In the aftermath of a war that concluded with a devastating firebombing, this stamp displayed what a new government did to renew the city. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
I must say that I like this stamp. East Germany farmed out it’s stamp issues. As a result there are some oversized, overdone issues that were printed in too much quantity. Not this issue. This issue celebrated the 20th anniversary of the German Democratic Republic by showing clean modern architecture in 12 cities. Many of the cities were heavily bombed in the war and so the new construction was sort of a rebirth. This is how the GDR must have seemed to it’s leaders.
The stamp today is issue A357, a 10 pfennig stamp issued by the German Democratic Republic on September 23rd, 1969. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 25 cents used. Central Europe was full of stamp collectors and if there are still collectors of communist era memorabilia, this issue of stamps may yet be discovered.
Dresden was firebombed by British Lancaster bombers in February 1945. German resistance in the west was fading and the eastern city was crowded with refugees from the advancing Russians from the East. 75 percent of the city center was destroyed and 25,000 people perished. Post war, some consider this a war crime but British Air Marshal Harris interviewed many years later stated that the bombing was justified and reduced the German ability to keep fighting.
Dresden had been a cultural and royal center of the Prussian Empire with a long history. As such there were many historically significant sites damaged in the bombing. The East German decided to concentrate on German Cultural sites such as the opera house for reconstruction. The Prussian and church heritage was judged of less importance. The East Germans were out to construct a new modern scientific Germany, and with that came new modern architecture. It should be noted that there were more of the old buildings repaired in East Germany than in West Germany.
Interestingly at the time both East and West Germany considered themselves the legitimate government of all of Germany. Each viewed the other government as the lackey government of an occupied country. Since both East and West Germany were inundated with over a million foreign soldiers, there was some point to this critique, on both sides.
We all know the reunification that occurred in 1990 was a victory for the West and a defeat for the East. The west had delivered more economic opportunity and freedom to it’s people. It should be remembered though what a bold undertaking the East German government attempted. There was war devastation, no Marshall Plan of USA aid as in the west, and crippling war reparations that had to be paid to the Soviets. Through these challenges, East Germany built the most dynamic economy in the communist world. A fair appraisal of East German leadership should include consideration of this. It was not considered in the immediate aftermath as East German leaders had charges filed and long time leader Erich Honecker had to run to Russia and later Chile to avoid prosecution while Egon Krenz, his short term successor, spent time in German jail.
Well my drink is empty so I will pour another to honor the citizens of Dresden and their recovery efforts after the war. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.