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Coupons Of German Pow-Camps WWII

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Author Previous TopicReplies: 7 / Views: 11,670Next Topic  
New Member
littlejohn's Avatar
Germany
14 Posts
 Posted 03/31/2013  4:27 pm Show Profile   Bookmark this topic Add littlejohn to your friends list Get a Link to this Message Number of Subscribers
Hello everybody,

from time to time I`d like to introduce parts of my collection of German papermoney. Today I start with the coupons of German camps for prisoners of war in WWII. These coupons were initialized by the supreme commander of the German Wehrmacht in 1939. The coupons were issued in denomination of 1, 10, 50 Reichspfennig (RPf) and 1, 2, 5 and 10 Reichsmark (RM). A coupon for 20RM is known as an essay only. The coupons were valid in all POW-camps lead by the Germans and are printed uniface on watermark-paper. The watermark is called Four Petals (Small cruciform blossoms) and visible on the last picture.

Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII
Watermark: Four Petals (Small cruciform blossoms)
Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII


Edited by littlejohn
03/31/2013 5:09 pm
Valued Member
marz's Avatar
United Kingdom
116 Posts
 Posted 03/31/2013  7:51 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add marz to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Fascinating, thanks for posting this.
Is there any way to tell which year they were issued and to which camps (by print variations or serial number etc)?
Pillar of the Community
hajduk's Avatar
Germany
645 Posts
 Posted 03/31/2013  8:35 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add hajduk to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Hi marz,
there were issued between 1939 - 1945.
They were issued for each camp with Allied soldiers which was under the leadership of the Wehrmacht.
They were not used in camps under SS or Gestapo control.
The First Number shows the Series.
1 Reichspfennig - 2. Series
10 Reichspfennig - 8. Series
50 Reichspfennig - 1. Series
1 Reichsmark - 4. Series
2 Reichsmark - 1. Series
5 Reichsmark - 1. Series
10 Reichsmark do not shows the Series. I do not Know why.
I think littlejohn knows something more about the Bills.

Edited by hajduk
03/31/2013 9:00 pm
New Member
littlejohn's Avatar
Germany
14 Posts
 Posted 04/01/2013  03:19 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add littlejohn to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Hi marz
as hajduk already stated correctly these coupons were issued in 09/1939 and the validity endet on May 8th 1945 when the war was over. The date was not printed on the coupons. You mentioned the serial number. Here are some fact about that topic. Every coupon (without the 10RM) has a pre-printed series No before the official serial-number. Here`s an overview of existing combinations:

1RPf:
pre-series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 --> serial: 7-digit

10RPf:
pre-series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 --> serial: 7-digit

50RPf:
a) pre-series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 --> serial: 6-digit
b) pre-series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 --> serial: 7-digit

1RM:
pre-series: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 --> serial: 7-digit

2RM: pre-series: 1, 2, 3 --> serial: 7-digit

5RM:
a) pre-series: 1 --> serial: 6-digit
b) pre-series: 1, 2, 3 --> serial: 7-digit

10RM: pre-series: none --> serial: 7-digit

So you can see that the higher the nominals the less pre-series were issued. The 10RM coupon has no pre-serie due to the fact that is was a too high nominal and very rare given to the prisoners. On the other hand you have to imagine that these coupons were used by the POW to buy some goods in the campstore (e.g. soap or cigarettes) or in the canteen (e.g. extra bread). But most of the time the amount of goods offered there was very low.
Valued Member
marz's Avatar
United Kingdom
116 Posts
 Posted 04/06/2013  10:30 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add marz to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. It is a fascinating series.

Would the guards also be using this currency? I cannot help wondering about the 10RM and its purpose?
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hajduk's Avatar
Germany
645 Posts
 Posted 04/07/2013  07:42 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add hajduk to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Hi marz,
the guards had Wehrmacht issues.
(As an example,a scan.)
These "Lagergeld" notes were a nice chance to get notes of the Allies in the country.
So the Regime had a good way to fitted spies and betrayers with real Dollars and £.
There was also the famous Operation Bernhard with which Germany wanted to hurl the UK in a inflation.
(As an example,a scan.)
This Bernards were used until deep in the fifties.
German Nazis financed with these false "Bernahrd £" the escape.


Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII

Coupons-Of-German-Pow-Camps-WWII


(sorry for my bad english! )
Edited by hajduk
04/07/2013 07:53 am
Valued Member
flanders8008's Avatar
Canada
215 Posts
 Posted 10/26/2017  10:59 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add flanders8008 to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
WOW thanks for posting. I have one of the 1 Reichpfennig notes and your post helped me figure out just what it is. Cheers.
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scopru's Avatar
United States
5029 Posts
 Posted 10/26/2017  11:02 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add scopru to your friends list Get a Link to this Reply
Very interesting postings!
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