German Charity Relief Ticket to Opening of Season

$95.00

1 in stock

Description

“None shall starve or freeze”.  This Winter Charity Relief Ticket permitted the owner to attend the opening of the 1937/38 campaign in the huge concert/theatre in Berlin on Tuesday 5th October 1937 at 8pm.  The ticket was for seat 1011 in row 140 in Arena left.  The event opened the charity season.  After propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels had announced the official results of the 1936/37 WHW charity collections, Adolf Hitler opened the new season as Fuhrer and Reichskanzler (Chancellor).  The lower left hand corner of the ticket was cut off by the ticker taker on the door, when the attendee entered the hall. Measures 15cm x 10.5cm.

In Nazi Germany the Winterhilfswerk (Winter Charity Campaign, or WHW) collection campaigns took place each Winter and raised a great deal of money for charitable purposes. It was common place for those who collected the contributions to give donors a small memento to show appreciation for their contribution, and by wearing the memento, it was obvious the donor had contributed money. One usually parted with a few Pfennigs.

There were many campaigns connected with the WHW each year at the national level and at the Gau or state level. Each month from October through March, the money collected was set aside to help those who were hungry or cold. Badges were made in series, the idea being you kept donating to collect a whole series. Series of badges only lasted for up to a week, meaning an individual was encouraged to make a donation every day.

‘Can rattlers’ or ‘brown shirts’ wandered through busy streets, pubs and restaurants at meal times collecting donations. Businesses were encouraged to donate a monthly amount and received a sticker or poster for their shopfront window, so they could display it for all to see they were ‘doing their part’ for charity and the war effort.

The Abzeichen or mementos given to contributors to these and other charity campaigns in Third Reich Germany varied widely from flowers to metal badges, but most were simple enough to be manufactured at home by unemployed hand crafters or by very small enterprises, what we’d call cottage industry.

Some WHW mementos are superb pieces of art and others are very simple. Some include semi precious stones, others beautifully embroidered. They were plastic, metal, wooden, fabric, glass pottery and porcelain. All have been collected since the day they were made and are sought after today.

As well as WHW badges, postcards, stamps, first day covers and propaganda booklets were gifted for a donation.
Tinnies were also purchased to support the war effort & were often souveniers of events such as Rallies, Sports Festivals, Public Holidays and groups – navy, infantry, airforce, returned soldiers, youth, guilds etc…