The Great War in Open Access

In the past year, the Open Access movement has cracked the lid on some of the world’s largest digital collections. Freeing users to greater utilize collections under the public domain and creative commons, Open Access has taken the digital humanities by storm. Giving a public unrestricted access to better reflect on our histories through the glow of digital interfaces, pooling Open Access collections with content focusing on World War I is a first step toward the creation of projects and learning materials circling the centennial.

When navigating the many gigabytes of digitized content within Open Access collections, zeroing in on materials relating directly to the World War I can be tough at first. To get started familiarizing yourself with Open Access collections and begin brainstorming your next centennial project, take your time browsing through the following resources.

Flickr Commons Resources:

Imperial War Museum

George Eastman House

Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library Archives

U.S. National Archives

Library of Congress

For a more in depth aggregate of Open Access initiatives by institutions, scope out:

OpenGLAM Resources

Behind Closed Doors: Agency and Action in Early 20th Century Picture Postcards

Couples caught in romantic embrace is nothing new to grace the visuals of early twentieth century picture postcards. Women commonly appearing as focal points – often delivering kind words, from holiday cheer to distant longing in an air of passivity. In this German example, we see a combination and deviation of these two common motifs to instead create an image steeped in queer agency alongside a short poem reading:

Lass mich zu Dir!

Habe ich dein Herz errungen,

Lasse mich auch ein.

Möcht’bei dir im Herzen wohnen

Und im Kämmerlein

Let me come to you!

I have won your heart,

now let me in.

I want to live in your heart,

alone with you.

 

Painting a picture of a couple in a moment of togetherness, this poem appears alongside the image of an embrace between a maid and woman in uniform. While same sex coupling rarely makes its way to the front pages of early twentieth century print media, the forces within this piece working together are something more interesting than just an image presumably created for heterosexual male consumption. Firstly, the presence of female agency sets this piece apart. Unlike the majority of poetic picture postcards of the period which frame women in scenes of inaction and passivity – a notable example being the faraway wartime spouse or lover; this image clearly represents women seeking sexual agency. Within the text of the attached poem, the translated verse supports agency in the courtship of the two women shown; one having believed proven her love to the other in hope of romantic companionship.

The visually loaded images shown in many early twentieth century postcards often suggest more than what appears at face value. Whether heralding the return to a traditional rural lifestyle or sexualizing a international conflict, single or paired figures before picturesque environments and backdrops leave the modern viewer much to read into. Visually, the image of a woman dressed as a maid leaning into the embrace of a woman dressed in mens uniform could be read as more than a deviation from professional and sexual gender normativity – but as a representation of the domestic ideals of traditional womanhood having their hearts “won” by a sexually liberated and independent feminist figure.

While analysis of early twentieth century print media lay much in the eye of the viewer, taking apart the core visual elements of such examples can aid us in the understanding of how gender was perceived and represented in popular media in the time of it’s creation.

Note: In my description and short analysis, I chose to use the term queer to encompass the non-heternormative elements present.

Special thanks to Ethan and Tumblr users senthessa and grimbl for German translation.

Image Source:  mementomori-stock.deviantart. Last Modified July 20th, 2010.

 

 

Going Over Top: Verdun by M2H and Blackmill Games

Of the many digital First World War centennial projects released in recent months, video games aren’t a medium that immediately comes to mind those of us bent on cutting edge forms of historical representation and interactivity – but as we move forward, definitely should be. For decades, video games have worked to simulate environments and experiences for users – creating powerful platforms to interact with historical worlds on deep and individualized scales – games focusing on historical environments being nothing new for popular titles like the Civilization or Call of Duty franchises. But Verdun, a game recently developed by M2H and Blackmill, is redefining how we represent the First World War in modern media by guiding the user trench-riddled combat environments of the western front. Forming teams of four between French and German forces, users band together to capture target points and defeat their opposing team – Verdun gives the user a limited yet informative scope into individual and group dynamics with keen attention to environmental factors. Playable through multiple operating systems [Windows, OS X, Linux], Verdun’s aim is stated as follows: “Inspired by the ferocious battle of Verdun that took place in 1916, M2H and Blackmill are proud to present Verdun, a unique online first person shooter set during the First World War. ” continuing “Verdun contains levels that are based on historical locations around the Verdun area such as the Argonne forest, the western front and beyond.”. Undergoing continual development in coming months, Verdun should be considered among the innovative digital World War I centennial projects that will come to shape how we interact with our histories in 2014. Indicating a growing presence of highly interactive user environments, expanding to produce unique tools for users and project developers alike.

Sources: Verdun Game, http://www.verdungame.com/, accessed January 11th, 2013.

Image Source: Verdun Game, Screenshots, http://www.verdungame.com/, accessed January 11th, 2013.

Brothers in Arms: War, Whimsey, and Curiosity in the Wartime Postcard

Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words – and sometimes it can evoke just as many questions. In the case of this largely unmarked picture postcard depicting a group of eight men in the midst of the First World War acquired from a collector of military memorabilia at the The Antiques Garage in New York City, we see a more refreshing depiction of the Front – including a jovial man seated in a baby carriage displaying a large bottle of unknown contents, a man to his right suggestively biting his finger, and two men to the left holding hands and looking forward in the midst of conflict. Despite functioning primarily as a whimsical depiction of a military camaraderie, this previously undigitized piece of unknown origin may evoke both questions and tickled expressions in modern viewers.

Biographical Abstract: Portrait of Siegfried J. Thannhauser

    

     Primarily recognized through his leading work in the field of medicine, groundbreaking scientific research and the authorship of countless academic papers, Siegfried J. Thannhauser led a life of intrigue and accomplishment in the midst of international turmoil. During the cataclysmic years of the First World War, Siegfried Thannhauser journaled his experience as a Major in the Army Medical Corps by compiling two albums of photography ranging from 1915 to the closure of the conflict in 1918. Caught between two transformative conflicts of the twentieth century, Thannhauser’s narrative was impacted by struggles of national, regional and cultural identity surrounding his Jewish Bavarian heritage prior to and following the collapse of German Empire and perseverance in the face of persecution after the rise of the Nazi Party. Transcending major hostilities of his time in Europe, Siegfried Thannhauser became an esteemed researcher at Tufts University in Boston with honorary doctorates from Heidelberg, Munich, and Dusseldorf University.[69] Today, we can recognize the narrative of Siegfried Thannhauser as the life of a man with steadfast commitment to his field and the bravery to overcome adversity in the midst of twentieth century conflict.

Before taking the time to interpret Thannhauser’s two albums of wartime field photography, it is essential to understand the perspective of the man behind the camera. Siegfried Thannhauser was born in 1885 to an upper middle class Jewish Bavarian family who had found success manufacturing ceramic steins in Munich, Germany. Throughout his early life, Thannhauser made strong connections to what he recognized as his regional and cultural identities, the leading biography on Thannhauser’s life, Physician and Scientist in Turbulent Times by Alan F. Hofmann and Nepomuk Zöllner recounting, “He considered himself a Bavarian first and a German second. His Jewishness was a cultural heirloom, and his Bar Mitzvah was a time of celebration for the Jewish families of Munich, who, after three generations had integrated themselves into Munich society.” [Hofmann/Zöllner, Pg 21]. Following an interdisciplinary education which placed an emphasis on the arts and music while preparing him for university, Thannhauser chose to pursue a career in medicine at the Ludwig-Maximilian-University School of Medicine in Munich.

By 1914 the Thannhauser family was faced a difference of opinion regarding unified German involvement in the First World War alongside Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. Finding little personal obligation to the conflict as self identified Bavarians, Thannhauser’s daughter, Gretchen Thannhauser Munson recollects her father’s thoughts on the matter, writing, “My father at first did not want to participate in it – not because he had any liking for the French, but he, as most Bavarians, hated the Prussians, and my father, at first, thought this was strictly a Prussian war.” [Hofmann/Zöllner, Pg 40]. After the decision to temporarily close the doors of the family business rather than transfer its efforts to the suggested production of German artillery, Siegfried Thannhauser enlisted as a Major in theArmy Medical Corps in 1915, stationed in the Vosges Mountains of Alsace – a highly contested territory between Germany and France following the Franco-Prussian War of 1871. [41]  During his military service Thannhauser was awarded an Iron Cross and Bavarian Distinguished Conduct Medal after his rescue of wounded soldiers on between trenches under enemy fire. As the war ended in 1918, Siegfried Thannhauser returned to Munich and promptly wed his Catholic wartime fiance, Franzisca. Despite both partners’ families making their hesitance about the union clear – Thannhauser’s father who originally took issue with his son marrying a woman of a lower social rank – Siegfried and Franzisca enjoyed a long and supportive marriage. [39]

In the decade following the First World War, Siegfried Thannhauser became a professor and researcher at the University of Freiburg; Thannhauser’s colleague recounts his area of specialization, writing “He did fundamental work of protein metabolism, nucleic acids, uric acids, uric acid metabolism, cholesterol and phospholipids, and much more.” [Hofmann/Zöllner, Pg 29]. Following the seizure of the German government by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in 1933, Joseph Goebbels passed the “Judenplakat” bill passed that same year, which forced countless accomplished figures in academia to leave their professional positions based upon their Jewish heritage [Heidegger, Pg 68]. Purged from the University of Freiburg in 1934, Thannhauser fled his beloved Bavaria to the United States with his three young daughters with the aid of his wife.

Following his departure from Germany, Siegfried Thannhauser settled in New England, securing a professorship at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts.  For the next three decades, Thannhauser completed defining research on the subject of metabolic functions and lipids, never returning to Germany despite standing requests for guest lectures. [55] In his later years, Thannhauser remained active in his field while enjoying his time at an estate in on Lake Winnapisake which his extended family maintains to this day. Following his passing in 1962, Siegfried Thannhauser was laid to rest in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, willing he and his wife’s remarkable collection of German Medieval woodcarvings to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the Busch-Reisinger Museum of Germanic Art at Harvard University [55]. Following a lifetime of accomplishment recognized by houses of higher education in both Europe and the United States, Munich’s Uhlenhuthstrasse was renamed Thannhauserstrasse in 1997 emphasizing his impact in both his native Germany and the United States. [64]

Beginning in 1915 only one year after the commencement of the First World War, Siegfried Thannhauser began documenting his enlistment in two albums of wartime field photography. Titled Drei Ähren: 1915 and Kriegserinnerungen, a German word translating to “war memories”, each album contains from twenty to thirty images, organized and even captioned by Thannhauser himself. Housed in a remote closet of Thannhauser’s lakeside Wolfeboro estate, dedicated family members to this day play a primary role in maintaining the memories of their late relative. Nearly a hundred years after their compilation in the years following the First World War, the two albums remain in outstanding condition, maintained by Thannhauser’s family.

Granted access to these materials by Thannhauser’s relatives, the ability to share these pieces with the general public through the use of digital technologies suggests the following question: What does the heightened availability of these photographs give contemporary learners? More than approximately fifty unseen photographs from a conflict which shaped the progression of the twentieth century, Thannhauser’s albums of field photographs portray the narrative and perspective of an individual in the midst of a war in which the story of individuals are often lost in perspective to the millions of casualties claimed by the First World War. Offering twenty-first century viewers the chance to interpret this collection of autobiographic photographs, we can utilize this wartime account of an accomplished medical researcher in both European and American theaters to better understand personal experiences, perspective, and identity in the midst of the First World War.

Special thanks to Hampshire College alumnus Bera Dunau, and the Dunau, Munson, Beyer, and Thannhauser families.

Suggested Reading:

1. Primary Source of Information, Cited as Page Numbers if not Otherwise Noted: Alan F. Hofmann, Nepomik Zöllner, Siegfried Thannhauser [1885-1962] : Physician and Scientist in Turbulent Times (http://www.kittymunson.com/Thannhauser/index.htmlon, 1940) 
2. Howard M. Sachar, Dreamland: Europeans and Jews in the Aftermath of the Great War. (Vintage Books, New York, 2003)
3. “Family Free of Siegfried Joseph Thannhauser”. Last Accessed October 21^st, 2012. (http://www.kittymunson.com/Thannhauser/index.html
4. Martin Heidegger, Karsten Harries, Hermann Heidegger,The Self-Assertion of the German University: Address, Delivered on the Solemn Assumption of the Rectorate of the University Freiburg the Rectorate 1933/34: Facts and Thoughts (The Review of Metaphysics: Vol. 38, No.(Mar., 1985), pp. 467-502, Philosophy Education Society Inc.) Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20128182. Pg 68.

Drei Ähren,1915 : Wartime Photography of Siegfried J. Thannhauser

 

     One of two wartime albums compiled by Siegfried Thannhauser during his service in the First World War, Drei Ähren: 1915 provides us with an unseen photographic account of Alsace during one of the most conflicted periods in the region’s history in over twenty unique photographs. Largely autobiographic, this collection focuses on individual perspective in a conflict that impacted the lives of millions. This digital presentation of Drei Ähren: 1915 aims to preserve portions of the album in their original layout as intended by its creator while widening the audience and encouraging the interpretation of this photographic account of wartime Alsace.

By 1914, Alsace was an epicenter of regional conflict between French and German territorial ambitions. Traditionally a French territory, the region of Alsace-Lorraine was annexed by the recently unified German Empire following the Franco-Prussian War of 1871. Members of opposing alliances, France to the Triple Entente and Germany to the Central Powers, the First World War was an opportunity for both powers to either reclaim or maintain control over this region after 1914. Stationed in the Alsatian town of Drei Ähren settled within the Vosges Mountains in 1915, Thannhauser witnessed and documented a defining moment in the region’s history and the culmination of a major dispute between his own Germany Empire its Allied opposition in the early years of the First World War.

We can infer from the presentation and contents of the album that Siegfried Thannhauser had a very clear idea of the display he intended for his work. Organized one photograph to a page, each piece recounting his service in Drei Ähren is accompanied by a caption; impecable cursive written in silver ink on black matte cardboard by Thannhauser himself. The original layout of Drei Ähren: 1915 provides insight into both Thannhauser’s perception of wartime Alsace and acts as a guide to his immediate surroundings for contemporary viewers. Spanning the movement of Germany military and field hospital personel over the course of a year, Thannhauser’s subjects range from Alsatian landscapes to Thannhauser seen standing in a trench. The album and photographs within remain in astounding condition as both a prized piece of family history by Thannhauser’s descendants and an incredible photographic narrative of one man’s experience in wartime Alsace to twenty-first century learners.

When aiming to best replicate Drei Ähren: 1915, the task of maintaining the original intended progression of the album with the resources available was pertinent. After time with the original album, digital versions of photographs were kept in the order in which they were found with special attention to the delicately labeled captions – two factors which illustrate Thannhauser’s intended presentation of the content throughout. Focusing on preserving Thannhauser’s authorial voice, captions were translated as best possible, bringing words images to best recreate Thannhauser’s authorial voice, creating short descriptions such as “Im Schutzgraben” or, “In the Trench”. Creating the option to view each piece as it originally appeared on the page or viewing the photograph in detail, learners may experience the original layout of Drei Ähren: 1915 and view each photograph of wartime Alsace at a closer range. By best recreating the originally intended layout of the album, this project aims to maintain the individual narrative present in this powerful photographic representation of Alsace in the midst of the First World War.

A near hundred years following Thannhauser’s creation of this comprehensive compilation of photographs, Drei Ähren: 1915 gives twenty-first century viewers the opportunity to interpret this visual representation wartime Alsace though the perspective of Siegfried Thannhauser. Thannhauser’s photography gives us insight into his own experience of the First World War, providing an individual’s representation a conflict defined by the decisions of nations. Through the the widened availability of this exemplary album, we gain the ability to interact with otherwise inaccessible primary sources and facilitate a more thorough understanding of individual narrative within the context of the First World War.

 

“Official Postcard, Bayern. Spoils of War Exhibition, Munich, 1916. Thannhauser. King Ludwig III.”

“In the Trench”

Medical Bunker

Detail

“Visit from Flyers”

Detail

“Movement”

“Border”

Detail

“Drei Ähren”

“In the Woods”

Detail

“Ride”

Detail

“Arrival of Wounded”

Detail

“Medical Shelter”

Detail

Detail

Kriegserinnerungen: War Memories of Siegfried J. Thannhauser

     A German word translating to “War Memories”, Kriegserinnerungen is the title of Thannhauser’s photographic account of his service in the First World War after 1915. Following his time in Alsace, shown in Drei Ähren: 1915, Kriegserinnerungen is a departure from the previous album in terms of content and construction; creating a personal narrative of medicine in wartime through the use of field photography. Seen only by friends and family of Siegfried Thannhauser, each photograph featured within this selection is now, for the first time, widely available to the general public; encouraging the accessibility and interpretation of these visual representations of life of German servicemen during the First World War

When describing the contents of Kriegserinnerungen, it is important to distinguish the context of the pieces and how their representation within the original album. Following Thannhauser’s time in Alsace, he continued his service to the German army among valued medical personnel. While Thannhauser’s previous album, Drei Ähren: 1915, focuses on a single location, this collection of images spans a number of unknown locations in Western Europe – spanning from rural foxholes to scenes of urban environments devastated by war. Compiled between the chronological end of Thannhauser’s album retelling his time Alsace in 1915 and his departure from service in 1918, the majority of photographs in Kriegserinnerungen were presumably compiled between the 1916 and the end of the war in 1918. In comparison to the photography in Drei Ähren: 1915, it is evident that Thannhauser made use of another camera in his subsequent album – creating white bordered photographs, smaller in size than those in the previous album. Containing approximately thirty unique photographs, organized three to a page without the captions present in Drei Ähren: 1915. While Kriegserinnerungen shows a distinct shift in presentation from Thannhauser’s previous album, the content indicates a similar contrast.

Continuing Thannhauser’s photographic narrative of the First World War through the lens of medicine and conflict, Kreigserinnerungen presents contemporary audiences with clear visual illustrations of the physical effects of war on landscapes and the human body. As military engagement reached from the trenches into civilian zones, many European towns between Germany and France were redrawn by artillery fire. The wide range of structural damage caused by urban combat during the First World War is clear within the photographs of Kreigserinnerungen. Thannhauser’s experience as a physician shaped his perspective as a nonprofessional field photographer during the First World War – often focusing on medical personnel and recovering patients as subjects. Presenting a striking collection of wartime photographs to the viewer which emphasize the innate destructive impact of war, Kreigserinnerungen displays closer attention to effect of conflict on both landscape and the human body.

To contemporary learners, the widened availability of Siegfried Thannhauser’s field photography encourages interpretation of this visual narrative of the First World War. Available for the first time since since its creation, Siegfried Thannhauser’s Kreigserinnerungen provides perspective into the world of medicine and visuals of physical destruction brought about by the First World War. 

More Than Pictures and Captions: Wartime Postcard Media Overview

     

Originally purposed as platforms for correspondence fit for collection, picture postcards have taken on new functions in times of war. To twenty-first century learners, picture postcards can provide valuable insight into the period of their creation and contextual concepts of national identity and conflict. By understanding the original purposes of these pieces and seeing how they were applied to serve political needs during international conflict, contemporary learners can recognize the use and circulation of wartime propaganda during the First World War.

In the period preceding the First World War, postcard media was reaching its peak. In the decades leading up to the conflict in Western Europe, the production and use of postcards reached an all time high during years of temporary regional peacetime in the 1880s and 1890s [Fraser]. Writing on the development of political postcard media in Europe, John Fraser states, “The picture postcard was possibly the great vehicle for message of the new urban proletariat between 1900 and 1914. It’s small size meant no great effort need to expended and no great amount of time consumed in writing. Its cheapness in cost and postage put it within the means of most working people. And the speed and frequency of postal deliveries then guaranteed the usefulness of the postcard.” [John Fraser, Propaganda on the Picture Postcard, pg 39]. Although more often printed in mass quantities, the creation of personalized portrait postcards was made available through the widened availability of studio portrait photography. A media platform which took on new uses and applications with the progression of the twentieth century, the picture postcard has shown to be more than pictures and captions

By the dawn of the First World War in 1914, the picture postcard became an obvious contender for platforms to circulate propaganda – a function, which Fraser writes, was enacted as early as the late nineteenth century. Within the context of the First World War, picture postcards accomplished an important task – providing easy and affordable communication between soldiers at war and Home Front [Fraser, 1980]. Articulating the multifaceted use of the picture postcard in the context of the First World War, Fraser continues, “The First World War gave a great stimulus to the propaganda postcard…The picture postcard proved an ideal vehicle for propaganda: cheap, easy to handle, and with an instant visual appeal so that it was easily appreciated, more particularly by those who were illiterate.” [John Fraser, Propaganda on the Picture Postcard, pg 42]. Excluding portrait postcards with limited circulation, politically inclined picture postcards in the period surrounding the First World War often shared similar themes and characteristics. On the side of the postcard opposite to that intended for postage information and a personal message from the sender, the postcard featured a studio photograph displaying a figure against a simulated environment through the use of a painted backdrop, accompanied by a succinct printed message. During times of conflict, the images and messages presented by picture postcards were often highly strategic – creating a political message through the use of symbolic objects and nationalistically charged choice of words. By interpreting these pieces in context, twenty-first century learners may uncover key information regarding the development and application of wartime postcard media during the First World War.

To contemporary learners, wartime picture postcards combine words and images to create powerful insight into wartime media culture. Outside of their originally intended purpose of widely available pieces of illustrated correspondence, picture postcards of the First World War combine powerful symbols of national identity and unity to achieve a far reaching political message during wartime; historian Jon D. Carlson stating in 2009, “Postcards can serve a number of sociopolitical purposes, including political satire and propaganda, and therefore provide a valuable window into the mentality and perceptions of the age in which the cards were produced and used.” [Carlson, 2009]. Through interpretation and collection, we in the twenty-first century can begin to understand major themes within political print media of the First World War. 

Suggested Reading:

1. John Fraser, Propaganda on the Picture Postcard (Oxford Art Journal: Vol. 3, No. 2, Propaganda (Oct., 1980), pp. 39-47, Oxford University Press)

Over Here to Over There: Wartime and Pre-War Postcard Portraiture

     Inside and outside the context of the First World War, photographic postcard portraiture depicts individuals in the midst of a conflict which shaped the modern world. While postcards grew in popularity in the years preceding the First World War, picture postcards conveyed images and messages at little cost to sender or recipient. To create a more personalized piece, studio photographers could easily produce postcards presenting the portrait of any customer. During the First World War, these pieces served a dual functionality; both as photographic keepsakes of loved ones or family members away at war and as vehicles for the delivery of a personal message. While each piece provides glances into the lives of those living during the First World War, the subjects shown in studio portrait postcards often lack information relating to the context or personal narrative of those shown. This collection of previously undigitized portrait postcards provides learners with examples of wartime media which captured the individual within the greater scope of the First World War.

This selection of four images ranging from stoic men in uniform to weathered brothers in arms present us with the of diversity of scenes created in this medium of wartime media. Result of the ability to personalize each piece at the will of photographer and subject, studio portrait postcards can depict both individuals and relationships to their viewer. The first image in the series displays either husband and wife, or alternately, a man and his daughter placed before a painted backdrop of a nature scene. Deviating from popular perception of wartime portraits containing a single figure, more often than not in uniform, this photograph taken in Paris, France presents the viewer with a relationship rather than an individual. Following the presentation of pairs, the second piece in the selection shows two French soldiers standing with a bouquet placed between them; a visual often accompanying soldiers on their way to the Front in the context of the First World War. The last two images in the selection depict the same French soldier leaning casually upon two different tables in an upscale interior, shown in two differing uniforms. Presenting a selection of images which note the stylistic differences of photographic portraiture of the First World War, these pieces frame the individual in the context conflict often over-defined by numerical values in modern memory. Postcard portraiture maintains a strong significance both inside and outside the context of the First World War to contemporary learners. Removed from their dual functionality within the context of the First World War, these pieces show us representations of the individual within a conflict which effected millions.

Suggested Reading:

1. “WWI Uniforms, Insignia, Distinguishing Marks, Rank, etc.” Last Accessed October 16^th, 2012.

   http://freepages.military.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~worldwarone/WWI/Uniforms/index.html#Distinguishing

2. John Fraser, Propaganda on the Picture Postcard (Oxford Art Journal: Vol. 3, No. 2, Propaganda (Oct., 1980), pp. 39-47, Oxford University Press)

Studio Portrait of Couple from Parisian Studio, France, date unknown. Depicting either a married couple or two family members, this studio postcard deviates from popularly styled studio portraits of the period which feature a single figure in uniform rather than framed beside a family member or partner as seen in this piece.

Studio Portrait of Two Soldiers, France, Estimated Date: 1914/1918. Another example of wartime postcard portraiture framing two figures, this piece depicts two young French soldiers standing at either side of a floral bouquet. Within the context of the First World War, flower bouquets often accompanied soldiers on their way to the Front, the presence of the bouquet, if not simply decorative, suggests that these two soldiers shown were photographed on their way to war.

Postcard Portrait, France, Estimated Date: 1914/1918. A more traditional representation of wartime postcard portraiture, this piece depicts a man in uniform learning on a pedestal matched to a similarly styled interior. Alternately, this could be a studio portrait utilizing a backdrop of an upscale interior with corresponding props.

Postcard Portrait, France, Estimate Date: 1914/1918. Featuring the same man shown above in a strikingly similar pose, this portrait postcard displays a different French uniform than the previous piece. While these who pieces share a number of characteristics including their subject, these portraits were evidently taken at different times as suggested by the difference in uniform and backdrop.

Courting the Empire: Intimacy and Nation in Wartime Postcard Propaganda

     From the years of 1914 to 1918, print media devoted a significant effort toward goal of raising and sustaining national support for the war effort through the accessible and easily distributed medium of postcards. During the First World War, subjects of national identity and commitment to conflict were brought to the forefront in propaganda through reoccurring themes of personal intimacy, gender, and sexuality. Within this selection of previously undigitized wartime postcards, the personal connection between distant servicemen and their romantic partners on the Home Front is a reoccurring image with a distinct purpose. Through the interpretation of this selection of wartime postcards we may gain understanding of defining themes of gender and national identity within political media of the First World War.

A regularly utilized platform for political commentary in modern print media, the female body plays a major role in this selection of wartime postcards. Often functioning as symbols of nation and responsibility to the Home Front, these pieces are more than politicized depictions of couples separated by war – a concept further explored in Gendered Nationalism and the Female Body in Wartime Postcard Media. Regularly shown awaiting the return of their absent partner, three of the five women in this selection of postcards are seen seated reading letters from the Front – one in five seen reading while standing. Each piece in this selection depicts women loyally awaiting the return of enlisted soldiers – creating print media aiming to both strengthen national support on the Home Front and reinforce commitment to the conflict through the image of isolated women and absent male figures.

Perhaps the most evident symbol within this selection of wartime postcards is that of the absent male figure. In three of these five examples, the soldier – either of the intended sender or recipient of the postcard– is entirely absent from view; only one of the five pieces features the visage of a faraway figure in combat. The fifth postcard shown exists as the only piece in the selection featuring a male figure; displaying two partners embracing, heralding love over international conflict. Alternately, the male figure within this image could also be read as absent; representative of couples disconnected by war and only connected through memory. The overwhelming symbolic absence of male figures within this selection of wartime postcards represents a harrowing reality of the First World War which separated countless partners and families through the millions of casualties inflicted by war.

Although disconnected from the primary theme of intimacy, nationhood, and separated lovers, attention should be paid to the overwhelming motif of nature and the outdoors, shown in five of the five pieces in varying formats. Within the first three postcards shown, a return to nature plays a major role in the scenes presented through the use of painted backdrops. Creating seemingly natural environments within photography studios, the rural scenes shown serve a particular function within the context of the First World War. During a conflict which redefined the art of war through emergent military technologies, the rural scenes depicted within postcards one through three act as a peaceful departure from the changing realities of war. Pieces one and three within this selection use the image of a mill as a focal point – maintaining thematic continuity while placing a strong emphasis on this traditional symbol of energy and progress. The fourth and fifth postcards in this series feature rural imagery in more subtle ways than the first three pieces – the fourth postcard shown depicting a woman reading indoors seated before a painting of a natural landscape, transforming into the image of her partner at war, while in the fifth postcard uses a subtle natural motif as a faded backdrop against the focal image of embraced lovers. Although functioning primarily as an environmental motif, the use of rural scenes within this selection of wartime print media serve a significant political function – bolstering national progress in the context of the First World War.

Utilizing the visage of sentimentality veiled in politicized purpose, seemingly saccharine pieces of print media often propagated gendered ideas of commitment, nationalism, and wartime youth culture in the European theatre. Ranging from messages of hopeful affection to powerful images national perseverance, this compilation of previously undigitized works exist as valuable tools while facing the task of understanding the functionality of gendered political print during the First World War.

Rural Scene, German or Austrian. Approximate Date: 1914-1918. Reads: “Remember – My heart only has one wish, for you to return a hero. My heart is already dreaming day and night. Have good fortune from this point forward.”Erinnerung I and II pay close attention to rural landscapes through the use of a painted backdrop – focusing on the subject of a water mill, symbolic of progress. Seated with a bouquet of flowers, a young woman in traditional germanic dress awaits the return of her partner away at war – expressing her support and hope for his success on the battlefield. As pinning floral arrangement to the lapel of a soldier on his way to the Front became customary during the First World War, the image of a bouquet is a powerful symbol in the context of the conflict. Expressing both hope and a national responsibility to her significant other, this postcard follows the combined theme of heroism and masculinity in a period which redefined concepts of individual heroism. 

Rural Scene, German or Austrian. Approximate Date: 1914-1918 “Reminder! I know that our hearts understand you are dear, and my true love will never die.”Featuring the same young woman seen in Erinnerung I, this piece shows an evident transition from the previous piece in the series. Standing rather than seated, the young woman is seen reading a letter presumably from her partner away at war. The second piece in this series of images, the content of this postcard suggests a wearying view of the conflict as the young woman accepts the possible fate both their relationship and her partner in the dangers of war – all while expressing her undying commitment and support. 

Woman Seated and Reading with Floral Bouquet. German or Austrian. Approximate Date, 1914-18, reading “With the heart I seek you. With the clouds above me. Hurries my longing heart to you.”.Continues the theme of hopeful commitment to the war effort, this piece is framed through the perspective of a woman awaiting her partner at war. As previously stated; the bouquet held by the woman shown holds specific significance in the context of the First World War outside of traditional symbols of femininity – also functioning as decorative pieces pinned to the uniforms of soldiers on their way to the battlefield. 

German or Austrian. Approximate Date. 1914-1918, reading, “How tenderly your love letter is sent from the field to me. For stunningly beautiful I found the lines of your hand.”.Transitioning from the image of a woman who has just finished reading a letter into the image of her partner at the Front, the message provided by this postcard expresses an appreciation toward their correspondence and commitment to both the conflict and their personal relationship. Following the popular motif of the visually represented yet absent male figure, this image creates a bond between both the individuals shown and the Home Front in relation to the battlefield. 

“This is the true alliance”: French, Dated 1915.The fifth postcard in the selection acts as the strongest example of gender and sexuality as presented and politicized by wartime media. The characteristic of this image which most powerfully bonds concepts of nation and sexuality are the words and languages presented – a French produced postcard reading “this is the true alliance” in both English and French focuses on the image of two embraced lovers; first suggesting that love between partners conquers all else to modern viewers. In context, the use of both English and French, two powers bonded through the Triple Entente of France, Russia and Great Britain, shed light on the true message of the piece – favoring the “true alliance” of the Allies above that of the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, The Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria. Utilizing semi-erotic imagery as a platform to reassert national bonds, this piece exemplifies the use of sexuality in wartime postcard media.Although this this piece shares common themes with the rest of the selection of wartime political postcards, it deviates in two major ways. Unlike pieces 1 through 4 which all feature an absent male figure and women either seated or reading in positions lacking agency, this piece shows two actively engaging individuals. As women are highly representative of the Home Front in this selection of wartime postcards, this image could also be read as creating a physical bond between symbols of the Home Front and men in uniform.