This website

This website aims to document the R series of postcards from Ross Verlag and Film Foto Verlag. I am still seeking images for the R numbers not shown and would greatly appreciate it if any collector is willing to provide me with missing numbers to add to this website. Please contact me: majones71@hotmail.com

New additions: R25 Variant, R26 Variant.

Thanks to Dick Pumphrey for sharing his collection and helping to fill in some of the missing postcards.
Thanks to Denis Bosvin for providing postcards to fill some of the gaps.
Thanks to Olaf Schneider for providing postcards, too.
Thanks to Ian Carmichael for providing some rare song cards.

The R series

The R series of military propaganda postcards published by Ross Verlag and Film Foto Verlag began in 1939 (earliest dated postcard identified thus far is an R9 postmarked 20 April, 1939). Many R series postcards were firstly published by Ross Verlag and republished using the Film Foto Verlag name. The last Ross Verlag postcard in the R series located thus far is R168.The R number appears on either the front or rear of each postcard. The rear of R series Film Foto Verlag postcards show the publisher logo and the number C2235. Some later Ross Verlag cards show this number. Also, this number is not exclusive to these publishers.

Typical Rear of Ross Verlag Postcard

Typical Rear of Film Foto Verlag Postcard

The R series initially focused on Third Reich personalities and high ranking military leaders, before introducing a broader focus on army, navy and  airforce equipment, songs and personnel.

R1

R105

R32/3

R50

For further information about the Ross Verlag publishing company and its transition to Film Foto Verlag refer to http://www.rosscards.com 

Knights Cross holders

There was a notable emphasis on Knights Cross holders by Film Foto Verlag from R130. Indeed, from R262 (unique with white facsimile signature and no caption), the R series from this publisher focused exclusively on Knights Cross holders.

R130 Oberst Mölders

R262 Major Graf

Format

The publication of R328 saw the regular format of the Knights Cross holder postcards change to include a large white 'panel' at the bottom reminiscent of other Film Foto Verlag postcard series (e.g., movie actors). Prior to this only R5, R9 and R66 (unique with message) and R114, R115 and R117 appear to have had the white panel. From R334, all postcards followed the white panel format.

R66 Kapitanleutnant Prien

R328 Oberstleutnant Erich Bärenfänger

R117 Der Reichsmarschall

R334 Generalfeldmarschall v. Manstein

Variants

As some personnel were promoted to a higher rank or received decorations new versions of cards were released with the same number and photo but with appropriate adjustments made to the photo and/or to the caption information and/or the text on the rear of the card. Some postcards were initially published by Ross Verlag, only to be republished under the Film Foto Verlag name when changes mentioned occured, for instance, R29 (Keitel) and R131 (Galland).

R131 Oberst Galland

R131 Variant Oberst Galland

R131 Variant Rear Oberst Galland

R131 Generalmajor Galland

R131 Variant Rear Generalmajor Galland

Later postcards and related variants in the R series after R131, for example, R318 (Graf von Schwerin), all carried the Film Foto Verlag name on the rear.

R318 Generalleutnant Graf von Schwerin

R318 Rear Generalleutnant Graf von Schwerin

R318 Variant Generalmajor Graf von Schwerin

R318 Variant Rear Generalmajor Graf von Schwerin

Also, some personnel were shown in different poses on different numbered cards such as with R266 and R331 (Primozic) and R280 and R281 (Guderian).

R280 Generaloberst Guderian

R281 Generaloberst Guderian

Some R series Knights Cross holder postcard variants were also released posthumously, with the rear of the postcard indicating the relevant information, for example, R130 (Mölders) and R219 (Marseille).

R219 Variant Hauptmann Marseille

R219 Variant Hauptmann Marseille

A number of later cards have a different title above the text on the rear, which is Junge Eichenlaubträger der Infanterie. The relevant cards are indicated as Variant (rear) in the R201-300 and R301- pages.

R301 Variant (rear) Hauptmann Baumgarten Crusius

Reproductions

R series postcards were sometimes reproduced and released by other publishers. The front of these postcards are the same but information on the rear indicates that thay are a reproduction. The reproductions appear to be of early-number postcards, though it is not clear why this was done.

Photographers

A number of well-known photographers were involved in taking the images shown on the Third Reich personality, military leader and Knights Cross holder R series postcards. These photographers were Tita Binz (1903-1970), Rosemarie Clausen (1907-1990), and Ernst Sandau (1912-1945). Binz photographed Knights Cross holders from R262 onwards (apart from R305 and R306 from Aschenbroich), whereas Clausen photographed Göring and his family, and Sandau photographed a few Knights Cross holders, Göring, and Goebbels and his family. Approximately ten other studios participated in photographing subjects (typically only one or two) for the R series, such as Jatte-Weltbild (R130), Genzler-Weltbild (R187), and Berndt-Atlantic (R206).

R270 by Binz

R121 by Clausen

R238 by Sandau

Postcards depicting military equipment also used  photographic images taken by war correspondents such as Beilstein, Hummel, and Zell,  and also by Heinrich Hoffmann. Other images released by the  Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) and Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM) were used, which explains why different publishers have the same image on their postcards. Interestingly, stills from Tobis films such as DIII 88 appear on some postcards.

R250 by war correspondent Beilstein

R101 from Tobis film DIII 88

R77 from RLM

Miscellaneous

In addition to the R series, Ross Verlag and Film Foto Verlag published other wartime propaganda postcards. Two short unnumbered series featured songs - Vorwärts nach Osten and Das Frankriechlied. 

​Furthermore, 42 numbered combat art works by famous wartime artists such as Bartholomäus, Dudda, Lipus, Liska and Zeeden were also published (a sample is shown here and will be numbered and fully listed in a later update).

​There are three unnumbered cards for Adolf Dickfeld. There is one unnumbered card for Theodor Weissenberger.

This is a very early Ross Verlag postcard related to the First World War.

Ross Verlag also published several pre-war postcards featuring Mussolini on behalf of Ballerini and Fratini, a well-known Italian publisher.