Accension Number: 2022.02.8.46

Stamp: 6 Winterhilfswerk Deutches Reich 

Postmark: 

Illustrated on the postcard is Otto von Bismarck, the first Chancellor of the German Empire and better known as “Der eiserne Kanzler” (The Iron Chancellor). A quote is printed beneath the illustration; “Eine feige Politik hat noch immer Unglück gebracht”. This translates to “A cowardly policy has always brought misfortune”. It also includes his signature and death date (April 1, 1815—July 30, 1898).  

As the Nazi party rose, the Nazis tried to co-opt Bismarck’s legacy. Bismarck was a conservative, 19th century statesman who unified Germany and had a complex relationship with antisemitism, seeing as he was willing to let the movement grow with little interference. As a matter of fact, Bismarck used it opportunistically to weaken liberal political opposition by allowing attacks on Jewish liberals. His inaction gave way to a debate in the Prussian parliament in 1880 that declared Jews to not be true Germans. On the same hand, despite his opportunism, Bismarck also publicly stated he disapproved of agitation against Jewish peoples, viewing it as a religious and racial matter. Adolf Hitler and the Nazis attempted to portray themselves as the heirs to Bismarck’s legacy, however, historians agree the chancellor would have detested the Nazis and their ideology.