Freistaat Bayern Overprints of Germania Stamps - 1919

FREISTAAT BAYERN OVERPRINTS, originally Deutsches Reich stamps, were issued in 1919, after the fall of the Bavarian Socialist Republic when Bavaria declared itself a free state within the Weimar Republic.

During the transition of the Weimar Republic, regular German "Germania" and Bavarian definitive stamps were overprinted with the words "Freistaat Bayern" to reflect Bavaria's status as a free state. 

These were among the last stamps issued specifically for Bavaria; regular German postage replaced them in April 1920 with the establishment of the Weimar Republic.

- The carmine-coloured "Deutsches Reich"  design depicts the Reichspostamt (Imperial Post Office) in Berlin. 

- The blue-coloured "Deutsches Reich" stamp contains an allegory of the German Empire -- Northern (Protestant) states and Southern (Catholic) regions -- with the text "Deutsches Reich" on the sides and the motto "Seid Einig - Einig - Einig!" (Be United - United - United!) at the bottom.

- The grey-coloured "Deutsches Reich" stamp shows the 100th birth anniversary of Emperor Wilhelm I (1797-1897), featuring a depiction of the Brandenburger Tor. 

- The central red image on this "Deutsches Reich" stamp shows Kaiser Wilhelm II giving a speech in 1896 on the 25th anniversary of the German Empire. At the bottom of the stamp it states, "Ein Reich, Ein Volk, Ein Gott" (One Empire, One People, One God). Interestingly, the Nazis would use a similar phrase in the Austrian Anschluss "Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Fürher".