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Die Propagandastaffel der OT Berichtet (Organisation Todt War Correspondent Troops Report) is subtitled "Organisation Todt Correspondents, Poets and Painters Experience the Effort of the Frontline Workers". Information for this rare heavily illustrated linen hardcover book was assembled by Josef Pöchlinger and published in 1941 by Otto Elsner Verlagsgesellschaft.

Author Josef Pöchlinger was the Head of the Organisation Todt Publicity Department and in his foreword dated 4 September 1940 he writes that the current war was different from all previous wars due to new tactics employed by Adolf Hitler.

For the first time in history thousands of German laborers were put to work near the front lines to construct fortifications and repair infrastructure , thereby faithfully assisting frontline Wehrmacht soldiers defeating the enemy.

This book was produced to explain and show the German people the enormous accomplishments of these courageous and accomplished OT Frontarbeiter. On 22 February 1940 Propagandastaffel der OT (equivalent to War Correspondents of the OT) was created and it consisted of eight correspondents (writers), four photographers, two cameramen and a radio reporter.

The text, written by special OT war correspondents, explains the work done by the OT Frontarbeiter in detail. Work on the Westwall, the transport of OT men to the front line to rebuild damaged roads so the fight of the Wehrmacht would not be interrupted, the difference between OT B-Trupps and S-Trupps (Bridge and Street Building troops) at work in Belgium and France, housing the OT, entertainment for the men of the OT (movie theaters, book shops, cultural shows, etc.), and much more.

There is a chapter about French Salonwagen 2419D, the railroad car in which the French Army in 1918 required the Germans to surrender, an act that ended combat in World War I. Early on 22 June 1940, men of the OT moved the railway car from inside the museum in which it sat (built with American funds after the end of WWI) to a spot outside in preparation for the French surrender to the Germans in the very same railway car, a ceremony that took place at 18:36 that day.

Another interesting chapter has information about the number of OT troops involved in construction and re-construction in France and Belgium between 10 May and 15 August 1940, the number of river, canal, road and railroad bridges built or rebuilt, etc.

Photos in the book Die Propagandastaffel der OT Berichtet, highlight the many accomplishments of the men of the OT. There are rare photos of Reichsminister Dr. Fritz Todt with Adolf Hitler, Reichsminister Todt and staff officers in an airplane, men of the OT removing rubble in French cities, rebuilding damaged railways and bridges, OT workers moving the surrender train at Compiègne (large photo above), OT men building Hitler's Führer-Hauptquartier (Wolfschlucht1 at Brûly-de-Pesche), the construction of an airport near the Channel Coast and bunkers, blowing up left-behind wrecked British ships in a "harbor in occupied territory", a NSKK motorcycle courier, a Waffen-SS officer training Organisation Todt laborers, assembling and firing a huge long distance artillery gun on the Atlantic coast, and even the grave of Willi Jauss, an OT frontline worker that died on the job.

There are color illustrations of Organisation Todt men at work as well as a Professor Werner Peiner tapestry of bare chested OT Frontarbeiter in front of a gothic cathedral in France. (Aside from being a well-known German painter, Peiner also designed six tapestries for Hitler's new Reichschancellery in Berlin.)

Inside the front cover is a very nice original 4-3/4 x 5-7/8 inch book plate showing that this book was given to a leader of an OT troop working at the front, as a sign of appreciation and recognition.

These troops received three days of training in Wiesbaden and immediately after the German invasion of western European countries, they joined Wehrmacht soldiers and went to work, frequently under enemy fire.

This is a rare 7-½ x 11 inch, 138-page Nazi publication with 24 black & white photos and four color images. This example of Die Propagandastaffel der OT Berichtet has tan cloth covers and spine with gold blocking. The spine is a bit faded but overall the book is in very nice little-used condition and the binding is very tight. It is complete with all the glossy photo pages. No writing, no odor.