Documents

Original and coherent German personal archive belonging to Wilhelm Ludwig Kappler of Karlsruhe, born in 1897. The group includes his photograph-bearing Wehrpass and Arbeitsbuch, a filled-in Ahnenpass, two 1944 air-raid victim identification cards, civil and church certificates, genealogical records, official stamps and handwritten entries. A substantial WWII German document group tracing one civilian’s military registration, technical employment, ancestry and experience of the bombing war.

Original one-page political document dated 24 September 1938 and personally signed in ink by Martin Bormann. Issued from the Munich office of the Deputy Führer and addressed to the NSDAP parliamentary group in Berlin, the letter concerns former Reichstag deputy Otto Hergt and confirms that no adverse political or personal information had become known about him. Complete with official letterhead, embossed seal, archival folds and a prominent Bormann signature.

Original German military appointment document dated 22 November 1934 and personally signed by Defence Minister Werner von Blomberg. Issued on official “Der Reichswehrminister” stationery, it assigns army chemist Dr.-Ing. Richard Scholle to the German Army administration and places him with military gas-protection training courses. A significant pre-WWII document from the final months of the Reichswehr.

Original German postcard handwritten and signed by Franz von Papen in Berlin on 28 February 1933, during his first month as Vice Chancellor in Adolf Hitler’s government. The card bears Papen’s printed Wilhelmstrasse address, Prussian State Ministry stamp, postage, postal markings and a large handwritten “F. v. Papen” signature. A historically significant autograph from a decisive date in the establishment of the Third Reich.

Original period black-and-white photographic image personally signed in blue ink by Josef “Sepp” Dietrich. The scene shows Dietrich standing directly behind Adolf Hitler beside a railway carriage, with Robert Ley apparently visible at the right. Dating from the 1936 Nuremberg Party Rally period, the image is mounted on grey card and preserved on a period album page.

Original WWII German judicial document dated 28 June 1940, issued by the Adjutant’s Office of the Reich Governor in Vienna and addressed to the Graz Regional Court. Signed by an official catalogued as Gauamtsleiter “Dietrich,” the letter concerns Otto Kortschak’s death sentence and a petition for clemency addressed to Adolf Hitler. The reverse bears an official reply from the Special Court in Graz dated 3 July 1940.

Original German military certificate dated 1 April 1936 and personally signed in graphite pencil by Erwin Rommel during his period as an instructor at the Potsdam War School. The document certifies that Major Dr. Dr. Mayer had provided genealogical evidence of ancestry extending to his grandparents. A rare pre-WWII autograph connected with the future commander of the 7th Panzer Division and Afrika Korps.

Original pre-WWII German political propaganda group comprising a marked 1938 Anschluss referendum ballot and a dark wooden “Deutschland wählt Hitler!” election pencil. The ballot asks voters to approve the annexation of Austria into the German Reich and support Adolf Hitler’s unified Reichstag list. A powerful historical set connected with Nazi expansion, political propaganda and the events that preceded the Second World War.

Original four-piece Third Reich political propaganda group comprising a marked 1936 Adolf Hitler Reichstag ballot, a “Deutschland wählt Hitler!” election pencil, a stylised “Ja” campaign stickpin and an “Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Führer” Hitler portrait badge. An evocative pre-WWII collection documenting the propaganda, controlled elections and political consolidation of Nazi Germany.

Original pre-WWII German political propaganda set comprising a marked 1936 Adolf Hitler Reichstag ballot paper, a brown “Deutschland wählt Hitler!” election pencil and a dated “Ja – 12.11.1933” political badge. An evocative group documenting the propaganda, controlled elections and consolidation of the Third Reich before the Second World War.

Original pre-WWII German political propaganda group comprising a marked 1936 Adolf Hitler Reichstag ballot paper, a 1933 “Deutschland wählt Hitler!” election pencil, an “Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer” Hitler portrait badge and a dated “Ja – 12.11.1933” referendum badge. A visually impressive historical set documenting the political consolidation of the Third Reich before the Second World War.

Original typed letter personally signed in ink by Marshal Philippe Pétain, dated 26 December 1934. Although written before the Second World War, the document is directly connected to one of the most controversial figures of WWII, who later became Head of the French State and leader of Vichy France. The letter concerns Pétain’s acceptance of a place on a memorial committee dedicated to French historian Camille Jullian. Accompanied by a separate historical photographic print associated with Pétain’s later political period.