3rd May 1940

8th August 1940 Carl Soldan See 08.08.1940 - 24/2 Humour and agility. Every Thursday, he proclaims his motto: ‘Be vigilant and don't let up!’ The ‘after-sport’ comes into its own, just as it used to. We miss some of you. It would have been good if the comrades who are now being called up for their medical exams had also done sport! Incidentally, you will also be interested in this: These days we once again had a company roll call in the green area. Pg. Gensch-Berlin - a very skilful speaker - spoke to us. He liked us so much that he gave longer explanations than planned. Among other things, he pointed out that preparations were being made for the Reich Party Congress. On the whole, you could feel that everyone was excited and looking forward with confidence to the coming decisive events. What will England do? Will it begin its ‘strategic retreat’? Over 4.3 million GRT of merchant ships have already been sunk. Further bombing continues. Well, we'll see! By the way, did you have the opportunity to hear the Führer's truly triumphant entry into the Reich capital to the ringing of all the bells? It is a tremendous time! Today we close with the words: Long live the Führer! Sieg Heil! and kind regards! The works community of DR. CARL SOLDAN G.M.B.H. Contact Brief History to inform us of additional information regarding this page

26th September 1940 Hans Bar Briefmarken Cover sent from Hans Bär in Rumburg to an address in Bonn (with additional manuscript text with an 'Adolf Hitler Platz' address). Featuring danzig definitive overprint Mi.724. RefL 26.09.1940 - 13/11

12th July 1940 Raid Terezin FC Theresienstadt See 12.07.1940 - 26/50 Contact Brief History to inform us of additional information regarding this page

27th August 1940 Stamps of Venezuela

25th October 1940 MFP51a Feldpost cover featuring Netherlands cancellation MFP51P84. Ref: 25.10.1940 Variation of this cancel MFP51a with four wavy lines to the left, the lower line beneath the bottom edge of the circular cancel. Not listed in Michel. Ref: 25.10.1940, MFP51P84

25th April 1940 Kreisleiter See 25.04.1940 Contact Brief History to inform us of additional information regarding this page

Mi.760-761 (26.11.1940) Emil von Behring & Diphtheria Mi.760-761 Emil von Behring Diphtheria Mi.760 (Ref: 14.05.1941) Add 04.12.1940 - 30/93 for main image (of Behring) but do not use stamps in main feature. Use cancel in JB: Add stamps from 04.12.1940 - 30/94 (Marburg) Also display souvenir sheet 04.12.1940 - 30/95 Also display Behring company envelope 14.05.1941 - 25/94 On 4th December 1940, the Philipps University Marburg celebrated the 50th anniversary of the original publication of Emil von Behring’s decisive discovery of serum therapy. Top leaders of the National Socialist Party, the rectors of numerous German universities, representatives of the Behringwerke and many scientists and friends of Emil von Behring from abroad were also present. The celebration, which continued over a few days, began with lectures and addresses by officials, both of the state and party. Finally, a foundation certificate for a new Institute for Experimental Therapy was handed over. The professors then moved from the university auditorium ( Aula ), to unveil a new Behring Memorial close to the St. Elisabeth Church. The celebration was followed by a two-day scientific meeting, presenting the state of the art of immunology and the fight against infectious diseases. In the view of the National Socialists, Else von Behring was regarded as a 'half-Jew', as her mother came from a Jewish family. With the help of a number of friends she was able to get her sons accepted by Hitler as 'Aryans' and not stigmatised as 'half-breeds'. After the death of Else von Behring in 1936, no obstacles were left for the Nazi party to use Emil von Behring as a glorified representative of national socialist 'Germanic' science. During the ceremony there were, however, some signs of tension. Although one of Behring’s sons participated in the ceremony, he was not greeted by any of the official speakers. Only the Danish researcher, Thorvald Madsen from Copenhagen, who had previously been chairman of the Health Organisation of the League of Nations, dared to mention Behring’s friendly connection with researchers from enemy countries, such as those at the Institut Pasteur in Paris. Courageously, he also recalled the great bacteriologist Paul Ehrlich, despised by the Nazis due to his Jewish origin, who had played a significant role in Behring’s successes. Source: nobelprize.org (2025) Contact Brief History to inform us of additional information regarding this page

22nd August 1940 Bielitz Official Mi.138 Official cover sent from 'Der Landrat in Bielitz' (District Council).Featuring official 12 Pf postage stamp (Mi.138). Ref: 22.08.1940

4th December 1940 News in Brief French Demobilisation See 04.12.1940 - 30/96 FRENCH DEMOBILISATION PRIME DE DEMOBILISATION Je soussigné name déclare sur l'honneur ne pas avoir bénéficié d'un traitement ou salaire provenant d'une Administration quelconque pendant ma présence sous les drapeaux et ne pas être Israëlite. Et ne pas avoir toucher la première partie de ma prime. ISTRES, Le -4 DEC 1940 Septembre 1940 Signed DEMOBILISATION PAY I, the undersigned, name , hereby declare on my honour that I did not receive any salary or wages from any government agency during my service in the military, that I am not Jewish, and that I have not yet received the first instalment of my demobilisation pay. ISTRES, -4 DEC1940 September 1940 Signed General demobilisation of the French forces had begun and the first to be released were the transport and public services employees. Having been an employee of French Railways, I applied for my demobilisation and was finally discharged on the 15th July 1940 at the Mairie de Sainte-Livrade, and like all 'other ranks' received the sum of 200 francs with a warrant for a further 800 francs on reaching home. Since my repatriation to England was of course out of the question, I gave as my home address that of Oncle Pierre at Thomery (near Fontainebleau) in the German occupied part of France. Early the next morning I said goodbye to my army companions and got a lift in one of our lorries as far as Villeneuve-sur-Lot, where I continued by train to a place called Penne to collect two days’ food rations. My next stop was at Agen and from there on to Toulouse by train. The train service was curtailed to about one a day, stopping at all stations and crammed with people. Source: bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/02/a7854302.shtml (2026) Contact Brief History to inform us of additional information regarding this page

12th September 1940 Dux Reichsfinanz verwaltung Legal letter-sheet issued by the Reichsfinanz verwaltung (finance administration) in the rural district of Dux (at this time part of Reichsgau Sudetenland, governmental district Aussig, the towns name since reverted back to the original Duchcov). Ref: 12.09.1940 Reichsfinanz verwaltung seals Used on a letter-sheet from Dux (Duchcov). Ø 30mm (red circle). Ref: 12.09.1940

10th April 1940 Messerschmitt Bf 109 Postcard sent via feldpost depicting the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter aircraft. Ref: 10.04.1940 Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the end of World War II in 1945. It was one of the most advanced fighters when it first appeared, with an all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. It was called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces, even though this was not the official German designation. Page from 'Spot them in the Air!' published by the British newspaper the 'Daily Mirror', c.1940. The plane was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser who worked at Bayerische Flugzeugwerke during the early to mid-1930s. It was conceived as an interceptor, although later models were developed to fulfil multiple tasks, serving as bomber escort, fighter-bomber, day-, night-, all-weather fighter, ground-attack aircraft, and aerial reconnaissance aircraft. It was supplied to several states during World War II and served with several countries for many years after the war. The Bf 109 is the most produced fighter aircraft in history, with a total of 34,248 airframes produced from 1936 to April 1945. Some of the Bf 109 production took place in Nazi concentration camps through slave labor. Originally the aircraft was designated as Bf 109 by the RLM, since the design was submitted by the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (literally 'Bavarian Aircraft Works', meaning 'Bavarian Aircraft Factory'; sometimes abbreviated B.F.W., (akin to BMW) during 1935. The company was renamed Messerschmitt AG after 11th July 1938 when Erhard Milch finally allowed Willy Messerschmitt to acquire the company. All Messerschmitt aircraft that originated after that date, such as the Me 210, were to carry the 'Me' designation. Despite regulations by the RLM, wartime documents from Messerschmitt AG, RLM and Luftwaffe loss and strength reports continued to use both designations, sometimes even on the same page. The aircraft was often nicknamed Messer by its operators and opponents alike; the name was not only an abbreviation of the manufacturer but also the German word for 'knife'. In Finland, the Bf 109 was known as Mersu , although this was originally (and still is) the Finnish nickname for Mercedes-Benz cars. Soviet aviators nicknamed the Bf 109 'the skinny one' (худо́й, khudoy ), for its sleek appearance compared, for example, to the more robust Fw 190. The names 'Anton', 'Berta', 'Caesar', 'Dora', 'Emil', 'Friedrich', 'Gustav', and 'Kurfürst' were derived from the variant's official letter designation (e.g. Bf 109G – 'Gustav'), based on the German spelling alphabet of World War II, a practice that was also used for other German aircraft designs. The G-6 variant was nicknamed by Luftwaffe personnel as Die Beule ('the bump/bulge') because of the cowling's characteristic, bulging covers for the breeches of the 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine guns, with the separate Beule covers eliminated by the time of the G-10 model's introduction of a subtly reshaped upper cowling. Page from 'Aircraft Identification' prepared by 'The Aeroplane' magazine, 1940. The first Bf 109As served in the Spanish Civil War. By September 1939, the Bf 109 had become the main fighter of the Luftwaffe, replacing the biplane fighters, and was instrumental in gaining air superiority for the Wehrmacht during the early stages of the war. During the Battle of Britain, it was pressed into the role of escort fighter, a role for which it was not originally designed, and it was widely employed as a fighter-bomber, as well as a photo-reconnaissance platform. Despite mixed results over Britain, with the introduction of the improved Bf 109F in early 1941, the type again proved to be an effective fighter during the Invasion of Yugoslavia (where it was used by both sides), the Battle of Crete, Operation Barbarossa (the invasion of the USSR) and the Siege of Malta. In 1942, it began to be partially replaced in Western Europe by a new German fighter, the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, but it continued to serve in a multitude of roles on the Eastern Front and in the Defense of the Reich, as well as in the Mediterranean Theatre of Operations and with Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps. It was also supplied to several of Germany's allies, including Italy, Finland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and Slovakia. More aerial kills were made with the Bf 109 than any other aircraft of World War II. Many of the aerial victories were accomplished against poorly trained and badly organised Soviet forces in 1941 during Operation Barbarossa. The Soviets lost 21,200 aircraft at this time, about half to combat. If shot down, the Luftwaffe pilots might land or parachute to friendly territory and return to fight again. Later in the war, when Allied victories began to bring the fight closer, and then in German territory, bombing raids supplied plenty of targets for the Luftwaffe. This unique combination of events — until a major change in American fighter tactics occurred very early in 1944, that steadily gave the Allies daylight air supremacy over the Reich — led to the highest-ever individual pilot victory scores. A second page from 'Aircraft Identification' prepared by 'The Aeroplane' magazine, 1940. One hundred and five Bf 109 pilots were each credited with the destruction of 100 or more enemy aircraft. Thirteen of these men scored more than 200 kills, while two scored more than 300. Altogether, this group of pilots was credited with a total of nearly 15,000 kills. Though no official 'ace' status existed in the Luftwaffe - the term Experte (expert) was used for an experienced pilot irrespective of his number of kills - using the Allied definition of pilots who scored five or more kills, more than 2,500 Luftwaffe fighter pilots were considered aces in World War II. Against the Soviets, Finnish-flown Bf 109Gs claimed a victory ratio of 25:1. Bf 109s remained in foreign service for many years after World War II. The Bf109 was the first aircraft deployed in the first years of the Israeli Air Force. The Swiss used their Bf 109Gs well into the 1950s. The Finnish Air Force did not retire their Bf 109Gs until March 1954. Romania used its Bf 109s until 1955. The Spanish Hispanos flew even longer. Some were still in service in the late 1960s. They appeared in films (notably Battle of Britain ) playing the role of Bf 109Es. Some Hispano airframes were sold to museums, which rebuilt them as Bf 109s. Source: Wikipedia Notes: 7 Staffel (10th January 1940): Wilcke, Altendorf, Magath, Riegel, Götz, Schramm, Galubinski, Neuhoff, Zerning, Schulte, Grosshaus, Mütter, Frankhauser (see Iron Cross , issue 23, Dec. 2024). Contact Brief History to inform us of additional information regarding this page