[WWI] Cards prisoner of war camp Tsingtao (China)

Unique collection of cards from prisoner of war camp Tsingtao, consisting of 49 handwritten cards to Walter Sauerland - prisoner of war from 1916 - and three unwritten cards.

From 1898, Tsingtao was a Chinese fishing village leased to the German empire and as such the village and the surrounding area became a beloved resort and base for the army. At the outbreak of WWI, it became the target of Japanese-English forces and on 7 November 1914, it was captured by the Japanese. From that moment, Tsingtao became a camp for German POWs. The cards to Sauerlands were sent from Japan and China and have each been provided with a complex series of stamps, among other thing indicating if it was released mail from a POW or whether it had passed the censors. Each card therefore tells the story of (the sender to) Sauerland who, according to the text, lived in relative freedom at camp Tsingtao. His friend Johannes, for example, sends him cigarettes; not the right brand, but then they had become quite expensive after all. Walter, on the other hand, sends a box with contents to another friend, but unfortunately - relates his friend - the correct carpet was not inside. He makes a friendly request to Walter to send it after. The numerous stamps also tell another fascinating story, i.e. that of the many bureaucratic wanderings and the status of Sauerland as a POW at the moment of posting. Incl. eleven cards with images of Tsingtao, also four cards specifically designed in and for POW camps. Added: Handbuch der Kriegsgefangenenpost Tsingtau and letter by Dr. Walter Vollmar on the importance and the value of the handbook for explaining the post stamps. *A collection of POW cards, probably unique in its size, sent to the same recipient.