[Scott # B271]

Hitler's birthday was April 20, 1889. After the Nazis came to power, a new stamp was issued each year to commemorate his birthday; the stamp above celebrates his 55th birthday. He would last only 10 days past his 56th birthday; he committed suicide with his newly married partner, Eva Braun, on April 30, 1945. The Soviets had already entered Berlin.

Hitler's head adorns many Nazi-era stamps. Though Hitler did not approve of a "cult of personality" like that in the USSR, there is little doubt that his face was a major symbol of Nazi Germany and reinforced his control over the regime.

[Scott # B170]

Though most of the "Hitler-head" stamps show Hitler standing above the gaze of the viewer (a standard propaganda trick), there was another side to Hitler's public persona. This second stamp demonstrates Hitler's desire to be portrayed as an unthreatening "man of the people." He felt so concerned to preserve his connection to the average German that he did not marry until the end of his life.