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50 Pfennig Eschwege; P.O.W. Camp
| Issuer | Kommandantur des Offizier-Gefangenenlagers Eschwege |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | Letterpress-printed text in black on plain paper with a blue diagonal underprint across the central field; the denomination '50' appears in large numerals at the lower left, with the legend 'Fünfzig Pfennig' in bold gothic script spanning the centre. A circular violet official handstamp is applied at the left, and a serial number is printed vertically at the right margin; all inscriptions are set within a simple ruled border. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Kein öffentliches Zahlungsmittel. 50 Fünfzig Pfennig Gültig nur innerhalb des Lagers, sonst ohne jeden Wert. Eschwege, d. 20. Novbr. 1917. Kommandantur des Offizier-Gefangenenlagers. Gesetzlich geschützt. (Translation: Not legal tender. 50 Pfennig. Valid only within the camp, otherwise worthless. Eschwege, November 20, 1917. Commandant's Office of the Officers' Prisoner-of-War Camp. Legally protected.) |
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| Comments |
Eschwege was used as an officer prisoner-of-war camp during the First World War, and this 50 Pfennig note is camp scrip issued by the camp commandant's office — Lagergeld, not Reichsbank currency. Officer camps operated under different Geneva Convention provisions than enlisted camps, and internal scrip systems were partly designed to prevent prisoners from accumulating Reichsmarks that could fund escape attempts.
Paper camp issues from 1917 are inherently fragile. Heavy internal circulation among a fixed, captive population meant constant handling, and few recipients had reason to preserve them carefully after repatriation.