RAF's first 100,000 tons dropped on Germany by May 25, 1943. Coded "G.3[6/8]."
- Situation-report leaflet, "Die Lage… am 28. März 1945," with a map of the Western and Eastern fronts on the reverse. Coded "AgG 5[5/6]," accompanied by a German dealer's slip.
- Surrender leaflet from late January 1945 contrasting the stalled Ardennes offensive with the Soviet winter offensive. It is backed by six numbered surrender instructions, including calling out "ei ssörrender," and a bilingual "Safe Conduct / Passierschein." Coded "CT 43."
The six German pieces were printed in English for Allied troops:
- "LIFE" / "DEATH" leaflet parodying a Life magazine cover, with a nude woman on the front dated "October 1944" and a helmeted skull on the "Doomsday" reverse. Accompanied by a German dealer's note identifying it as a rocket leaflet from the Italian front.
- "Do You Have a Ghost of a Chance" leaflet depicting a graveyard of crosses labeled with Allied conferences from Casablanca to the Crimea, backed by "Mail Call." Coded "SKJ 2010."
- Two copies of a printed letter presented as written by a wife signing "Chickie" to Staff Sergeant Joe Seibel of the 100th Infantry Division, on William J. Ganz Company letterhead, dated December 20, 1944. It condemns Britain's stand on Greece and Roosevelt's reelection. Coded "27."
- "When Will the War Be Over?" leaflet naming "Sgt. George Atkinson, 84th Div." as a captured soldier and warning of war against Japan and a "World War III?" with the Soviet Union. Coded "648 BK 1C."
- "Waiting – in vain" leaflet picturing a woman above a fallen soldier and asking "How many American wives are already waiting in vain for their husbands?"
In overall very good to fine condition, with toning, folds, creasing, and edge chips and losses to several, and dark staining along the edges of the Atkinson leaflet.
Nachrichten für die Truppe was produced by Sefton Delmer's team at the British Political Warfare Executive for SHAEF and dropped over German lines nightly from the spring of 1944. It mixed accurate war news, sports results, and home-front items with material meant to erode morale, presenting itself without an acknowledged source.
The November 11 issue turns the German claim about Antwerp back on its readers. British forces had taken the city in early September 1944, but the port could not be used until the Scheldt estuary was cleared, and the first Allied convoy did not dock there until November 28. From October, the Germans directed V-1 and V-2 attacks against the city and its docks. Page three of the same issue answers the High Command's claim with photographs under the headline "Antwerpen wieder in Betrieb" (Antwerp back in operation).
