5 Pfennig Döberitz; PoW Camp

Döberitz, west of Berlin, was one of Germany's largest POW installations during the First World War, holding tens of thousands of prisoners — predominantly Russian, French, and British. Camp scrip of this type was a deliberate administrative tool: by forcing prisoners to transact in a closed currency redeemable only within the wire, the military command could monitor purchasing activity and prevent accumulated Reichsmark savings from funding escape attempts.

Otto Lange's Berlin printshop produced the physical notes, with handstamping added to complicate forgery within the camp itself — a real concern when bored, resourceful prisoners had little else to occupy their time. The 5 Pfennig denomination is the lowest in the Döberitz series, which tells you something about the purchasing power the camp administration expected these men to have.