Germany tried to occupy Belgium in a way that previewed their view of the post war era after a German victory. This was not of a united Belgium but rather one divided on linguistic lines. Belgium remember was a new country with the Walloons dominating the way the Flemish had under Holland. Was their room for this strategy to work? 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.
Todays stamp is a very common German stamp around from 1900-1920 featuring Germania, the female personification of the German state. Such female personifications were common in many countries in the 19th century. Where it is used on an occupation stamp, as here from WWI Belgium, it becomes provocative. That said, I am a fan of the old style font of the overprint. The government in exile put out rival stamps of King Albert wearing a trench warfare style helmet. No mention on that of his German heritage and his German Queen.
Todays stamp is issue N16, a 15 Belgian Cent overprint of the 15 Pfennig issued by the German occupation General Government of Belgium in 1916. It was part of 16 stamp issue of German Germania stamps overprinted in the local currency for use in occupied Belgium. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 65 cents mint. This is double the value of the Germania stamp without the overprint.
Belgium was required by the treaty that allowed for it’s founding to be neutral in Great Power conflicts. Thus it could not allow for the passage of German troops through it’s territory to attack France as Germany requested. The Belgian army resisted the subsequent German invasion in 1914. Almost the entire country was conquered in short order but the resistance gave time for the allies to organize defenses in France and Belgian Army units fought along side them under the personal command of King Albert.
The occupation was described hyperbolically as the rape of Belgium in Western press. This was greatly exaggerated and indeed Germany allowed food shipped to the Belgian people from the then neutral USA financed by a Belgian industrialist Emile Francqui in association with future American President Herbert Hoover. The food was sold to those that could afford it and given to those that could not. One crime that the Germans were guilty of was shipping laborers against their will to work in Germany when volunteer goals fell short. They were paid and returned post war.
What perhaps was most threatening was the German use of Flamenpolitk. This was treating and administering the large number of Dutch speaking Flemish differently that the French speaking Walloons. The Dutch themselves were neutral in WWI but shared a language heritage with Germany and had ruled Belgium previously. The hotbed of strife was the University of Ghent, which had taught in French despite being in a Flemish city. The Germans forced the university to teach in Flemish. King Albert returned after German defeat and in his first speech he promised a new Flemish University in Ghent. He also retook his oath in Flemish as well as French, which had never been done before. The University of Ghent tried to go back to French but became the only Flemish university in 1930 after King Albert’s death.
Well my drink is empty and I will pour another to toast Herbert Hoover. When an old Belgian railroad rival in China called and asked for help for his people, Hoover was there, as the USA always is. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.