Are you interested in the first stamp issues of the German Reichspost, the so-called Brustschilde? Here you can find comprehensive information about our working group.

The first edition of Postal Stamps for the young German Empire with their geographical indicator DEUTSCHE REICHS-POST show in their colorless inner circle an imprinted imperial eagle. Its first form with downhanging wings and a small heraldic shield was later replaced by imperial order to show spreaded wings and a larger heraldic shield on the eagle’s  front.

Thus the designation of both early editions as "Eagle Shields" stamps – our field of interest.

Until the introduction of the Mark-currency in decimal system effective January 01st, 1875, the Eagle Shields had to be emitted for two monitary-regions, showing GROSCHEN for the northern German states  counting with the Thaler-currency, in contrast to the KREUZER nominator for the southernmost states continuing to use the Gulden-currency.

These different currency-editions, their wide range of cancellations, the manifold variations/deviations of print, impression and perforation, as well as the different forms of postal use form a multi-faceted philatelic collection field with wide-ranging opportunities for specialization.

The Eagle Shields carry the country nominator Deutsche Reichs-Post indicating the fact that the Kingdoms of Bavaria and Württemberg reserved their postal supremacy i.a.w. article 48 of the imperial constitution. Therefore, the territorial responsibility  of the German Reichs-Post does not cover all of the German Empire.