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Propaganda on banknotes
In the 1923 hyper inflation period a vast amount of
Inflation banknotes were printed to keep up with the daily
devaluation and the resulting need to produce ever higher denominations of notes. Once the inflation
was over all the money became just colorful pieces of paper without nominal value.
To get rid of the mountain of paper money some of it was just burned during thoses days of economic
hardship. Others, however, were re-used in an early form of recycling: Since nearly all notes in late
1923 were only printed single-sided, the other (blank) side of the note could be used again. So the
back side of inflation banknotes were frequently used as "leaflets" for advertising and propaganda
purposes.
The picture shows a propaganda leaflet, which asks to elect the "völkisch-sozialen Block" -
the national-social block (i.e. the early nazi movement). Below the picture a rhyme is placed:
So müßt das allen Schiebern gehn,
dann würd's um Deutschland besser stehn.
It translates into English like:
If this would happen to every cheater,
then Germany would be much neater.
On the backside of a 2 Million Mark note
from 9 August 1923.
Anti-semitism on banknotes
The inflation banknotes were also used for the propaganda against the Jewish people in Germany.
Most of them were transformed into leaflets used by the Nazis for their terrible anti-semitc propaganda.
The text is the same on all bills show on the right:
Das Gold, das Silber und den Speck
nahm uns der Jud
und ließ uns diesen Dreck.
Volksgenossen, wie lange wollt Ihr Euch
noch von der goldenen Internationale
ausplündern und betrügen lassen?
Kommt zu Hitler,
Werdet Nationalsozialisten.
A translation would read like this:
The gold, the silver and the bacon
took away the jew
and left us with this crap.
People, how long do you want to be
plundered and deceived
from the golden Internationalists.
Come to Hitler,
become National Socialists.
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Reverse of a 20,000 Mark note 1922:
Front of a 100 Million Mark note 1923:
Reverse of a 1000 Mark note 1922:
Front of a 500,000 Mark bill 1923:
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A shortened version of this propagnda text was printed on the reverse of the 10 million Mark banknote. Interestingly the swastikas on this leaflet are printed the wrong way round.
Der Jude nahm
Häuser, Silber, Gold und Speck
uns Deutschen ließ er diesen Dreck.
Wählt
Völkisch sozialer Block
Translation:
The Jew took away
houses, silver, gold and bacon
us Germans he with this crap.
Vote
National social block
On the reverse of the 1,000 Mark banknote from 1922 another variation of this defamation was printed:
Gold und Silber,
große Scheine, hat der Kapitalist im Schreine,
auch die Bauern und die Juden,
füllen damit ihre Buden.
Alles nahmen sie uns weg, ließen und nur
diesen Dreck!
Translation:
Gold and silver,
large bills are in the shrine of the capitalist,
but also the peasants and the jews fill up their booths with it.
Everything they took away and only left us with
this crap.
The next bill shows a different text. It was printed again on the back of a 1000 Mark note from 1922. The text is the following:
Willst Du Dich weiter betrügen lassen?
Lies Zeitungen, die die Wahrheit schreiben!
Nationalsozialistischer Zeitungsvertrieb
Die Judenzeitung aus dem Haus!
Das Blatt für Dich gibt Hitler 'raus!
It translates like this:
Do you want to go on to be deceived?
Read papers that write the truth!
National Socialist paper distribution
Out of the house with the jew paper!
The sheet for you is issued by Hitler!
On the reverse of the same banknote a mixture of anti-semitic and anti-communist propaganda is shown. A picture shows Karl Radek (1885-1939) a jewish journalist and minister for foreign affairs of the Soviet Union. Underneath the text:
Eisenbahnräuber Arbeitermörder
Größter Kapitalist in Rußland
Arbeiter soll das euer Führer sein?
Volksgenossen werdet
Nationalsozialisten
lest den
Völkischen Beobachter, München
Translation:
Railway robber, murderer of the worker
Largest capitalist in Russia
Workers - do you want this to be your leader?
Fellows of the volk become
National-Socialists
read the
Völkisch Observer, Munich
(Völkischen Beobachter was a newspaper published by the Nazis)
Ironic text on banknote
The following example shows an ironic text that mocks the inflation and uses words of a christian creed:
Glaubensbekenntnis
Ich glaube an den allmächtigen Dollar, Schöpfer des Wuchers und der Goldmark verrechnung, und an die Papiermark, die eingeborene im deutschen Land, die empfangen wird von den Dummen, geboren in Berlin in der Reichsdruckerei, gelitten unter der Devisenspekulation, gekreuzigt, gestorben und begraben, abgestiegen zum Altpapier, nach 3 Tagen wieder auferstanden durch das Ermächtigungsgesetz, aufgefahren in den Himmel, sitzend zur Rechten der Rentenmark, des Allmächtigen Ersatzes der Goldmark, die da kommen soll zu richten die Lebendigen, wenn sie noch nicht gestorben sind.
Ich glaube an das Einheitsbrot, Nachlassung des Kohldampfes, Herabsetzung der Grundpreise und den feststehenden Multiplikator, ich hoffe auf Gesundung und Widerauferstehung des Deutschen Reiches und auf ein ewiges Leben.
Amen!
A translation into English would read like this:
Confession of faith
I believe in the almighty Dollar, Maker of usury and Goldmark payment: and in the paper mark native in the German lands; who was conceived by the stupid, born in Berlin in the Reichsdruckerei, suffered under foreign exchange speculation, crucified, dead, and buried; descended to waste paper; the third day it rose again through the empowerment law; ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Rentenmark the almighty substitute of the Goldmark; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the unity bread; the reduction of the starving; the decrease of the basic prices and the fixed multiplicator; I hope for the recuperation and the resurrection of the German Reich; and the life everlasting.
Amen!
On the backside of a 100 Million Mark note
from 22 August 1923.
Receipt on banknote
Another example for a reused banknote shows the following illustration. It is a receipt for
the tax paid for tobacco. It was used in the town of Bad Wilsnack in 1948.
On the backside of a 2 Million Mark note
from 9 August 1923.
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