German Brummer Song. – A Bullet Came Flying. – Made in Germany (c. 1917)
Abstract
During the First World War, the German government continuously fought against the growing might of the Entente. Wartime propaganda used the “Made in Germany” label to appeal to a sense of superiority in armaments production and warfare. This postcard, which was intended for circulation on the home front, features an Iron Cross and the lyrics to a soldiers’ song entitled “The German Brummer Song.” (The “Brummer” was a shell manufactured by the Krupp Company for its famous canon Big Bertha.) The lyrics rhapsodize about the mighty and destructive force of German-made artillery.
Source
Our Brummer
(To the tune of.: “O alte Burschenherrlichkeit” or one’s own melody)
1. Praise for the artillery
2. With their aid, fortresses fell,
3. Each of them in turn —
4: When the conflagration wanes
Source: Deutsches Brummerlied – Eine Kugel kam geflogen – Made in Germany (c. 1917).
Translation: Deborah Cohen
A Bullet Came Flying … Made in Germany
German Brummer Song
resounds across the land,
for that which we have wrought therewith
was never wrought by man.
The strongest forts blasted away;
not even tanks could hold at bay
the howitzers and shells,
from which our foes cannot defend themselves.
aided by shrapnel
and the flames of our zeal.
The foe knows not of our esprit de corps;
he has learned what it means
against us to wage war,
what it means with us the peace to breach.
To him we want some “mores” to teach.
the Brits, French and Russians —
shall, together with their allies,
get their just comeuppance.
Now the task at hand is to clear the field
so the enemy to death must yield,
and once we have buried the last of the dead,
tears of joy will be liberally shed.
and the mortars cease to roar,
when the hail of bullets ends
and the big guns blast no more,
then the world will watch, awestruck and still,
as the words of the poet are fulfilled:
The essence of the German nation
will one day be the world’s salvation.
Source: Postcard by Fritz Thörner. German Brummer Song. – A Bullet Came Flying. – Made in Germany. Image: Historic Images / Alamy Stock Photo. Image number: JFNX2K.
A public domain version of the image (CC BY-NC 4.0) can be found as part of the Historical Postcard Collection of Prof. Dr. Sabine Giesbrecht, University of Osnabrück. Available online at: http://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:gbv:700-2-0012693-9