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".

1920 - Weimar Republic Sets  // 1920 - Séries da República de Weimar

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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.

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Germany On Stamps: Danzig Stamps

New Stamps from Danzig (1920).

Novos Selos de Danzig (1920).

The Danzig Collection  // A Colecção de Danzig

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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.

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Germany On Stamps: New Third Reich Stamps

New complete Set from Third Reich (1934). This set has two important figures of aviation pioneers, Ferdinand von Zeppelin and Otto Lilienthal.

Nova Série completa do Terceiro Reich (1934). Esta série apresenta duas figuras importantes dos pioneiros da aviação, Ferdinand von Zeppelin e Otto Lilienthal.

 1934 Third Reich Stamps  // Selos do Terceiro Reich (1934)

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Germany On Stamps: German East Africa Postcards

Two new 10 centimes Postcards from German East Africa (Ruanda-Urundi territory under Belgian occupatin at Word War One).

Dois novos Postais de 10 Cêntimos da África Oriental Alemã (Território do Ruanda-Urundi sob ocupação Belga durante a Primeira Guerra Mundial).

 

 1916 - German East Africa 10Ct Postcards  // 1916 -  Postais de 10Ct da África Oriental Alemã

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Germany on Stamps: German Offices Abroad (China)

Stamps from German Offices Abroad (China). Those stamps are from 1901 and 1905.

Selos emitidos nos Postos de Correios Alemães no Estrangeiro (China). Os selos foram emitidos em 1901 e  em 1905.

Stamps from German Offices in China // Selos emitidos nos Postos de Correios Alemães na China

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Germany on Stamps: Third Reich 1937 Pages

New "Third Reich" theme pages. Now we publish 1937 Stamps, Letters, Postcards and Blocks pages.

Novas páginas do tema "Terceiro Reich". Publicamos agora as páginas de 1937, contendo Selos, Cartas, Postais e Blocos.

Third Reich Pages  // Páginas do Terceiro Reich

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The Third Reich: General History

THE THIRD REICH

After the First Reich (or Holy Roman Empire), from 962 to 1806, and the Second Reich, from 1871 to 1918, and mainly because the humiliation which led to the fall of Emperor Wilhelm II at the end of World War I and all the impositions that the German nation had to accept unconditionally, Adolf Hitler nurtured the dream of a Third Reich, which ends up imposing in 1933, after the rise to power of his National Socialist Party, which won the electoral supremacy during the political disorder that followed the economic crisis of 1929-1930, which creates instability and favour the emergence of extremism.

Founded in 1919, in the aftermath of the humiliating Treaty of Versailles of that year - by which Germany is obliged to pay war damages to the Allies, to reduce its military and abandon the colonies -, the Nazi Party of Hitler, after the failed uprising 1923, decides to gain power through legal means. However, the relative prosperity and stability that Germany knows between 1924 and 1929 gives poor results for the Nazis elections.

Are Hitler's promises to overcome the severe economic crisis of the Great Depression, the repudiation of the Treaty of Versailles ("a stab in the back of Germany," he said) and the defence of German rearmament gradually to appeal to the electorate. In 1932, there was already the most representative party formation with a seat in the Reichstag (parliament), gained force with the appointment, the following year, Hitler as a chancellor, by Marshal Hindenburg.

Immediately, Hitler prepares to impose the dictatorship, abolishing the constitution of the Weimar Republic (1919-33) and all political parties except his own, passing to control the justice, media, security forces and education. Also leaves the League of Nations and the disarmament conference, reactivating the compulsory military service.

In Germany, opponents were murdered, declared or suspected; "purge" even the Nazi party, imprisoning them in concentration camps that were not settled; witnessing the flight of many Germans. The military corps of the party (SA, Sturmabteilung, and SS, Schutzstaffel) and its police (Gestapo) imposed a climate of torture and terror. With the death of Hindenburg in 1934, Hitler declares itself as der Führer (the leader), joining the presidency and the foreign ministry in his person. Political resistance disappears; many follow him, animated by its program of economic reconstruction (roads, war industry and similar to, self-sufficiency ...).

The objectives of Hitler were related to the imposition of German superiority affirmed the principle that other peoples were inferior, especially Jews (in fact, held the German economic structure, coveted by the Nazis to ensure economic reconstruction), the Slavs, Gypsies and other non-Germanic peoples. Within this framework of action, advocated the creation of a "living space" (Lebensraum) for German people, found the formula to justify the expansionism of the Reich, including in the East.

Anti-Semitism was another facet of this policy, by which Germany intended to "cleanse" the country. Thus, Hitler, in 1933, orders the expulsion of Jews from government positions. The persecution that moves them unreal outlines affects from 1935, with the abolition of citizenship rights and the flight of nearly 500 000 Jews from the country (where circulating properly identified by a yellow Star of David).

On November 9, 1938, groups will burn down the synagogues and destroy the business of the Jews, a night that has become known as the 'Night of Broken Glass' (Kristallnacht), or 'broken glass'.

At the same time, Hitler and Nazi Germany were preparing for war. Clearly violating the Treaty of Versailles of 1919, occupy the Rhineland in 1936, signing a pact with Mussolini's fascist Italy and an anti-communist agreement with the Japanese, forming, with these three nations, the Axis Rome-Berlin-Tokyo.

In March 1938, the Germans occupied Austria, attaching it to the Reich (Anschluss). That same year, they were able to occupy the Czech region, most of Germany, the Sudetenland, with the consent of England and France (Munich Agreements). What remained of Czechoslovakia is dismembered in the next year, with the German protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia tax.

In August 1939, the Reich gets more of its diplomatic hoaxes, with the agreement with USSR to its neutrality if one of the countries involved in war, and also agrees, but secretly, with the division of Poland and much of Eastern Europe between them.

On the first day of next month, however, the Germans forced the Polish border and march on Danzig, whose "corridor" wanted to join the conquering East Prussia, which triggers the Second World War (whose history is inseparable from the Hitler regime). The Third Reich was defeated and completely destroyed in the conflict, despite dominating scathingly until 1941 (Blitzkrieg).

Declaring war on several European powers, in turn, and then to USA, suffer tremendous setbacks on the Russian front: Nazi Germany is losing military strength (particularly with the Allied bombings of the country from 1943), being harassed for their borders and ending to surrender unconditionally in 1945, but after losing former territories and redefining its borders (Yalta and Potsdam agreements).

During this period of 1939-1945, the anti-Semitism is raised beyond the imaginable, are perpetrating acts of perfect insanity from about six million Jewish victims of Nazi concentration camps (Holocaust), along with more than five million Germans killed, not counting the wounded and missing, and all the brutal destruction of the country and much of Europe and the world.

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German on Stamps: Johann Sebastian Bach

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH

(COMPOSER)

(31 March 1685 - 28 July 1750)

 

Johann Sebastian Bach born in Eisenach, Saxe-Eisenach, was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity.

Although he did not introduce new forms, he enriched the prevailing German style with a robust contrapuntal technique, an unrivalled control of harmonic, rhythmic and melodic organization in the adaptation of rhythms, forms and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France.

Revered for their intellectual depth, technical command and artistic beauty, Bach's works include the "Brandenburg concertos", the "Goldberg Variations", the "Partitas", "The Well-Tempered Clavier", the "Mass in B minor", the "St Matthew Passion", the "St John Passion", the "Magnificat", "The Musical Offering", "The Art of Fugue", the "English and French Suites", the "Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin", the "Cello Suites", more than 200 surviving cantatas, and a similar number of organ works, including the celebrated "Toccata and Fugue in D minor and Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor".

In Weimar, he had the opportunity to play and compose for the organ, and to perform a varied repertoire of concert music with the duke's ensemble. A master of contrapuntal technique, Bach's steady output of fugues (is a contrapuntal composition in two or more voices, built on a subject or theme that is introduced at the beginning and recurs frequently in the course of the composition) began in Weimar. The largest single body of his fugal writing is "Das wohltemperierte Clavier" (The well-tempered keyboard).

During his tenure at Weimar, Bach started work on the "Little Organ Book". This contains traditional Lutheran chorales (hymn tunes), set in complex textures to assist the training of organists.

Bach began once again to search out a more stable job that was conducive to his musical interests. Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, hired Bach to serve as his Kapellmeister (director of music). Prince Leopold, himself a musician, appreciated Bach's talents, paid him well, and gave him considerable latitude in composing and performing. The prince was Calvinist and did not use elaborate music in his worship; thus, most of Bach's work from this period was secular, including the Orchestral suites, the Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello and the Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin. The well-known "Brandenburg Concertos" date from this period. Bach composed secular cantatas, as the "Die Zeit, die Tag und Jahre macht, BWV 134a".

The church and city government at Mühlhausen agreed to his plan for an expensive renovation of the organ at St. Blasius's. Bach, in turn, wrote an elaborate, festive cantata - "Gott ist mein König, BWV 71" - for the inauguration of the new council in 1708. The council was so delighted with the piece that they paid handsomely for its publication, and twice in later years had the composer return to conduct it. That same year, Bach was offered a better position in Weimar.

In 1723, Bach was appointed Cantor of Thomasschule, adjacent to the Thomaskirche (St. Thomas's Lutheran Church) in Leipzig, as well as Director of Music in the principal churches in the town. This was a prestigious post in the leading mercantile city in Saxony, a neighboring electorate to Thuringia.

Apart from his brief tenures in Arnstadt and Mühlhausen, this was Bach's first government position in a career that had mainly involved service to the aristocracy. This final post, which he held for 27 years until his death, brought him into contact with the political machinations of his employer, the Leipzig Council.

In 1747, Bach went to the court of Frederick II of Prussia in Potsdam, where the king played a theme for Bach and challenged him to improvise a fugue based on his theme. Bach improvised a three-part fugue on Frederick's pianoforte, then a novelty, and later presented the king with a "Musical Offering" which consists of fugues, canons and a trio based on the "royal theme", nominated by the monarch.

The final work Bach completed was a chorale prelude for organ, dictated to his son-in-law, Johann Altnikol, from his deathbed.

Bach's health may have been in decline in 1749; Bach died on 28 July 1750 at the age of 65.

Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected throughout Europe during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognized as a great composer until a revival of interest and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded one of the main composers of the Baroque style, and as one of the greatest composers of all time.

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