---
title: Kolonial-Krieger-Spende. von Lettow-Vorbeck (Colonial Servicemen's Fund)
url: https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/kolonial-krieger-spende-lettow-vorbeck-1918/
description: A German fundraising poster for a colonial servicemen's fund shows General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck upright on a black horse in slouch hat and tunic, with…
section: Collection
---

[Collection](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/)

[![Kolonial-Krieger-Spende. von Lettow-Vorbeck (Colonial Servicemen's Fund)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/kolonial-krieger-spende-lettow-vorbeck-1918.jpg)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/kolonial-krieger-spende-lettow-vorbeck-1918.jpg)

# Kolonial-Krieger-Spende. von Lettow-Vorbeck (Colonial Servicemen's Fund)

A German fundraising poster for a colonial servicemen's fund shows General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck upright on a black horse in slouch hat and tunic, with a facsimile of his signature beneath. Columns of African askari troops march behind him as pale silhouettes; the named commander's renown is lent to the donation appeal.

- **Date:** 1918
- **Period:** [First World War](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#era=wwi)
- **Made by:** Kolonial-Krieger-Spende appeal, Germany; poster by Fritz Grotemeyer, printed by Rotophot A.G., Berlin
- **Region:** [Western and Central Europe](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#region=western-central-europe)
- **Country:** [German Empire](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#country=german-empire)
- **Medium:** [Poster](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#medium=poster)
- **Issuer type:** [Mixed](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#actor=mixed)
- **Regime:** [German Empire](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#regime=german-empire)
- **Leader:** [Wilhelm II](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#leader=wilhelm-ii)
- **Audience:** [Domestic public](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#audience=domestic-public)
- **Purpose:** [Fundraise](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#purpose=fundraise)
- **Themes:** [War and the military](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#theme=war-military), [Empire and colonialism](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#theme=empire-colonialism)
- **Event:** [World War I](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/#event=world-war-i)
- **Techniques:** [Transfer](https://propagandaarchive.org/techniques/transfer/)
- **Regime:** [German Empire under Wilhelm II](https://propagandaarchive.org/regimes/german-empire/)
- **Leader:** [Wilhelm II](https://propagandaarchive.org/regimes/german-empire/#wilhelm-ii)
- **Source:** Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- **Source:** [Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2004665887/), retrieved September 29, 2026
- **Rights:** Public domain (published in Germany 1918, before 1931; LOC: no known restrictions) Fritz Grotemeyer, Berlin: Rotophot A.G., 1918; Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, LC-USZC4-11559

## Text on the object

Original (German) · read from the image, not independently checked

```
Kolonial-Krieger-Spende
von Lettow-Vorbeck [facsimile signature, script]
Grotemeyer 1918 [artist's signature, lower right]
[illegible small imprint at lower left]
```

English translation (machine translation by Claude, not verified by a fluent reader)

```
Colonial Servicemen's Fund
von Lettow-Vorbeck [facsimile signature]
Grotemeyer 1918 [artist's signature]
[illegible small imprint]
```

The tiny imprint at lower left is unreadable in the 517 px service image; the colour bar and Kodak scan marks are not part of the poster.

[← Suomen Mies ja Nainen! Äänestä Kansallista Kokoomuspuoluetta! (political postcard of the National Coalition Party)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/kokoomus-suomen-mies-ja-nainen-1918/) [La paix de l'ennemi (Peace on the Enemy's Terms) →](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/la-paix-de-lennemi-prouve-1918/)

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- [Frontispiece to Eikon Basilike, The Pourtraicture of His Sacred Majestie in his Solitudes and Sufferings (Hollar, 1649)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/eikon-basilike-frontispiece-hollar-1649/) (1649 · Transfer, Glittering generalities)
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