Postage stamps 1940–1945

The 10 Ks stamp appeared on 14 March 1940, the first anniversary of the state, and shows the Presidential Palace in Bratislava – today's Grassalkovich Palace. In those years the rococo palace was adapted as the president's seat to a design by the architect Emil Belluš. Since 1996 it has again been the seat of the President of the Slovak Republic.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1940, Wikipédia: Grasalkovičov palác

The small-format definitives with Tatra motifs appeared on 1 August 1940, designed by J. Votruba: Zelené pleso (5 h), Kriváň (10 h), Tatra flowers (20 h), a chamois (25 h) and Javorina (30 h). They were among the state's most used stamps – the first printing of the 20 h alone ran to over 27 million – and later printings were also made on newsprint or card paper without watermark.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1940

The Slovak State's personal-delivery stamps appeared on 16 August 1940: two 50 h stamps, blue and red, designed by J. Vlček, printed by Grafia on watermarked paper and issued imperforate. The print runs were small – 208,000 blue and 201,000 red. Czechoslovakia had issued a similar pair in 1937 – a blue 'postage' and a red 'postage due' 50 h stamp for items to be delivered only into the addressee's own hands.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – doručné, Burda Auction: Doruční (ČSR I.)

A year after the first airmail stamps, on 30 November 1940, the Slovak State added three high airmail values – 5, 10 and 20 Ks. They were again designed by J. Vlček and printed by Grafia, this time on watermarked paper. Between 219,000 and 273,000 of each were printed. They remained valid until 30 April 1945.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – letecké

The 1941 definitive set 'Slovak Castles and Châteaux' was designed by J. Votruba, who also drew the Tatra landscapes, and printed by Grafia on watermarked paper. Its four values show Banská Štiavnica (1.20 Ks), Lietava (1.50 Ks), Spiš Castle (1.60 Ks) and Bojnice (2 Ks); the 2 Ks Bojnice had the largest print run, almost 9 million. Spiš Castle is one of the largest castle complexes in Slovakia and since 1993 has been part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. The set remained valid until 30 April 1945.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1941, StampWorld: Slovakia 1941, Wikipédia: Spišský hrad

For the 80th anniversary of the Memorandum of the Slovak Nation, adopted at the assembly in Martin on 6–7 June 1861 and written by Štefan Marko Daxner, who appears on the stamps together with Bishop Štefan Moyzes. It demanded recognition of the Slovaks as a distinct nation within Hungary, a self-governing Upper-Hungarian Slovak District, and Slovak in offices, courts and schools.

Sources: Wikipédia: Memorandum národa slovenského

The Red Cross charity set with soldiers appeared on 10 November 1941, designed by M. Schurmann, at a time when the Slovak army had been fighting alongside Germany against the Soviet Union since the summer of 1941. Grafia printed 175,000 to 230,000 of each value, and the set was valid for only three months – until 10 February 1942.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1941, Wikipedia: Slovak Republic (1939–1945)

The second 'For Children' set appeared on 12 December 1941, only a month after the Red Cross set and by the same designer, M. Schurmann. Grafia printed 210,000 of each of the three mother-and-child values – 50 h, 1 Ks and 2 Ks with surcharges of 50 h, 1 Ks and 1 Ks. Like the state's other charity stamps they were valid only briefly, until 12 March 1942.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1941, StampWorld: Slovakia 1941

The set in aid of the Hlinka Youth appeared on 14 March 1942, the third anniversary of the state, designed by M. Schurmann, and was valid until 14 June 1942. The Hlinka Youth was founded in 1938 and under the Slovak State was the only permitted political youth organisation; from July 1940 it was an independent paramilitary branch of the ruling HSĽS party. At first it enrolled boys aged 6 to 20; a girls' section was added later.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1942, Wikipédia: Hlinkova mládež

The set for the National Stamp Exhibition held on 23–31 May 1942 at the Slovak Museum in Bratislava, organised by the Club of Slovak Philatelists together with the Bratislava stamp collectors' group of the Nazi leisure organisation Kraft durch Freude (KdF). The stamps – a post horn, a young collector with his album and a philatelist with a magnifier – were designed by Juraj Zelinka, who also designed the medal awarded as a prize at the exhibition. They were valid only until 31 August 1942.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1942, StampData: Stamps of Slovakia, 1942, SNS Bratislava: Medaily a plakety Slovenského štátu 1939–1945 (PDF)

In October 1942 the European Postal and Telecommunications Union was founded in Vienna under the Axis powers, as Germany's means of dominating postal traffic in Europe. Of the thirteen administrations taking part, only four issued stamps for it – Slovakia among them, on 12 October 1942. The stamps show a dove of peace and Vienna's St Stephen's Cathedral.

Sources: ResearchGate: The European Postal Congress (October 1942), Colnect: European Postal Congress, Vienna (Slovakia)

For the 150th anniversary of the Slovak Learned Society, founded in Trnava in 1792. It gathered the followers of Anton Bernolák – among them Juraj Fándly and Alexander Rudnay – and published books in the first standard Slovak, Bernolák's codification. The Latin inscription on the stamps, 'Literata Societas Slovacorum', is its original name.

Sources: Wikipédia: Slovenské učené tovarišstvo

The charity set of 8 February 1943 was designed by I. Kováts and printed by the Andrej printing house. 479,000 of each of the three values were issued and they were valid until 31 May 1943.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1943, infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1942

A new series of newspaper stamps appeared on 15 June 1943, again designed by J. Roubal, this time with six values from 10 h to 2 Ks, printed by the Andrej printing house on unwatermarked paper. Over 31 million of the lowest value, the 10 h, were printed. Like most of the state's stamps, they were valid until 30 April 1945.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – novinové

The charity set for soldiers was designed by L. Ilečko and appeared on 28 July 1943, while Slovak units were fighting on the Eastern Front. All three values carried the same 2 Ks surcharge – almost three times the face value of the 70 h stamp. 260,000 of each were issued and the set was valid only until 31 October 1943.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1943, Wikipedia: Slovak Republic (1939–1945)

The Prešov – Strážske railway was ceremonially opened on 5 September 1943 in the presence of President Tiso – hence the date 5. IX. 1943 on the stamps. The line ran 62 km with 10 bridges and viaducts and two tunnels. Among those who built it were interned Roma and others the state considered undesirable.

Sources: Rádio Regina Východ: 80 rokov trate Prešov–Strážske, ŽSR: Nové trate 1939–1945

The cultural set of 16 October 1943, with a surcharge for Slovak cultural institutions, was the joint work of two artists – Jozef Cincík and the painter Martin Benka. Cincík, an art historian, had been secretary of the Art Section of Matica slovenská since 1933. The Andrej printing house produced 300,000 of each of the four values, which were valid until 31 January 1944.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1943, Wikipédia: Jozef Cincík (maliar)

Portrait definitives designed by J. Vlček: the 80 h shows Ľudovít Štúr, who codified standard Slovak, and the 1 Ks Martin Rázus – poet, prose writer, Lutheran pastor and politician. The 1.30 Ks with Andrej Hlinka from 1943 belongs to the same group of portraits. They were valid until 30 April 1945.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1943, Wikipédia: Ľudovít Štúr, Wikipédia: Martin Rázus

For the 5th anniversary of the state's founding, eight stamps appeared on 14 March 1944 showing rulers of the Great Moravian era and the Principality of Nitra: Pribina (50 h), Mojmír (70 h), Rastislav (80 h), King Svätopluk (1.30 Ks), Koceľ (2 Ks), Mojmír II (3 Ks), Svätopluk II (5 Ks) and Braslav (10 Ks). The state used them to claim a historical pedigree.

The portraits are artistic inventions – nobody knows what these princes looked like – and whether some of them, such as Koceľ or Braslav, belong to Slovak history at all is disputed among historians.

Sources: StampData: Stamps of Slovakia, 1944, Paul Voller: My Slovakia stamps of 1944

On 1 April 1944 the same Tatra pictures by J. Votruba came out again in a larger format – Kriváň, Tatra flowers, a chamois, Javorina and Zelené pleso – with values from 10 to 50 h, this time printed by the Andrej printing house. According to R. Ovšonka the Slovak State issued 16 stamps with Tatra motifs in all, but only seven different views: five from these two series and two from the 1939 airmail stamps.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1944, postoveznamky.sk: R. Ovšonka – Tatranské motívy na poštových známkach

The semi-postal sports stamps came out on 30 April 1944, designed by J. Vlček. The surcharge equalled the face value, so buyers paid double. They were valid for only three months – until 31 July 1944.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1944

The set that the infofila.cz catalogue calls 'Before the Fiery Dragon' and StampWorld 'National Protection' was designed by J. Cincík and appeared on 4 October 1944 – while the Slovak National Uprising, which began on 29 August 1944, was under way. Two values carried a high 4 Ks surcharge and were issued in 180,000 copies each, the two without surcharge in a million each. The set was valid only until 31 December 1944.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1944, Wikipedia: Slovak National Uprising

The Slovak State's last charity stamp for children appeared on 18 December 1944, designed by J. Cincík, with a 4 Ks surcharge on a 2 Ks face value. 53,000 miniature sheets of eight were issued. It was valid until 31 March 1945.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1944

The Slovak State's last issue came out on 14 March 1945 for the sixth anniversary of its founding – the date '14. III. 1945' is printed on the stamps themselves, which bear President Jozef Tiso's portrait. They were designed by J. Roubal and printed by the Andrej printing house. They were meant to be valid until 30 April 1945, but the Red Army entered Bratislava as early as 4 April 1945.

Sources: infofila.cz: Katalóg Slovenska – 1945, Wikipedia: Slovak Republic (1939–1945)