AMERICA’S SECRET WWII WEAPON IN SWITZERLAND

Waltz talked about his time writing propaganda for the French in WWI in his 1922 book Through Enemy Lines - A three Years Offensive against German Morale. I am not going to quote him exactly and will edit his long passages down to brief comments. He said in part:

A small table in the corner of an information desk and, in a cabinet, books and a few German newspapers, was, towards the end of August 1915, the installation of the French “Aircraft Propaganda Service” which was ordered to organize and methodically disseminate propaganda leaflets beyond enemy lines. Our staff was a single interpreter who was, on his own, to endeavor to destroy the morale of two or three million German soldiers who were intoxicated with their early success.

Our “Propaganda Service” always remained modest. From November 1915, Professor Tonnelat and I were a team and shared the rather heavy work of drafting, printing and the dispatch of leaflets. In 1916, the presence of Third interpreter became necessary; Mr. Raymond Schuhl then joined us. Two secretaries and some handlers gradually complemented our team. The total number of persons employed never reached ten members.

It was not the first time, since the start of the war that we were in a less favorable position than the Boche. This had not stopped us from beating them more than once with their own weapon. Our friend Raymond Schuhl promised to make this happen once again. We would do better than the Germans, without the help of anyone and against the odds. The promise was kept…Schuhl kept the Germans on the alert for over two years…Every day parcels of clandestine literature crossed over into Mulhouse and St. Louis in commercial vehicles, in the pockets of workmen with border passes, in the milk bins which the Swiss sent to Mulhouse every day, in the freight trains, etc. Massages were sent down the Rhine in hermetically sealed floating tubes. Messages were sent attached to balloons from friendly houses near the border.

Forged WWII German Military Headquarters Envelopes

I have seen propaganda envelopes used postally in WWII that bear the markings of the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht. I thought I would depict some blank envelopes here so the reader can see that everything Schuhl did in WWI he did again in WWII

As for the smugglers: from Constanz to Basle, and over the Lake of Constanz, traffic was regular and lively. The smugglers, whether Swiss or German, thought nothing of adding a few bales of pamphlets to their merchandise.

A Fake WWII can of Sardines filled with propaganda leaflets
One again Schuhl retraces his steps from WWI

Schuhl decided to become a canned food merchant. He assembled a great number of cans bearing the “Amieux” trademark (a well-known French firm) and got a large consignment to the border…The German consulates had a section dealing with mail. In these same consulates there were fine stocks of official envelopes, these were sometimes sold. It was easy enough to use these envelopes and to mail them at the same post office and same window as that used openly and every day by the employees of the German consulate.

The French Facsimile of the German Newspaper Field Post - Number 6, December 1915

Waltz mentions this French fake newspaper he produced with Schuhl. He says in part:

From October 1915, we printed a German newspaper regularly, eventually totaling almost 300 pages. The first twelve issues were titled “Die Feldpost,” but the leaflet was so carefully demonized and policed by the German military authorities that it was necessary to change its name. From number 13 onwards it was entitled: “Kriegsblatter fur das deutsche Volk” (War Pages for the German People). The newspaper became known as “Das freie deutsche Wort” (The Free German Word), until the end of the war.

   

The actual booklet J’accuse! and the disguised French copy of the booklet

Another Waltz-Schuhl project was the reprinting in miniature of Grelling’s book J'accuse! (“I Accuse!”). The booklet J'accuse was first produced in September 1915. The booklets were often disguised with fake covers in the German colors or depicting an Iron cross and the title Die Wahrheit (The Truth). This book argued against the German lie that they were fighting a defensive war and pointed out that the Germans had started the war and were seeking to build a militarist empire. The French reproduced it as a miniature 50-gram 432-page edition. In late 1915, the French dropped 20,000 copies of the books behind the German lines. This result was achieved by using the very fine and resistant paper used by Bibles for holding the Old and New Testaments in one volume. Despite the small size of the Volume, the text remained very readable. So that the volumes dropped behind the lines would not be exposed to deterioration, each copy was placed in a strong paper envelope. And, for the little package to attract attention it was placed in an envelope decorated with German colors.

Jean-Jacques Waltz

We have mentioned Jean-Jacques Waltz, also known as "Hansi" several times in this article. He was born 23 February 1873 in Colmar (Alsace, then Germany) and died 10 June 1951 in Colmar (Alsace - now France). Above is his very last photograph taken just prior to his death.

At the end of the war, Schuhl’s was awarded the Legion d’Honneur. The citation, signed by Clemenceau, Prime Minister of France during the First World War, said in part:

Citation accompanying the appointment to the rank of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor

Interpreter

SCHUHL (Raymond Arthur), Temporary (Territorial) Interpreter Officer 3rd Class at the Propaganda Action Center against the Enemy: Volunteer, although Retired, distinguished himself in the course of many perilous missions in whose action he has demonstrated of remarkable intelligence and absolute contempt for danger.

Paris, 11 January 1919 – Entered in the Official Journal 12 January1919.

Forwarded to head of 1st Bureau

WORLD WAR TWO

The Symbol of Bern, Switzerland

Two volumes covering the history of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II were produced in 1949 by the History Project, Strategic Services Unit, Office of the Assistant Secretary of War, War Department, Washington, D. C. The formal title of the report is War Report, Office of Strategic Services (OSS), it is also known as OSS War Report, Washington Organization, and Operations in the Field. These two volumes remained classified "Top Secret" for 53 years after they were completed. Volume 1 covers the organization of the OSS. Volume 2 covers OSS coordinated operations in the field. Looking through the report I see “Bern” mentioned over 300 times:

In both World Wars, Switzerland was the main Allied listening post for developments in European enemy and enemy-occupied countries. Switzerland's geographical position and its neutrality made it the happy hunting ground for the intelligence services of all the belligerent countries. In this respect, it was chiefly of use to the Allies since Switzerland opened no doors to the outside world for the surrounding Axis forces.

Intensive planning in OSS/Washington for the establishment of an office in Bern began in the spring of 1942, and, in May, the first representative of OSS left for Switzerland, where he was attached to the U.S. Legation. An assistant was dispatched a few months later, and, in November 1942, a third member arrived to take charge of the mission. Several additional persons had been chosen to assist him and were to follow shortly, but, with the Allied invasion of North Africa, the Germans moved into southern France, and the last remaining channel of access to Switzerland was closed. The Swiss mission therefore started with three men, but by borrowing certain persons from other U. S. agencies and by use of a few Americans who had been caught in Switzerland by the German invasion of South France, a small unit of less than a dozen key individuals was organized. By early 1944, the Bern OSS mission consisted of 5 actual OSS officers and 12 cipher and translation clerks. There were more than 100 subagents and other paid informants reporting on Germany and other areas.

The Swiss seem to have had good reasons for their absolute neutrality. Steve Clark says in The Third Reich Study Group Newssheet of September 2021:

Switzerland's armed neutrality during WW2 - The Swiss government considered it necessary to introduce military protection and mobilized its entire army of 430,000 combat troops in just 3 days. The Germans and Italians had detailed plans to invade Switzerland (known as 'Operation Tannenbaum') but, for reasons that are still uncertain, Hitler never ordered the invasion to commence.

Despite the neutrality, both the Allied and Axis powers regularly violated Swiss territorial locations, and resulted in U.S. and British aircraft being shot down while flying over Swiss territory.

A brief history of Morale Operations from the War Report of the OSS:

On 27 October 1943, MO was charged with the "execution of all forms of morale subversion by divers means including False rumors, 'freedom stations', false leaflets and false documents, the organization and support of fifth column activities by grants, trained personnel and supplies and the use of agents, all for the purpose of creating confusion, division and undermining the morale of the enemy. The Branch expanded rapidly in the last half of 1943. In May MO/ Washington had a staff of twelve. By August it had 75, and by January 1944 it had 150. It was decreed that the Office of War Information would be responsible for leaflets dropped by aircraft and traceable to their actual source. However, leaflets dropped in containers to a reception committee for dissemination and purporting to come from a subversive organization in enemy or enemy occupied territory would be within the province of MO. About radio, OSS agreed not to install or operate "black" stations outside enemy-controlled territory without the Office of War Information's concurrence. OWI, in turn, agreed not to operate agents or installations inside enemy territory. Provision was also made for close working relationships in the field.

America needed an expert propagandist in Switzerland. British researcher Lee Richards searched the files in the U.S. National Archives and discovered a classified “Secret” letter from the Acting Chief of Morale Operations, U.S. Army First Lieutenant Patrick Dolan, dated 1 September 1943, that mentions what is specifically needed and said in part:

The dissemination of rumors and subversive printed material, clandestine radio if possible, the introduction of MO subagents into enemy territory or enemy occupied territory, the recruiting of such agents among dissident enemy nationals or the nationals of occupied countries, the creation and maintenance of channels for the introduction into such territories of rumors, printed matter and personnel. MO representative in Bern should possess full qualifications for operations…His duties will include the recruiting and direction of subagents who will operate in enemy or enemy-controlled countries. He should command facilities for the printing and distribution of subversive leaflets, pamphlets and possibly of underground newspapers…A comprehensive agreement has been reached with the British Political Warfare Executive and Special Operations Executive for the closest collaboration, mutual assistance and the pooling of resources.

Morale Operations Field Manual - Strategic Services

First a brief description of OSS Morale Operations for those that did not live through WWII as I did.

The classified “Secret” 58-page 1943 Morale Operations Field Manual - Strategic Services defines The term Morale Operations as all measures of subversion other than physical used to create confusion and division, and to undermine the morale and the political unity of the enemy through any means operating within or purporting to operate within enemy countries and enemy occupied or controlled countries, and from bases within other areas, including neutral areas, where action or counteraction may be effective against the enemy.

The objectives of Morale Operations are within the enemy's country to incite and spread dissension, confusion, and disorder; to promote subversive activities against his government by encouraging underground groups, and to depress the morale of his people. To discredit collaborationists, to encourage and assist in the promotion of resistance and revolt against Axis control by the people of these territories, and to raise their morale and will to resist.

The Morale Operations Branch, in cooperation with other agencies of OSS, will employ the following implements for the accomplishment of the above objectives:

Contacts with and manipulation of individuals and underground groups; Agents provocateurs; Bribery and blackmail; Rumors; Forgery, to include the writing of poison-pen letters, forging of misleading intelligence documents, falsification of enemy documents and periodicals, and the printing of false orders to the enemy, regulations, and proclamations; False leaflets, pamphlets, and graphics, to be used for subversive deception within enemy and enemy-occupied countries and not identifiable with any official or semi-official United Nations agency.

FALSE LEAFLETS, PAMPHLETS, AND GRAPHICS

This type of implement refers to printed, mimeographed or written literature and graphics distributed secretly in enemy territory and under concealed sponsorship. This includes chain, and other anonymous letters, chalking symbols, and messages on walls. The false pamphlet sponsored by a belligerent nation attempts to convey the impression that it is a bona fide message from the people's own fellow countrymen who are sharing the same risks as the rest of the population and have similar aspirations, aims, and goals.

Any kind of written communication can be forged. The following are common types: Propaganda documents, ostensibly designed to increase the morale of the enemy or improve his relations with an enemy ally, but actually written in such a way that an opposite effect will be achieved; Periodicals, which imitate enemy periodicals and convey misleading or morale-disturbing information; Business documents, using letterheads, or other business forms of either enemy, Allied or neutral firms, and filled out with misleading information; Cables, either Allied or enemy.

The Schools and Training Branch of the OSS printed a booklet in June 1945 titled, OFFICE OF STRATEGIC SERVICES ORGANIZATION AND FUNCTIONS.

The booklet was designed to supplement the lectures on OSS organization. The booklet was classified and bore the warning:

Special security precautions must be taken by each student not only to safeguard the information contained herein from unauthorized persons, but also to protect the book itself against loss or damage.

The Morale Operations Branch, according to OSS General Order No. 9, "is responsible for the conduct of subversion other than physical," its mission is to create internal dissension between groups, distrust between allies, and to unify and strengthen dissident groups so that the enemy's fighting capacity is impaired. Some of the MO tactics are:

Black Radio Campaigns--Posing as "freedom stations" of a resistance group within an enemy-occupied country; or as clandestine organ of dissident group in enemy country; or as actual enemy station.

Word-of-Mouth Rumors--Planted by agents in an appropriate situation, and sufficiently plausible to retain their credibility.

Forgeries--(Commercial Documents, Military Documents, Business Stationery) -- Used to intimidate collaborationists, implicate enemy officials, and harass the enemy's secret police.

Poison Pen Letters--Disguised as letters from actual business firms, soldiers, or other individuals, and containing incriminating information.

Bribery--Inducing enemy officials to perform acts favorable to our cause.

[Authors note]: Let me stop here just for a moment to point out that the British may not have been quite as much in agreement as stated. British researcher Lee Richards found a note in the British National Archives that states:

Salembier has been pirating – very heavily and unsuccessfully!

A British propaganda postcard from Operation Periwig
Courtesy Lee Richards
Note the horse symbol. Schuhl stole the symbol for several of his own leaflets

There are some attached OSS Berne leaflets, with a horse logo on the reverse that was apparently stolen from a PWE project called Operation Periwig. PWE were obviously not too impressed with Salembier’s efforts.

The first of four leaflets Where Schuhl placed the horse image.

The British filed these leaflets in their Archives. The leaflets are entitled: The War; The Honor; The Human Being; and The Personality. The small horse symbol is on the last page of each document. The first one, entitled “The War” asks the following questions: What is it; How is it created; and Who is to blame for the last war.

I assume that Schuhl figured that since the British already had a fictitious anti-Nazi underground in Germany he might as well take advantage of it.

British “Work Slowly” Gummed Label

This was not the only time that the OSS did a bit of poaching British propaganda. The British produced two versions of a “Work Slowly” gummed label coded H.230 that could be placed on tables and walls wherever the German workers congregated. It featured the red cogwheel emblem of the German Labor Front at the upper left and repeated the phrase “work slowly” four times. Some of the text is:

Workers in all Europe must work slowly so that Hitler can win himself to death more quickly. The easier we take it, the harder it is on Hitler.
Peace! Freedom! Socialism!

American Copy of the “Work Slowly” Gummed Label

The British propaganda message Leans just a tad to the left so Schuhl copied it, coded his leaflet 119 and kept all the original text but cut out the last line at the bottom that mentioned “Socialism.” He replaced it with:

Long live the Fourth Reich and German Freedom.

We now come across the first mention of Raymond Schuhl. In a classified secret letter to Dolan from a Colonel Edward Buxton dated 3 September 1943 we find:

Burns in Bern recommended a man named Raymond Schuhl. Attached is a French translation of a French book which tells about Schuhl’s activities in World War I. Seemingly, he is ideal for our job.

In an earlier letter to General Donovan, the head of the OSS we find a similar comment. No names are mentioned but we know who is being mentioned:

Kindly obtain a copy of the book “Atrauers les lignes ennemies”…In this book the person named on page 136, line 2 is available for work here. I have requested him to make a preliminary survey of what could be done along these lines…There are opportunities opening up and Gerry Mayer of the Officer of War Information is giving his full cooperation.

This is really interesting. When I was researching Schuhl years ago I studied the Waltz book mentioned above in the WWI section. Apparently the OSS did exactly the same thing in WWII and offered Schuhl the job.

On 22 September 1943, Dolan sent another classified secret letter explaining the need for his unit to have representation in Bern:

Bern and Switzerland are perhaps the prime outlets for Morale Operations work against Germany. MO has no representation in Bern. This has left a great gap in our overseas operations. I obtained the list of U.S. World War veterans now living in Switzerland; it seems to me they would be valuable as OSS contacts.

How was the Morale Operations Branch going to pay for all this propaganda printing and intelligence collecting? A 19 May 1943 classified secret letter implies it will not be easy:

It appears that the project under discussion earlier this year, whereby MO would have one million dollars, has not materialized. We have, in fact, no designated MO funds in Switzerland at all.

A week later some progress had been made. A 25 May 1943 classified secret letter states in part:

Yesterday I had a long talk…about getting Swiss francs for Morale Operations in Switzerland. The procedure is simple…all we have to do is direct a letter to the Finance Office which then transfers MO funds into Swiss francs payable in Bern. OSS has a general fund in Switzerland from which this will be drawn, amounting to about $900,000.

Raymond Schuhl Takes Charge

We know a lot of general facts about Raymond Schuhl from old OSS documents that I read and quoted in the past. For instance:

The printing operation in Switzerland is mentioned in the War Report of the OSS, The Overseas Targets, Volume 2, Kermit Roosevelt, Walker and Company, NY, 1976:

Joint OSS/OWI operations were worked out in the field of propaganda warfare. The OSS mission had early established contact with a Frenchman, known under his cover name of 'Salembier,' who had been one of the French Deuxieme Bureau's chief propaganda artists in World War I. He knew his trade and was set up in business, operating from Geneva, by OSS and OWI jointly. Millions of pamphlets, leaflets, cards, postage stamps and every form of literary propaganda were printed and smuggled into Germany and Fascist Italy. When the Frankfurter Zeitung was suppressed by Hitler, a small edition was printed in Switzerland and sent into Germany. Much material was also dispatched to the French resistance to aid them with their own publications. The speeches of de Gaulle were reprinted in vast quantities and smuggled into France.

The man with the pseudonym Robert Salembier was actually Raymond A. Schuhl, code-named “Mutt.” His code name had a code name! He had been a French Army propagandist in WWI who had served in the 6th Section of the French Deuxieme Bureau until the fall of France and volunteered to do the same for the Americans in WWII.

All OSS members received a code number and we don’t know Schuhl’s, but there is an un-named person (almost all others are named), numbered 677 that simply says “Employed by OSS in Switzerland.” I suspect this is Schuhl because a Dulles telegram dated 11 September 1943 says:

For the past six months the person numbered 677 has been working full-time for us, and, since it is not wise to transmit reports by cable, we have been doing a great deal more along the lines indicated than you know.

Enemy Military Identification Booklets forged by the OSS

Italian Social Republic Ministry of the Armed Forces Army Personal Booklet

German Army Soldbuch or “Soldier’s Personal Identify Book.”

Kingdom of Italy Identification Card

French Disability Card

The last card would be valuable for an OSS agent sent behind the lines into occupied France. If the Germans were to ask why he was walking the street he could say that he had been invalided out of the military.

Italian Military Medical Document

It was not only the French agents that needed a medical excuse to be of military age but not at the front. The OSS forged a medical document that an Italian agent could show to the Germans or Italian authorities signed by a military doctor with a written report of his injuries or disease and the time needed for him to heal. He could walk around safely being a heroic soldier who had been injured in battle and was now on leave at home to recover. The text has open areas for the description of the medical problem and the signature of the medical officer.

Military Hospital - Milan

Hospital Medical Commission

Name...Can be discharged. During the hospital visit, he was treated for:

Milan, Italy

677 was doing work that Dulles did not want to put on paper. This is almost always the case when you are talking about counterfeiting documents. Six months would take us back to March and we think Salembier was hired in February, but that could just be rounding off the numbers, or it could be that the forger was first hired for some specific contract jobs, and hired full-time a month later.

There is also another clue. Gerry Mayer, Schuhl’s staunchest supporter and partner had the OSS code number 678, just one number away. Not a smoking gun, but interesting.

He seems to have worked for the Americans as early as February 1943. His pay was apparently in U.S. greenbacks and kept in the United States. On 5 February he asked for some of his money and was told [in a censored letter]:

I have talked with our Financial Attaché on the question of the possible release of some of your dollar funds in the United States. I suggest that when you are next in Bern you call at the legation…

Another letter on 6 June 1943 mentions that he also has funds in British bank. The letter from “D” adds:

I have the greatest confidence in Salembier [Now using the code name] and would be glad to do anything I can to facilitate his obtaining funds to keep him and his family going here in Switzerland. He is useful to us in many ways.

A friend mentions that Schuhl had attained some wealth but lost it twice with the German occupation of France:

Schuhl was associated with his uncle Alfred Picard in running a factory in Ste-Marie-aux-Mines. From 1916 on he was a member of the propaganda service and thus most of the time was away from home. His home town was ruled by the German army, and the factory was sequestered. Alfred Picard escaped to Switzerland and the money for Schuhl's secret actions came totally out of his own pocket. After the end of WWI, Alfred Picard came back with Schuhl and restarted their industrial activities and invested in several plants and companies in Alsace and in north of France. When WWII started, both were wealthy persons.

Both men were Jewish, though non-observant. Picard had turned towards Protestantism, while Schuhl turned towards Catholicism. After June 1940, anti-Jewish laws promulgated by the Vichy Petain government defined both as Jews. When Schuhl escaped to Switzerland his properties were sequestered once again and transferred to "Aryan" administrators He had no funds in Switzerland. At the end of WWII, retrieving ones legal properties was a lengthy procedure with no guarantee of success. His factory employed 4,000 workers. That may be why in his letters to Dulles, Schuhl argues that he strongly needs money.

Hayem mentions Schuhl in Vichy:

After the armistice of 22 June 1940, under agreements with Germany, the French secret services were to be dissolved. In reality, they relocated to the "Free Zone" and went underground. Raymond Schuhl stayed in Vichy, where the government of Pétain was located. What was he doing in Vichy? Surely working for the underground French services, but I found nothing about his activities during this period of time. His address was 1 rue Gernot, VICHY.

The Hotel Regina in Geneva
Schuhl has marked his hotel room window on the photograph

The former Hotel Regina and wartime home of OSS Morale Operations in Geneva – 2018
Schuhl worked from this location at 7 Quai du Mont Blanc facing Lake Geneva
It is the blue-grey building second from the right with flags on the roof
Photo by Lee Richards

Schuhl’s cover was an “Alsatian businessman.” It appears that Gerry Mayer [of the United States Office of War Information] was a middleman between Salembier and Dulles. I have a copy of a 16 September 1943 note from “G.M.M.” to Dulles giving “Mutt’s” phone number and stating that he was staying at the Hotel Regina, phone number 2-61-74.

Mayer is a strange character. He was the head of OWI Berne, and as such had a legitimate job producing American literature, brochures and magazines during the daylight hours. However, each night he allowed those OSS people to sneak into his printing plants and produce illegal (in Switzerland) anti-Nazi propaganda until dawn, when they quietly slipped away and transported it clandestinely to Germany. How can this be? He was on two payrolls. A 9 April 1942 letter to Mayer from OSS Chief William Donovan states in part:

This is to advise you that your headquarters have been changed from Washington D.C to Berne, Switzerland. The reimbursement of your expenses in connection with the travel, in accordance with existing orders and regulations, is hereby authorized.

This transfer is not for your convenience, but is for the best interests of the Government.

It is almost as if his OWI job was a cover and he was meant to do espionage and propaganda from the very start.

Schuhl and Mayer seem to have been the best of friends. In May of 1946, a letter from Schuhl to Mayer in the Allen Dulles papers requests help with $99,000 in blocked funds in three New York City banks and is signed by the old codename “Mutt.” In December of 1946, both Dulles and Mayer wrote to Schuhl at the Hotel Regina in Geneva congratulating him on the first Christmas after the Allied victory.

Raymond Arthur Schuhl was born in Benfeld but lived in Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines, a small town in Alsace. Alsace had been integrated into the German Empire but Schuhl always had strong pro-French feelings. He had a perfect knowledge of German language and was able to speak with various regional accents, including Swiss.

When WWI was declared, he traveled to France and enlisted in the army. His intellect was apparently noted and he received several promotions ending the war as a Lieutenant. From an operational base in Switzerland he produced counterfeit German newspapers such as the Frankfurter Zeitung and enormous quantities of leaflets and booklets. The methods of dissemination were quite similar to those used by Office of Strategic Services in WWII

After 1933, Schuhl saw the danger represented by Hitler and the Nazi Party. He secretly stayed near Vichy for a brief time where the new French government collaborated with Germany (possibly gathering information), and then fled to Switzerland where he was able to get in touch with the Office of Strategic Services and become a trusted agent.

A Fake Death Notice for Schuhl
Courtesy of Richard Thorner

At some point in 1942 Schuhl had apparently decided to join the Americans. Perhaps to hide his whereabouts and to make himself invisible to the Germans and to protect his family a death notice was printed stating that:

The friends of Commander Raymond Schuhl
Commandeur of the Legion of Honor
Croix de Guerre with Palms and Stars

Have the great sorrow to announce his death in Algiers during a bombing. It was far from his native Alsace. Pray for him. Algiers, November 1942.

We also know that Schuhl was involved with postal propaganda. In late 1944, Eugene Warner, the Chief of Mediterranean Morale Operations met with the French forger to discuss sending propaganda mail into Germany through regular mail trains from Switzerland. Schuhl told him that it could be done, but in only very limited numbers. As a result, MO Rome pulled out of this operation and told Schuhl to prepare his own letters and envelopes in Switzerland.

Back in Switzerland, the OSS might have been printing propaganda in Geneva and Lausanne. A Swiss Ministere Public Federal document from their General Prosecutor dated 29 September 1944 states:

The “imprimerie Centrale de Lausanne” has printed propaganda material in violation of Swiss neutrality and that propaganda is an outrage to a foreign Head of State.

Consequently: The manager of the printing house will be punished in the event of a subsequent crime. All the material seized is confiscated. 4 copies have been sent to the Police of Sûreté de Lausanne.

We also find an 18 March 1944 letter among Schuhl’s papers that mention the German attempts to counter his work. The Germans caused similar problems in WWI. The letter says in part:

Measures taken in Germany against the Distribution of Clandestine Literature

On 12 March 1944, an order by the German Minister of the Interior appeared in the German press, especially in western Germany, making the distribution of clandestine literature a punishable offense as “dangerous for the state,” and stating that any leaflets that were found in Germany, if dropped by air or distributed in any other way, must be delivered to the nearest police station. The statement “any other way” officially recognizes the effectiveness of our methods of distribution.

The information department specifies that the distribution of leaflets and clandestine literature considerably disturbs the German authorities. Leaflets and clandestine journals were found in Western Germany as far as the Rhine, in Berlin, and in several important river and seaports.

The surveillance of trains in the Rhine valley, and especially near Switzerland has been considerably enforced. The main station at Basle is one of the places the German police is particularly observant…The anti-Nazi agents who risk their lives by distributing the named literature now have to double their vigilance and prudence.

The Swiss police have received instructions to stop the delivery and transportation of leaflets and anti-Hitler publications into Germany. The Gestapo has informed the Swiss police authorities that the clandestine importation of these publications into Germany was through Switzerland.

On 29 September 1944 we find the first document mentioning the prosecution of some of Schuhl’s team by the Swiss. A "Ministry of the Public" finding says in part:

Concerning the investigation against the Imprimerie Centrale SA in Lausanne, for having fabricated propaganda material against our neutrality and for the criminal offense of article 296 of the Swiss Penal Code (Offense of a foreign state) concerning articles 106 and 107 of the Federal Law of 15 June 1934 about the penal procedure it is decreed:

The investigation is suspended in view of the circumstances of the case.

The director of the accused house, Mr. Arthur Margot and his representative, Mr. Andre Tschan, are informed, according to article 292 of the Swiss Penal Code, that they will be punished by arrest or by a fine in case of a relapse.

The material that was seized in the source of the investigation procedure will, considering its insulting nature being contrary to our neutrality, be confiscated according to article 73 of the law…

I suspect a lot of pressure was put on Switzerland by the Allies, so the court basically put the culprits on probation and told them not to do it again…or else.

Information Bulletin for France

The document that apparently caused the prosecution of the OSS printers was this one with the title PETAIN. I could not find the Bulletin mentioned below, but this leaflet does bear the title at the top of the first and second page in a small framed banner: 30 Avril 1943 - Bulletin d'Informations - N° 4. We have found no other leaflet bearing that title. Looking at this leaflet the reader can see why I made a decision to only depict pictorial literature.

What is odd is that although the Germans made the complaint; this leaflet really attacks the French Vichy government. Perhaps that was all the Swiss police could find during their raid. It quotes a number of French officials that say that there was pro-German intrigue and treachery. An example:

Threats by Pétain and Baudoin, – the under-secretary of Foreign Affairs who, after the capitulation, became a minister – to sabotage the proposition of Paul Reynaud to transfer the French government to North Africa and, from there, continue the fight against Germany. This decision was taken by Paul Reynaud when he won Bordeaux on 14 June. Within 24 hours Baudoin, Pierre Laval and their treacherous clique succeeded in detaching the majority of collaborators from the president of the council, forcing M. Paul Reynaud to resign.

Schuhl also filed a 2 June 1945 letter on the Swiss actions against his section. It is rather technical and consists of names and charges so I will heavily edit it. It says in part:

Swiss Army Military Court – Lausanne

By decision of 31 May 1945, the chief auditor of the army, referring to article 122 of the military penal code , ordered to close the proceedings of the military investigative commission against the above mentioned individuals [Five Swiss citizens, one identified as a printer] accused of propaganda actions in favor of a belligerent or involvement in this infraction: the violation of the order of 14 April 1939 on the maintaining of neutrality, or having participated in the preparation, the printing, or the delivery of the “Information Bulletin for France.”

The decision is mainly caused by the consideration that the information bulletin is identified as an information paper with documentary character rather than a subversive propaganda journal. The conditions for foreign propaganda, penalized by the quoted order, were not realized.

Meanwhile in Bern there must have been some real problem between American and French forces because on 25 February 1945, Dulles recommends Schuhl for an intelligence job to General Eugene L. Harrison of the U.S. Sixth Army Group and says that he can be trusted. The letter says in part:

…My French friend will identify himself under the name Salembier…He worked closely with us for over two years, and also had a mission from the French Ministry of War…Extremely astute and if anyone can be of use in ferreting out the mystery I believe he is the man…He is of course a good Frenchman, but I don’t believe he would tolerate any French intrigue against us…

By some coincidence, the day before, 24 February, an American team called Alsos entered Germany to search for data on atomic experiments and discoveries.

Another letter to Schuhl dated 7 July 1945 from a Molly Bessermann seems to be talking about the same problem, although it gives no detail about what the problem was:

Mr. de Gaevernitz remembers with pleasure the interesting journey to Strasbourg he made with you, and the precious assistance you gave American Army in a very delicate affair.

Molly Bessermann was the private and confidential secretary to the Mr. Gaevernitz, special Assistant to Allen W. Dulles. We assume she would be privy to most of the secret workings of the OSS.

What problem appeared about February and ended about April 1945? I mentioned this problem between the French and Americans and Bernard Hayem gave a possible explanation:

When the Allied armies advanced into Germany in April 1945, evidence was found of the German nuclear program, consisting of components of a nuclear reactor and eight tons of uranium oxide. At Celle, an experimental centrifuge for separating uranium isotopes was found. Later, 1100 tons of uranium ore were found. The problem was that most of the areas of interest lay in the path of the French First Army and were in the occupation zone allocated to France.

American General Groves attempted to get the occupation boundaries changed, but due to security restrictions of the Manhattan Project could not tell the State Department why. The commander of the U.S. Sixth Army Group was asked to make the change but said that the matter would have to be taken up with Eisenhower. A plan was drawn up called Operation Harborage where a large American force would cut diagonally across in front of the advancing French army and seize the area long enough to capture any German scientists, remove all available records, and destroy any remaining facilities.

So, if Hayem is correct, the U.S. wanted to search that part of Germany to be about to be occupied by France in order to confiscate German atomic projects and capture German nuclear scientists. Who would be better to act as an intermediary with the French forces than a highly regarded French officer like Raymond Schuhl?

That is all of the general information known about Schuhl (AKA “Salembier,” AKA “Mutt”). Do we know more about this mysterious Frenchman who came to the aid of the United States and ran propaganda campaigns again the Germans and Italians from Switzerland? If fact we do. I have been privileged to read some of the documents that Schuhl wrote as a record of his WWII exploits. The report below is undated so we are not sure when it was written and it is not addressed to anyone so we don’t know if a copy was forwarded or this was for his own use. He uses the word “service” but does not specify what he means so he could be talking about the OSS in Switzerland, the Moral Operations Section or his own forgery and printing section. It is my belief that the latter is the answer. Schuhl is talking about his own group and how they printed and moved propaganda material. These are in his words, all in his native French, although I have shortened and edited them for ease of reading. Let us start with Schuhl’s description of the unit he led in Switzerland:

A Year of Clandestine Propaganda Service in Germany and in the Occupied Countries

The clandestine propaganda service was established in December 1942. The service currently consists of 8 teams, responsible for the dissemination of propaganda leaflets in the nations annexed or occupied by the Axis. Its governing body consists of an editor-in-chief and several assistant editors. Each team is an independent unit which fulfills its mission without any knowledge of the existence of the other teams. All the teams are under the control of Geneva, which is itself directly controlled by Berne, where decisions are taken depending on editing, the types of images and other questions in consultation with the Chief.

During the period under review, the service printed 1,269,500 leaflets and 19,000 brochures. The distribution of the printed material is effected by movement to and departure from the depots of Berne, Zurich and Geneva.

Breakdown of the Berne Service

Notice that the printing shops are in Geneva and Lausanne. The depots where the materials are stored are in Geneva, Bale and Zurich. You can follow the arrows and see where the various printed material goes from each team.

Team Valmy: Printed material only for use in France, most often using the personnel of the French Resistance.

Team Mail: Organized specially for the mailing in Germany of the counterfeit copies of the newspaper Frankfurter Zeitung, and other periodicals, as well as some other newspapers.

Floats used by Team Navig

Team Navig: This team is responsible for the introduction of leaflets in Germany, via the Rhine river channel, by means of floating tubes 20 centimeters in length and 25 to 35 millimeters in diameter.

Team Rails: Until last September, the operation worked well; leaflets went to Germany and Alsace by way of the railway-cars, returning to the country through the Bale station. Leaflets got pass the Gestapo at Freiburg-Baden, but a complaint was addressed by the German authorities to the federal authorities of Switzerland, who opened an investigation into the matter. A member of the team was surprised during the operation and this led to the arrest of the entire team. The activity of the team is consequently suspended.

Team Waterloo: A secretive, communist-oriented section directed against National Socialism, with many secure means for introducing and distributing leaflets into Germany, including relations with railway workers, tradesmen and postal workers.

Team Nibelungen: The "Free Germany" organization disseminates our leaflets into Germany using processes specific to their organization.

Note: These last two teams operate on both the Bale and Schaffhausen borders, as well as Liechtenstein to Austria.

Team Niagara: This team is specifically tasked to operate near the German-Swiss border in the Lake Constance area.

Team Garibaldi: This group is currently in hiatus due to the invasion of Italy by the Allies. It was constituted for the purpose of the introduction of anti-fascist leaflets in Italy.

Team Parsival: Consists of a flying team composed of writers and occasional collaborators, independently aggregating in the various sectors such as Mail, Navig, Rail, Niagra, as needed.

During the twelve-month period, the service had to face many difficulties as a result of the ongoing investigations and research carried out by the Swiss Federal Police on the proceedings and following the requests submitted by the German authorities, to discourage the printers and the authors of the leaflets. Several collaborators were arrested and subjected to vigorous interrogations by the Federal Political Police during the investigations. However, nothing was disclosed, either in regards to the organization itself or in relation to the writers and printers.

Morale Operations Field Manual - Special Services

What was the purpose of all these leaflets and letters that appeared to come from inside Germany? In 1943, the OSS published a classified secret Morale Operations Field Manual - Special Services. It explained the philosophy, concepts, operations and definitions needed by agents in the field.

Forgeries includes the writing of poison-pen letters, forging of misleading intelligence documents, falsification of enemy documents and periodicals, and the printing of false orders to the enemy, regulations, and proclamations. Leaflets, pamphlets, and graphics are used for subversive deception within enemy and enemy-occupied countries and not identifiable with any official or semi-official United Nations agency.

FALSE LEAFLETS, PAMPHLETS, & GRAPHICS: This type of implement refers to printed, mimeographed or written literature and graphics distributed secretly in enemy territory and under concealed sponsorship. This includes chain and, other anonymous letters, chalking symbols and messages on walls. The false pamphlet sponsored by a belligerent nation attempts to convey the impression that it is a bona fide message from the people's own fellow country-men who are sharing the same risks as the rest of the population and have similar aspirations, aims, and goals.

An appeal to nationalistic attitudes is more effective when made by the nationals of the group than when made by another nation which has its own nationalistic axe to grind. Likewise, incitement to action or revolt coming from a representative of an aggrieved group is more effective than such incitement coming from an "outsider." Whenever an attempt is made to assure potential sympathizers that they would not be alone in resistance activities, such assurance comes better from a group which is presumably carrying on the same activities under the same conditions and taking the same risks.

USES OF LEAFLETS: In general, the leaflet can be used for dissemination of "forbidden" news, spreading of rumors, exposing nefarious activities of enemy officials and collaborationists, giving reassurances to potential sympathizers, instructing in sabotage, inciting to subversive activities, and preparing the populace for cooperation with invading troops. The false leaflet can be capitalized upon by propaganda agencies in popularizing a passive resistance campaign (such as the "V" campaign or the "1918" campaign). It may be desirable to have the campaign "planted" via false pamphlets. This "spontaneous" activity can then be picked up by the authorized propaganda agencies. (2) The false pamphlet can be effectively used to make the enemy uneasy about the loyalty of the people in the territory. The very existence of clandestine pamphlets is "evidence" of underground activity.

The Propaganda Newspaper Frankfurter Zeitung - No. 467, Vol. 89, 1944
This counterfeit newspaper was printed by Schuhl in Switzerland in both WWI and WWII
Headline: Towards Decision? The Dramatic Climax of the War

The German researcher Wolfgang Baldus wrote to me in 2020 to point out that these newspapers might have been a tremendous mistake by the OSS. He discovered that the newspaper no longer existed when Schuhl counterfeited it. He said in part, edited for brevity:

A Fake Frankfurter Zeitung in an addressed envelope ready for mailing

One of Schuhl’s demonstration stamped and addressed envelopes that included number 456 of the fake Frankfurter Zeitung bearing the OWI code 4 is interesting because the issue is undated (The genuine newspapers were dated), certainly in order to make it seem fresh and up-to-date.

However, we now know that the Frankfurter Zeitung was shut down by Hitler in May 1943 and the last wartime issue was published on 31 August 1943 (Volume 88). So, when Schuhl began to work for the OSS in autumn 1943, the genuine Frankfurter Zeitung did not exist anymore. Nevertheless, he produced fake Frankfurter Zeitungs up to Volume 90 (1945). Was Schuhl unaware of the fact that he forged a newspaper that did not exist? Or did he believe that the Germans did not realize that the genuine Frankfurter Zeitung had ceased to exist?

I agree with Wolfgang’s theory. It may be a terrible error on the part of the OSS printing a counterfeit of a newspaper that no longer existed, but it is very likely that the troops in the field had no idea of what was happening back in Berlin, they were used to seeing the newspaper and I am sure they read it believing it to be genuine. And of course I pointed out to him that it took us close to 80 years to figure out that the OSS printed a newspaper that did not exist, and what were the odds that Schuhl would have been up to date in 1943 when he just started his propaganda campaign or that German troops at the front would have known the paper had ceased operation?

A Special “Financial” Edition?

It appears that 21 issues of the fake newspaper were printed by Schuhl. At least, both OSS sample books that I have seen studied ended with file number 21. The newspapers were normally four pages, but in two cases I have seen 2-page issues bearing the same file number but different text; such as Financial News, with stories about the state of the German economy. I don’t know how often the forgers printed a second 2-page newspaper, but I suspect it was more of a “special edition” when there was too much news to fit into four pages. Notice that the forger marked the “Financial” at the top of the page with a red pencil to show that it was special.

In Nazi Germany there were numerous official newspapers for the military, the Storm Troopers, the SS, and Party members. They were “official” and good Germans were expected to read them and accept the statements as gospel. They came directly from the Party and the Party was never wrong. Knowing this, Schuhl and his band of forgers produced numerous facsimiles of the newspapers, all with hidden or overt anti-Nazi and defeatist propaganda. A reader would gradually begin to feel the war was lost as he read through these fake newspapers. I do not want to show them all, but I will mention a number of the very popular German papers that were forged and disseminated.

Some of the newspapers forged by the OSS in Berne: The Black Corps; News for the Troops; News for the Wehrmacht; The New Reich; Front and Home; the National Observer; the New Vienna Daily; the Mulhauser Daily; and The Bodensee Review.

In the months to come, we plan to print more copies of the Frankfurter Zeitung, numerous leaflets and posters and an important pamphlet containing the speeches of General de Gaulle. We also plan to publish a counterfeit of “Illustrious day” and the German humor magazine Simplicissimus. [A satirical German weekly magazine founded in 1896].

The OSS Propaganda Cigarette Package Nordland

The pack of “Northland” cigarettes contained ten cigarettes, each with a propaganda message printed on them. A folded copy of the miniature propaganda newspaper Frankfurter Zeitung was also included in the pack. Some of the eleven propaganda messages on the cigarette papers I have seen are:

Total War? Total misery!

What did Hitler bring us? Death – Bombs – Misery

Fight for Hitler’s fall!

Once: Germany above all! Nowadays: Everything is worth more than Germany!

Everything is limited. National-socialist terror is too.

Without Hitler: Peace! With Hitler: Death, destruction, misery! There is no middle way

To hell with Hitler and his bigwigs! This is the only way to save Germany

General von Seydlitz: “Hitler has to go”

The warrior falls in enemy country. The bigwig sits in the dugout

Down with the Nazi bigwigs! Long live the Fourth Reich!

German workers, German farmers! The worst is before us! Peace, before it is too late!

Besides the floating tubes, the teams also use packets of counterfeit cigarettes, containing not only cigarettes with slogans, but also miniature leaflets.

The most intense efforts will be made in the future with a view to maintaining and increasing the activity of the various teams, all this notwithstanding the ever more serious forces which are opposed to this propaganda material by Germany and the rigorous oversight exercised on both the Swiss and the German sides.

Judging by the reports received from the countries affected by this means of propaganda, the results of this branch of activity during the past years should be considered as extremely satisfying and encouraging. This concludes his initial report.

   

 

Gummed Propaganda Labels (Stickers)

Schuhl does not mention gummed propaganda labels but we know that the Office of Strategic Services offices in Rome and Berne produced hundreds of different “pin-prick” gummed labels as part of their mission to destroy the morale of the German people and military and to make the Nazis believe there was a vigorous underground movement in their midst. In the past I made a collage of such leaflets (I have about 100 of them). Most of these labels had short messages, sometimes with an illustration, and they were all meant to be stuck on tables, walls, mirrors, etc.; wherever the Germans congregated so they were daily reminded of the folly of the war and the evils of the Nazi regime. In general, these small gummed labels are always between 2 and 4-inches in size. Some of the short messages on the gummed labels are:

Die for Hitler?; Freedom! Peace!; Nazis out; One people: Austria; one Empire: Austria, No Leader!; Peace on Earth not peace under the Earth; Later is too late; Away with the (Swastika image), Peace still today; The last cartridge for the [swastika]-bigwigs; Hitler´s death – Germany´s life; Volkssturm = SOS of the SS: [swastika] this is the enemy!: [burial cross] you?; [cross with helmet] you?; You are fighting for the party, not for Germany!; Down with the [swastika]; Shit; End the war!; and Germany 1939: “people without territory…” Germany 1945 territory without people?

Fallen on the last day of WWII

I thought I would add this label because it is the largest I have ever seen. It is about 7 x 8.5-inches in size. The Allies often produced “white” leaflets to Germany showing a clock pointing to five minutes to twelve and asking if they wanted to die in the last minutes of the war. This leaflet is similar. It depicts a grave marker of a German soldier who was killed at the end of the war and asks the reader if he wants to be that soldier. The text is:

Fallen on the last day of WWII.

Do YOU want to be the last one to die?

Dr. David Lerner who was a WWII Captain in the U.S. Psychological Warfare Division wrote about Berne OSS in his book Sykewar. He said in part:

In addition to the standard leaflet formats, [Berne’s] material appeared as simulated German newspapers (Mainly the Frankfurter Zeitung), simulated German postage stamps, seed packets, wall stickers, pamphlets and brochures…

Schuhl had several German newspaper clippings in his files, all commenting on OSS operations. It seems he kept clippings of articles from Swiss newspapers that were telling of the increasing success of allied leaflet propaganda over Germany and the resulting nervousness of the German authorities.

One small clipping tells about Himmler’s order to hand over all leaflets that were dropped by Allied planes immediately. It mentions the significant increase of illegal enemy leaflets dropped over the Reich.

A second longer clipping is in regard to the intensified controls in Alsace and Baden due to the illegal distribution of a newspaper that has been prohibited by the National-socialists; certainly the OSS propaganda newspaper Frankfurter Zeitung. The second half of the clipping indicates an increasing nervousness of the Nazi authorities as a result of the defeats in the East and West and mentions arbitrary arrests by the SS that is extending their operations to Alsace, and especially to Strasbourg. This clipping from the Swiss Arbeiter Zeitung of Basel is a good example of a text in German that could have never been published within Germany in 1944 because it speaks of an increasing weakness and unease of German institutions and authorities.

A third clipping talks about leaflet propaganda in general and its significance in WWII, discussing the pros and cons. It tells about the development of propaganda dropped from the air starting with simple leaflets followed by coffee and chocolate drops, money and rationing coupon drops, front newspapers such as the British Luftpost, and ends with surrender passes. It is stated that by war’s end, Allied leaflet propaganda had a noteworthy influence and wide distribution among Germans both at the front and at home. The article ends by saying:

Propaganda raids of the allied air force played an equal role with the bombing raids against factories and railway stations.

The OSS Bible - The Nazis at War with Catholicism
5,000 Printed in German – 2,000 printed in Italian

Following the initial comments are several pages that list the leaflets attached: 26 on the first page, including a Bible, and Leaflets coded A through V; Page two lists an additional 26 Leaflets coded W through Z and 1 through 22; Page three lists leaflets 23 through 32, and three issues of the newspaper Frankfurter Zeitung.

When we come to the end of the written portion of the Schuhl papers, we find a great number of the actual leaflets that he printed and saved as souvenirs. We are told that they were found in a hap-hazard condition relatively untouched for decades. We find them alphabetically stamped from A to Z and then numbered starting with one. We think that somewhere between 300 and 400 leaflets were printed in Switzerland so I am going to just show a few that appeal to me. The leaflets are in German, French and a few are in Italian. Take note that I am not going to depict any propaganda newspapers because they are big bulky things, hard to scan and 90% text. In general, unless the subject is really important I will not depict any all-text leaflets. Some are hundreds of words long, difficult to translate and boring to read. The reader should understand that in general the majority of propaganda leaflets are all-text with long military and political diatribes. For the purpose of this article I will show those OSS leaflets that are pictorial, colorful, interesting, and those I believe the reader would most enjoy seeing. All the known OSS Bern leaflets are, however, recorded in the PsyWar.org PSYOP Database.

The Leaflets

Before World War II, intelligence activities in the United States were mostly carried out by the Department of State, the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI), and the War Department's Military Intelligence Division (MID). Hoping for greater coordination of intelligence activities, as well as a more strategic approach to intelligence gathering and operations; on July 11, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt appointed William J. Donovan to head a new civilian office attached to the White House, the Coordinator of Information (COI). The COI was charged with collecting and analyzing information which may have had bearing upon national security, correlating such information and data, and making this information available to the President, authorized departments, and authorized officials of the government.

After the start of World War II, Donovan worked with the newly created Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to place the COI under JCS control, while preserving COI autonomy and gaining access to military support and resources. On 13 June 1942, the COI was split into the Office of War Information (OWI) and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). The OWI would do WHITE propaganda, leaflets and radio broadcasts that were clearly defined as coming from the United States or their allies. The OSS would do BLACK propaganda, leaflets and radio broadcasts disguised as coming from inside enemy countries or from groups opposed to the enemy governments.

Both the OWI and the OSS entered the war late since it had started in 1939. The British were masters of propaganda and psychological warfare with a two-year head start, so the United States used their expertise in its own propaganda in the early days or the war.

THE EARLY DAYS OF AMERICAN WAR PROPAGANDA

The Foreign Information Service (FIS), a division of the Office of the Coordinator of Information, (Prior to the spilt up of the Office of War Information and the Office of Strategic Services) became the core of the Overseas Branch of the OWI. The War Report of the OSS mentions the FIS since in the early years they were involved with it.

To penetrate enemy and occupied territory, Foreign Information Service prepared small, light devices which could be smuggled over frontiers, dropped from planes, and easily concealed. In this category were cards, stickers, folders, leaflets, pamphlets, and booklets. FIS booklets, of which more than 6,600,000 were produced during the COI period, ranged from one in Japanese commiserating with the Japanese soldier on his unhappy condition because of his lack of anything like Special Services, to "The Nazi War Against the Catholic Church," a scholarly, factual document bound in black imitation Bible leather and printed in many languages, which was published under the sponsorship and imprint of the National Catholic Welfare Conference.

Anti-Nazi Japanese pamphlets were prepared by FIS before Pearl Harbor. By 20 December, a four-page folder in Japanese was ready for dissemination. Subsequently, a Japanese translation was made of the President's last-minute appeal to Hirohito. Leaflets for the Philippines in three colors were flown out in February. Altogether, FIS printed over 28,000,000 copies of Japanese leaflets, but not all of these were distributed. The leaflets contained attacks on the emperor and emphasized the power of America and the destructive effects of bombing. They went in heavily for historical references and puns, to which the Japanese are addicted. One was called "The Falling Flowers of Yedo" (Yedo refers to old Tokyo and "Falling Flowers" to fires, hence, incendiary bombs); one side of the leaflet showed a picture of Tokyo after the great earthquake of 1923, the other showed a picture of Lubeck after the bombing raid of 28-29 March 1942. "This is what happened to a city of steel and concrete," the text ran, "What will happen to your cities of paper and wood?"

In the European Theater, the first Foreign Information Service leaflet, containing a message from America to the French people and a picture of the Statue of Liberty, was dropped on France by the RAF in January 1942. Negotiations with the RAF had begun about a week after Pearl Harbor. By June 1942 FIS reported that the British Political Warfare Executive had prepared for them five American leaflets which had been dropped by the RAF. Other leaflets "which to all practical intents and purposes have been American" had also been dropped by the RAF and in some cases distributed through subversive channels. FIS urged that the time had come to make careful preparations for its own production of leaflets in England, and particularly for their distribution by American aircraft. As early as 14 January 1942 Donovan had written a memorandum on this latter point to the President. The President referred him to Army Air Force General Arnold who agreed in recommending that our first bombing missions in force should carry leaflets. He stated, however, that this would not become practicable until early summer. It was not until after the dissolution of COI that American leaflets were distributed over Europe by American planes.

Leaflets from Switzerland

The Office of Strategic Service in Switzerland aimed at every country within or occupied by the Nazi sphere, and most of the bosses of the Nazi Party. In this section we will see some leaflets that used as a theme Hitler, Himmler, Goebbels, Goering, Mussolini, bombing raids, German children, the Nazi Party, The German secret weapons, the German monetary system, malingering, occupied France, and Charles de Gaulle. Of course there are many more themes and this simply meant that nothing was sacred to the American propaganda agents. All was truly fair in love and war.

I like this black OSS leaflet coded "B" because it appears to be a patriotic German publication. We see the German Eagle on the cover and the text:

VICTORY of the Germans

However, inside the folded leaflet there are a number of charts that show the decline of the value of the German mark. The ratio of the mark to Allied currencies is depicted falling during the years 1940, 1941 and 1942. After each year there is a quote from a Nazi leader:

COLLAPSE?

In the last days of August 1939 our leader said "We will win."

In August 1940 Goring announced "We have won."

But today in 1943 Goebbels tells the people "We have to win."

The mark wins to death

This economic propaganda has always been a favorite form of psychological operations. During WWII the United States prepared four different 10 yen note facsimiles to be dropped on Japan, each with a long text about the inflationary destruction of the war to its currency. Decades later in Vietnam the United States would produce facsimiles of the North Vietnamese 1, 2 and 5 dong notes with similar messages.

 

To the French from America

I chose to show this envelope filled with propaganda because it is the most patriotic item I have ever seen. Both the French and American colors are red, white and blue so this envelope is covered with color that would make any Frenchman proud, and the text on the outside is also patriotic and blood stirring. The code is “L” and inside there are eight pages of propaganda. The front of the envelope depicts the Statue of Liberty and the text:

To the French from America

LIBERTY

We do not forget you – President Roosevelt

One of the enclosures inside the envelope
A gummed patriotic sticker to be stuck wherever the French people congregate

The back depicts the old American symbol of a white star on a blue background with a red meatball center. Curiously, the Japanese flag has that same red meatball so after the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor; the United States removed the red center. The text is:

THE FOUR FREEDOMS

Freedom of Speech
Freedom of Religion
Freedom from Want
Freedom from Fear

The insert is a speech by American ambassador M. Bullitt where he spoke of the solidarity of the French on Joan of Arc Day in Philadelphia.

Stabilization of the Lira

We show the OSS attack on the German mark above. Just to prove that the OSS was an “equal opportunity” attacker we depict leaflet “M” here. This is a similar attack on the Italian lira. The leaflet shows the fasces on the front, the symbol of Italian Fascism. The colors are those of the Italian flag and the text is:

STABILIZATION OF THE LIRA

One again the Berne propagandists provide charts of the precipitous fall of the Italian lira from 1940 to 1943. 100 lira in 1940 was equal to 19 Swiss francs. In May of 1943 the same 100 lira was equal to 2.52 Swiss francs. On the back of the leaflet there are statements from Benito Mussolini dated from 1940 to 1943. They are:

We will win!
Victory is in the fist!
Victory or death!

Rendezvous with Friends

I liked this multi-page brochure because I wrote an article years ago stating that the United States was famous for its leaflets showing the Air Force bomber. This booklet falls right into that pattern. It targets the French and show American pilots and bombers overhead on the front and back. Inside, different American bombers are illustrated and the French are told what they can do. Among them are the A-20, B-26, B-25, B-17 and B-24. The French were told that the bombers were hitting Germany on a regular basis and liberation was assured. The leaflet is coded “P.” 25,000 copies of the brochure were printed.

Anti-Fascist Postcards

The OSS prepared at two colorful propaganda postcards attacking the Axis featuring vignettes by the famous Polish caricaturist Arthur Szyk. We know from OSS files that 55,000 copies of each propaganda postcard were printed in Switzerland.

Pact of Steel

The first card depicts Hermann Göring, Hideki Tojo, and the Grim Reaper leading a chained and reluctant Benito Mussolini. Notice that the Japanese leader Tojo wears a Nazi Party swastika armband. The title Stahlpakt (Pact of Steel) is on the back of the propaganda postcard. This card has the stamped OSS file code “R.” The OSS started using an alphabetic code and quickly used up the letters “A” to “Z” They then changed to a numeric code and further leaflets in the series are coded from 1 to 341 (the highest number I have seen so far).

Triumphal Procession

There is no text on the front, but the back is entitled Triumphzug Unter den Linden Berlin 1943 (Triumphal Procession under the Linden Trees, Berlin 1943). The OWI/OSS stamped file code for this propaganda postcard is “Q.” Both crads depict Mussolini as a weak and ridiculous leader. The OWI selected these pictures to discredit the German-Italian alliance and to divide both countries.

The “Pact of Steel” gummed label

Both of these images were also printed on gummed labels reduced in size to be placed on walls, tables, and wherever Germans might congregate. I depict a gummed sticker from a Berne sample book. The Propaganda cards measure about 6 x 4-inches, while the propaganda gummed labels measure about 3.75 x 2.5-inches.

There is one peculiar fact about these two cards and gummed labels. Every specimen I have seen depicts “Pact of Steel” as “Q” and “Triumphal Procession” as “R.” However, some documents indicate that they are stamped incorrectly and “Pact of Steel” should be “R” and “Triumphal Procession” should be “Q.” I do not know how such a mistake could be made, but I do note that in the official OSS file books the “R” appears before the “Q” so perhaps that indicates that the OSS was aware that they had erred.

Astrology

There are a total of 10 cartoons all bearing the code “S.” The OSS knew that everyone enjoys a good laugh, especially at the expense of the big shots, and here they make fun of the Fuehrer and his belief in Astrology. He sees American bombers overhead and wonders where his star-gazers went wrong. The Nazis believed in astrology and the Nazi leaders had dozens of them on the payroll. After the attempt on Hitler’s life, there is a rumor that he blamed them for his general’s actions and had about 300 of them arrested and perhaps killed. Both sides used astrology as propaganda in the war. Both sides printed leaflets, books, and had experts on Nostradamus explaining why the other side was doomed. The headline of the leaflet is:

Scandalous! The stars up there are not mentioned in my book!

The book Hitler is reading is entitled:

ASTROLOGY

Your Future is Written in the Stars

German Humor

We should note that the ten cartoons were also published in a camouflaged booklet coded “T” and entitled:

German Humor

Soul of the youth

Big Mouth...

Here we show the booklet “T” opened and two of the cartoon inside. They are usually coded “S” when distributed as single leaflets, but inside the booklet they bear no codes. The cartoon at left depicts a fat Nazi Party member covered with medals strutting by two badly wounded veterans and the text:

Big...Mouth - Germany 1943

The cartoon at right depicts Hitler gloriously happy as his bombers blitz London, but not so happy as the favor is returned by the British on the industrial Ruhr. The text is:

This is great!

But that is inhuman!

Who is next?

In the Pacific, General MacArthur was sending matchbooks to the Japanese reading: “I will return!” The OSS sent these matchbooks to the French. One side has the French colors of red, white and blue. The other seems to show a broken cigarette. Italian dictator Benito Mussolini has fallen. Below we see Laval of Vichy France, Hitler and Tojo. There is a question mark, clearly implying “Who is next.” This matchbook is coded “X.” 20,000 copies of this matchbook were printed.