New Set from Eupen and Malmedy (1920).
Nova Série do Eupen e Malmedy (1920).
Nov 25, 2012
Germany On Stamps: Eupen and Malmedy History
EUPEN AND MALMEDY
Eupen-Malmedy, or the East Cantons, is a group of cantons in Belgium, composed of the former Prussian districts of Malmedy and Eupen, together with the Neutral Moresnet.
The districts of Eupen and Malmedy had been part of Prussia, and later Germany, since the end of the Napoleonic Wars. They were granted to Belgium at the Paris Peace Conference for the purpose of enhancing Belgian defences against possible future German aggression.
Eupen
Eupen is a municipality in the Belgian province of Liège, 15 km (9.32 mi) from the German border (Aachen), from the Dutch border (Maastricht) and from the "High Fens" nature reserve (Ardennes).
The town is also the capital of the Euro region Meuse-Rhine.
On 1 January 2006 Eupen had a total population of 18,248 inhabitants. The total area is 103.74 km2 (40.05 sq mi) which gives a population density of 175.90 inhabitants per km².
This city is the seat of the Council of the German speaking community in Belgium and the official language in Eupen is German.
Malmedy
Malmedy is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region, Province of Liège.
On January 1, 2006 Malmedy had a total population of 11,829 inhabitants. The total area is 99.96 km².
It belongs to the French Community of Belgium, within which it is French-speaking with facilities for German speakers.
History
Before 1795
The Northern part around Eupen was originally part of the Duchy of Limburg, a dependency of the Duchy of Brabant, and was latterly owned by the Austrian Habsburgs, as part of the Austrian Netherlands. The Southern part belonged to the Duchy of Luxembourg. The small village of Manderfeld-Schönberg belonged to the Archbishopric of Trier.
Malmedy and Waimes, except the village of Faymonville, were part of the abbatial principality of Stavelot-Malmedy which was — like Luxembourg and Trier — an Imperial Estate of the Holy Roman Empire.
French annexation (1795-1815)
In 1795, as the French Revolutionary Army entered the Austrian Netherlands, the area was also taken over and eventually incorporated in its entirety into the French department of the Ourthe.
Prussian administration (1815-1919)
At the Congress of Vienna, the whole area was awarded to Rhineland (Rhenish Prussia). In the North West of the area, Moresnet, coveted by both the Netherlands and Prussia for its calamine, was declared a neutral territory. After 1830, the 50% guardianship of the Netherlands was taken over by newly independent Belgium, and this remained so even after 1839, when Belgium relinquished its claims to neighbouring Dutch Limburg.
This change did not significantly affect the inhabitants of this region. Even in the mainly French or Walloon speaking Malmedy, changes went smoothly since the municipality was allowed to continue to use French for its administration.
Most of the territory had spoken German or German dialects for centuries, with Walloon being spoken by about two-thirds of the population in the district of Malmedy at the time it was newly created in 1816.
At the beginning of World War I, most of the inhabitants of the Eupen and Malmedy districts considered themselves German and fought for the German Empire during the war.
Provisional Belgian administration (1920-1925)
In 1920, the Treaty of Versailles awarded all the communities of Eupen, Malmedy and Sankt Vith, on a provisional basis to Belgium. A five-year transition period under the command of the Royal High Commissioner, General Herman Baltia, ensued.
Under pressure from the United States, whose war aims had included popular sovereignty, a plebiscite was planned, and between 26 January and 23 July 1920, it was held on Baltia's orders under Article 34 of the Treaty.
However, it was not a secret ballot - inhabitants of the cantons who objected to the annexation had to register (by name) at the village hall. This procedure led to mass intimidation - people were led to believe that anyone objecting to annexation by Belgium would not receive Belgian nationality, but be deported to Germany or at least have their food ration cards taken away.
Integration into Belgium (1925-1940)
In the event, only 271 people out of 33,726 voted for the communes to remain in Germany. Hence it was no actual plebiscite that was held, because those opposing annexation into Belgium had to enter a register at city hall; those who did risked being fired, losing their ration cards etc.; few registered and so annexation proceeded unopposed.
In 1925, the area around Eupen, Malmedy, and Sankt Vith, together with the former Neutral Moresnet (Kelmis) was finally included in the Belgian state. However, in 1926 Belgium and the Weimar Republic conducted secret negotiations which would have led to the return of the East Cantons to Germany in return for 200 million gold marks - but the fury of the French Government on hearing about the plan led to the break-up of the talks.
After the inhabitants of the East Cantons finally received full Belgian nationality and the vote, parties who favoured a return of the East Cantons to the German Reich got between 44% and 57% of the vote in the East Cantons, achieving high scores even in predominantly French-speaking Malmedy. After the accession to power of Adolf Hitler, the socialist party of the East Cantons stopped agitating for a return to Germany. This caused a drop in the irredentist vote but also meant that the pro-Germany vote was now dominated by the openly Nazi "Heimattreue Front" (Patriotic Front).
Annexed to Germany (1940-1945)
During World War II the East Cantons (and some other small villages that had been Belgian but German speaking in 1914) were annexed by Nazi Germany, with the clear consent of most of the inhabitants. Support for the German takeover eroded sharply after the German invasion of the Soviet Union and the subsequent conscription of most of the male population into the German army.
In December 1944 bomber raids first destroyed Malmedy, then Sankt Vith almost completely. Many communities were similarly affected by the Ardennes Offensive of 1944-45. Indeed, the southern part of the East Cantons was the theatre of hard battles including St. Vith, Rocherath-Krinkelt, Bütgenbach and many others.
Back to Belgium in 1945
After the war, the Belgian state reasserted sovereignty over the area, which caused the male inhabitants of the area who had served in the German army to lose their civil rights as "traitors to the Belgian state". The Belgian authorities opened more than 15,000 inquiries procedures against citizens of Eupen-Malmedy, which represents 25% of the population. In comparison, for the whole of Belgium, these inquiries concerned less than 5% of the population.
The bad blood caused by the reluctance of the Belgian government to remedy the legal situation concerning the annexation (only remedied by an amnesty law in 1989), would lead to the emergence of a German Belgian national party, the PDB, or Party of German-speaking Belgians. The PDB (which at the European level co-operates with both the Scottish National Party and the Greens) has never agitated for a return to Germany, but advocated increased rights for the German minority in Belgium, including full equality with the Flemish and Walloon linguistic groups.
The nine German-speaking communities of the East Cantons now comprise the German-speaking Community of Belgium, while Malmedy and Waimes are part of the French Community of Belgium. There are protected rights for the minority language in both areas.
Nov 18, 2012
Germany On Stamps: Weimar Republic Stamp
New Weimar Republic Stamps. This stamp belongs to 1920's "German Empire VI" Set.
Novo Selo da República de Weimar. Este Selo pertence à Série de 1920, "Império Alemão VI".
Germany On Stamps: Weimar Republic History
THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919, in Germany, to replace the imperial form of government.
Following World War I, the republic emerged from the German Revolution in November 1918. In 1919, a National Assembly convened in the city of Weimar and a new constitution for the German Reich was written and adopted on 11th August. This liberal democracy eventually lapsed in the early 1930's, leading to the ascent of the NSDAP and Adolf Hitler, in 1933.
In its 14 years, the Weimar Republic was faced with numerous problems, including hyperinflation, political extremists and their paramilitaries, and hostility from the winners of the First World War. However, it overcame many discriminatory regulations of the Treaty of Versailles, reformed the currency, unified tax politics and the railway system.
The name Weimar Republic was never used officially during its existence. Despite its political form, the new republic was still known as "Deutsches Reich".
November Revolution
In October 1918, the constitution of the German Empire was reformed to introduce a parliamentary system similar to the British, but this soon became obsolete.
On 29 October, rebellion broke out in Kiel among sailors. There, sailors, soldiers and workers began electing worker and soldier councils modeled by the soviets of the Russian Revolution of 1917. The revolution spread throughout Germany, and participants seized military and civil powers in individual cities. The country seemed to be on the verge of a communist revolution. On 7 November, the revolution had reached Munich, causing King Ludwig of Bavaria to flee.
In order not to lose their influence, the remaining Majority Social Democrats (MSPD), who supported the war efforts and a parliamentary system, decided to put themselves at the front of the movement, and on 7 November, demanded that Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicate.
On 9 November 1918, the German Republic was proclaimed by MSPD member Philipp Scheidemann at the Reichstag building in Berlin, to the fury of Freidrich Ebert, the leader of the MSPD, who thought that the question of monarchy or republic should be answered by a national assembly.
Two hours later a Free Socialist Republic was proclaimed by Karl Liebknecht, co-leader with Rosa Luxemburg, of the communist Spartakusbind, which had allied itself with the USPD in 1917.
On 10 November a coalition government called "Council of People's Commissioners" was established, consisting of three MSPD and three USPD members. Led by Ebert for the MSPD and Hugo Haase for the USPD it sought to act as collective head of state.
Although the new government was confirmed by the Berlin worker and soldier council, it was opposed by the Spartacist league.
Ebert called for a National Congress of Councils, which took place from 16 December to 20 December 1918, and in which the MSPD had the majority. Thus Ebert managed to enforce quick elections for a National Assembly to produce a constitution for a parliamentary system.
From November 1918 through January 1919, Germany was governed by the Council of People's Commissioners. It issued a large number of decrees which were confined to certain spheres: the eight-hour workday, domestic labour reform, agricultural labour reform, right of civil-service associations, local municipality social welfare relief (split between Reich and States) and important national health insurance, re-instatement of demobilised workers, protection from arbitrary dismissal with appeal as a right, regulated wage agreement, and universal suffrage from 20 years of age in all types of elections - local and national.
The split in the social democratic movement became final after Ebert called upon the army to put down another Berlin army mutiny on 23 November 1918, in which soldiers had captured the city's garrison commander and closed off the "Reichskanzlei" where the Council of People's Commissioners was situated. The ensuing street fighting was brutal with several dead and injured on both sides. Thus, the USPD left the Council of People's Commissioners and in December the split deepened when the Communist Party of German (KPD) was formed out of a number of radical left-wing groups, including the left wing of the USPD and the Spartacist League group.
In January, the Spartacist League and others in the streets of Berlin made more armedattempts to establish communism, known as the Spartacist uprising. Those attempts were put down by paramilitary "Freikorps" units consisting of volunteer soldiers. Bloody street fights culminated in the beating and shooting deaths of Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebnecht after their arrests on 15 January.
The National Assembly elections took place 19 January 1919.To avoid the ongoing fights in Berlin, the National Assembly convened in the city of Weimar, giving the future Republic its unofficial name. The Weimar Constitution created a republic under a parliamentary republic system with the Reichstag elected by proportional representation. The democratic parties obtained a solid 80% of the vote.
During the debates in Weimar, fighting continued. A Soviet republic was declared in Munich, but was quickly put down by "Freikorps" and remnants of the regular army. The fall of the Munich Soviet Republic to these units, many of which were situated on the extreme right, resulted in the growth of far-right movements and organizations in Bavaria, including "Organisation Consul, the NSDAP, and societies of exiled Russian Monarchists". Sporadic fighting continued to flare up around the country. In eastern provinces, forces loyal to Germany's fallen Monarchy fought the republic.
THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC EVENTS
Treaty of Versailles
The permanent economic crisis was a result of lost pre-war industrial exports, the loss of supplies in raw materials and foodstuffs from Alsace-Lorraine, Polish districts and the colonies, along with worsening debt balances and reparations payments.
Military-industrial activity had almost ceased, although controlled demobilisation kept unemployment at around one million. The fact that the Allies continued to blockade Germany until after the Treaty of Versailles did not help matters, either.
The allies permitted only low import levels of goods that most Germans could not afford. After four years of war and famine, many German workers were exhausted, physically impaired and discouraged. Millions were disenchanted with capitalism and hoping for a new era. Meanwhile the currency depreciated.
The German peace delegation in France signed the Treaty accepting mass reductions of the German military, substantial war reparations payments, and the controversial "War Guilt Clause".
The new post-World War I Germany, stripped of all colonies, became 13,3% smaller in its European territory than its imperial predecessor.
Years of crisis (1919–1923)
The Republic was soon under attack from both left and right wing sources. The radical left accused the ruling Social Democrats of having betrayed the ideals of the worker's movement by preventing a communist revolution. Various right-wing sources opposed any democratic system, preferring an authoritarian state like the 1871 Empire. To further undermine the Republic's credibility, some right-wingers (especially certain members of the former officer corps) also blamed an alleged conspiracy of Socialists and Jews for Germany's defeat in World War I.
The first challenge to the Weimar Republic came when a group of communists and anarchists took over the Bavarian government in Munich and declared the creation of the Bavarian Soviet Republic. The communist rebel state was put down one month later when "Freikorps" units were brought in to fight the leftist rebels. Other communist rebellions were put down in March 1921 in Saxony and Hamburg.
By 1923, the Republic claimed it could no longer afford the reparations payments required by the Versailles Treaty, and the government defaulted on some payments. In response, French and Belgian troops occupied the Ruhr region, Germany's most productive industrial region at the time, taking control of most mining and manufacturing companies, in January 1923.
Strikes were called, and passive resistance was encouraged. These strikes lasted eight months, further damaging the economy and increasing the expense of imports. The strike prevented goods from being produced. This infuriated the French, who began to kill and exile protesters in the region.
Since striking workers were paid benefits by the state, much additional currency was printed, fueling a period of hyperinflation. The 1920's German inflation started when Germany had no goods with which to trade.
The government printed money to deal with the crisis; this allowed Germany to pay war loans and reparations with worthless marks. Circulation of money rocketed, and soon the Germans discovered their money was worthless. The value of the Papiermark had declined from 4.2 per US dollar at the outbreak of World War I to 1 million per dollar by August 1923.This led to further criticism of the Republic.
On 15 November 1923, a new currency, the Rentenmark, was introduced at the rate of 1 trillion (1,000,000,000,000) Papiermark for one Rentenmark, an action known as a monetary reset. At that time, one U.S. dollar was equal to 4.2 Rentenmark. Reparation payments resumed, and the Ruhr was returned to Germany under the Locarno Pact, which defined aborder between Germany, France and Belgium.
Further pressure from the right came in 1923 with the Beer Hall Putsch, also called the Munich Putsch, staged by Adolf Hitler in Munich. In 1920, the german Worker's Party had become the National Socialist German Worker's Party (NSDAP), nicknamed the Nazi Party, and would become a driving force in the collapse of Weimar.
Golden Era (1923–1929)
Gustav Stresemann was "ReichsKanzler" for 100 days in 1923, and served as foreign minister from 1923–1929, a period of relative stability for the Weimar Republic.
Durning his time as Chancellor, Stresemann worked to restore order in Germany by using the "Freikorps", made up of former soldiers, to quell various rebellions that had sprung up, particularly the Spartacist uprising. Once civil stability had been restored, Stresemann could set about stabilising the German currency, which would promote confidence in the German economy and help the recovery that was so ardently needed for the German nation to keep up with their reparation repayments, while at the same time feeding and supplying the nation.
Stresemann's first move as foreign minister was to issue a new currency, the Rentenmark, to halt the extreme hyperinflation crippling German society and the economy. It was successful because Stresemann refused to issue more currency, the cause of the inflationary spiral. The currency was based internally and restored the confidence in the economy.
Once the economy as stabilized, Stresemann could set about putting a permanent currency in place, called the 'ReichMark' (1924) which again contributed to the growing level of international confidence in the German economy.
The 1920's saw a massive cultural revival in Germany. Innovative street theatre brought plays to the public, the cabaret scene and jazz band became very popular.
Not everyone, however, was happy with the changes taking place in Weimar culture. Many of the older generations felt that Germany was losing her traditional values by adopting popular styles from abroad, particularly the USA. Hollywood popularized American film, while New York became the global capital of fashion. Germany was more susceptible to Americanization, because of the close economic links brought about by the Dawes plan.
In 1929, four years after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, Stresemann died of a heart attack at the age of 51. This event marked the end of the "Golden Era" of the Weimar Republic.
Decline (1930–1933)
The last years of the Weimar Republic were stamped by even more political instability than in the previous years. The administrations of Chancellors Brüning, Papen, Schleicher and Hitler (from 30 January to 23 March 1933) governed through presidential decree.
Heinrich Brüning was appointed as successor of Chancellor Müller by "Reichspräsident" Paul von Hindenburg on 29 March 1930, after months of political lobbying by General Kurt von Schleicher on behalf of the military.
The Parliament "Reichstag" general elections on 14 September 1930 resulted in an enormous political shift: 18,3% of the vote went to the Nazis, five times the percentage compared to 1928. It was no longer possible to form a pro-republican majority in the "Reichstag", not even a Grand Coalition of all major parties except the KPD, NSDAP and DNVP. This encouraged the supporters of the Nazis to force their claim to power by increasing organization of public demonstrations and paramilitary violence against rival paramilitary groups.
From 1930 to 1932, Brüning tried to reform the devastated state without a majority in Parliament, governing with the help of the President's emergency decrees. During that time, the Great Depression reached its high point.
On 30 May 1932, Brüning resigned after no longer having Hindenburg's support. Hindenburg then appointed Franz von Papen as new Reichskanzler.
Von Papen was closely associated with the industrialist and land-owning classes, and pursued an extreme Conservative policy along Hindenburg's lines. He appointed as Reichswehr Minister Kurt von Schleicher, and all the members of the new cabinet were of the same political opinion as Hindenburg.
Because most parties opposed the new government, von Papen had the "Reichstag" dissolved and called for new elections. The general elections on 31 July 1932 yielded major gains for the KPD and the NSDAP (the Nazis), who won 37,2% of the vote, supplanting the Social Democrats as the largest party in the Reichstag.
Hitler refused ministry under Papen, and demanded the chancellorship for himself, but was rejected by Hindenburg on 13 August 1932. There was still no majority in the "Reichstag" for any government; as a result, the Reichstag was dissolved and elections took place once more in the hope that a stable majority would result.
The 6 November 1932 elections yielded 33,1% for the Nazis, two million voters less than in the previous election. Franz von Papen stepped down and was succeeded by General Kurt von Schleicher as "Reichskanzler" on 3 December.
Outmaneuvered by von Papen and Hitler on plans for the new cabinet, and having lost Hindenburg's confidence, Schleicher asked for new elections.
On 28 January von Papen described Hitler to Paul von Hindenburg as only a minority part of an alternative, von Papen-arranged government. On 30 January 1933 Hindenburg accepted the new Papen-Nationalist-Hitler coalition with the Nazis holding only three of eleven Cabinet seats. Hindenburg, despite his misgivings about the Nazi's goals and about Hitler as a person, reluctantly agreed to Papen's theory that, with Nazi popular support on the wane, Hitler could now be controlled as chancellor.
Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor on the morning of 30 January 1933. On 15 March the first cabinet meeting was attended by the two coalition parties, representing a minority in the Reichstag: The Nazis and the DNVP led by Alfred Hugenberg (196 + 52 seats).
According to the Nuremberg Trials this cabinet meeting's first order of business was how at last to achieve the complete counter-revolution by means of the constitutionally allowed Enabling Act, requiring two-thirds parliamentary majority. This Act would, and did, lead Hitler and the NSDAP toward his goal of unfettered dictatorial powers.
Nov 10, 2012
Germany On Stamps: Danzig History
DANZIG HISTORY
Danzig, today Gdansk, is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area. The city lies on the southern edge of Gdansk Bay (of the Baltic Sea), in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called Trójmiasto, with a population of over 800,000. Gdansk itself has a population of 455,830 (June 2010), making it the largest city in the Pomerania region of Northern Poland.
Gdansk is Poland's principal seaport as well as the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship (administrative area). The city is close to the former late medieval/modern boundary between West Slavic and Germanic lands and it has a complex political history with periods of Polish rule, periods of German rule, and extensive self-rule, with two terms as a free city. It has been part of Poland since 1945.
Gdansk is situated at the mouth of the Motława River, connected to the Leniwka, a branch in the delta of the nearby Vistula River, whose waterway system supplies 60% of the area of Poland and connects Gdansk to the national capital in Warsaw. This gives the city a unique advantage as the centre of Poland's sea trade. Together with the nearby port of Gdynia, Gdansk is also an important industrial centre. Historically an important seaport and shipbuilding centre, Gdansk was a member of the Hanseatic League.
The city was the birthplace of the Solidarity movement which, under the leadership of political activist Lech Wałęsa, played a major role in bringing an end to Communist rule across Central Europe.
Brief History
Throughout its long history, Gdansk has faced various periods of rule by different states:
- 997 – 1308: as part of the Kingdom of Poland;
- 1308 – 1454: as part of the territory of the Teutonic Order;
- 1454 – 1466: Thirteen Years' War;
- 1466 – 1569: as part of the Kingdom of Poland;
- 1569 – 1793: as part of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth;
- 1793 – 1805: as part of Prussia;
- 1807 – 1814: as a free city;
- 1815 – 1871: as part of Prussia;
- 1871 – 1920: as part of Imperial Germany;
- 1920 – 1939: as a free city;
- 1939 – 1945: as part of Nazi Germany;
- 1945 – 1989: as part of Polish People's Republic;
- 1989 – to the present: as part of Republic of Poland.
On 15 May 1457, Casimir IV of Poland granted Gdansk the Great Privilege, after he had been invited by the town's council and had already stayed in town for five weeks. With the Great Privilege, the town was granted autonomy within the Kingdom of Poland. Furthermore, the privilege united Old Town, Hakelwerk and Rechtstadt, and legalized the demolition of New Town, which had sided with the Teutonic Knights. Already in 1457, New Town was demolished completely.
Gaining free and privileged access for the first time to polish markets, the seaport prospered while simultaneously trading with the other hanseatic cities. After the Second Peace of Thorn in 1466 with the Teutonic Monastic State of Prussia, the warfare ended permanently. After the incorporation of Royal Prussia by the Kingdom of Poland in 1569, the city continued to enjoy a large degree of internal autonomy.
After the Siege of Danzig, in 1577, lasting six months, the city's army of 5,000 mercenaries was utterly defeated in a field battle on December 16. However, since Stephen's armies were unable to take the city by force, a compromise was reached: Stephen Báthory confirmed the city's special status and Danzig's Law privileges granted by earlier Polish kings.
The city suffered a slow economic decline due to the wars of the 18th century, when it was taken by the Russians after the Siege of Danzig in 1734.
Danzig was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia in 1793. During the era of Napoleon Bonaparte the city became a free city in the period extending from 1807 to 1814.
From 1824 until 1878, East and West Prussia were combined as a single province within the Prussian Kingdom. As a part of Prussia Danzig was a member of the Zollverein and elected its representatives to the German National Assembly of 1848, but lay outside of the borders the German Confederation (1815–1866). In the second half of 19th century the growth of German population in the city was being slowly reversed, with more Poles settling in, mainly from Pomerania, and parts of local population discovering their Polish roots.
In 1871 the city was included in the newly created German Empire.
Free City
The Free City of Danzig was a semi-autonomous city-state that existed between 1920 and 1939. It consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig and surrounding areas.
The Free City was created on 15 November 1920 in accordance with the terms of Part III, Section XI of the Treaty of Versailles of 1919, without a plebiscite. The Free City included the city of Danzig and over two hundred nearby towns, villages and settlements.
As the League of Nations decreed, the region was to remain separated from the nation of Germany, and from the newly resurrected nation of Poland. The Free City was not an independent State; it was under League of Nations protection and put into a binding customs union with Poland. Poland also had special utilization rights towards the city. The Free City was created in order to give Poland sufficient access to the sea.
In 1933, the City's government was taken over by the local Nazi Party and the democratic opposition was suppressed.
After the German invasion of Poland in 1939, the Free City was abolished and incorporated into the newly formed Reichsgau (an administrative subdivision) of Danzig-West Prussia. Widespread anti-Semitic and anti-Polish discrimination and organized murder followed.
Before the end of World War II, the Yalta Conference had agreed to place the city, under its original Polish name Gdansk, under de facto administration of Poland. This decision was confirmed at the Potsdam Conference.
A Polish administration was set up in the devastated Gdansk on 30 March 1945. As of 1948 more than two thirds of the 150,000 inhabitants came from Central Poland, about 15 to 18 percent from Polish-speaking areas east of the Curzon Line that were annexed by the Soviet Union after WWII.
Between 1952 and the late 1960s Polish artisans restored much of the old city's architecture, up to 90% destroyed in the war.
Gdansk was the scene of anti-government demonstrations which led to the downfall of Poland's communist leader Władysław Gomułka in December 1970, and ten years later was the birthplace of the Solidarity trade union movement, whose opposition to the government led to the end of communist party rule, in 1989, and the election as president of Poland of its leader Lech Wałęsa. It remains today a major port and industrial city.
Postage stamps and postal history of Free City of Danzig
Danzig, when was a Free City, had its own stamps.
The first stamps of Danzig were overprinted German stamps issued on 14 June 1920.
The first stamps of the Danzig Free State appeared in January 1921 and continued in use until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. At that time the Free City was annexed by the Third Reich.
Nov 4, 2012
Germany On Stamps: New Third Reich Stamps
Nova Série completa do Terceiro Reich (1934). Esta série apresenta duas figuras importantes dos pioneiros da aviação, Ferdinand von Zeppelin e Otto Lilienthal.
