30 iconic posters from World War II

In this poster, circa 1942, a powerful fist punches through the image of a swastika, urging Americans to "buy more war bonds and stamps." The United States issued war bonds and stamps to help finance the war effort.

This 1932 election poster for Germany's Nazi Party declares, "We're building things up!" On it, a muscular man poses against a set of stone blocks etched with the words "work," "freedom," and "bread." He looks down upon two older, weaker rivals offering unemployment, corruption, lies, and more.

One of the most lasting and iconic symbols of U.S. patriotism is Uncle Sam, clad in red, white, and blue with piercing eyes and a pointing finger in this recruitment poster. James Montgomery Flagg, a magazine illustrator, used himself as the model. First produced in World War I, the poster was adapted for use in World War II.

The slogan "Keep Calm and Carry On" was printed on posters by the British government to be distributed in the event of a German invasion. As that did not happen, the poster was never officially used in public, and following the war, copies were believed to have been destroyed in the National Salvage Campaign recycling effort. Decades later, a handful of the posters were found. Today, the saying is the basis of popular memes, from humorous to political.

The "Come into the Factories" poster encouraged women in Britain to fill critical jobs such as manufacturing as the men went off to fight. Efforts to draw women into the war effort were often aimed at those who had never worked outside the home.

This German poster of the Nazi leader posed behind a chair declares, "Adolf Hitler is victory." The portrait was created by German artist Rudolf Gerhard Zill.

Japanese war propaganda posters sought to glorify the nation's military might. This poster of the Imperial Air Force shows a number of airplanes flying over a globe decorated with Japan's historic sun symbols.

This dramatic call to arms asks Americans to take action following the Japanese attack on the U.S. Navy on Dec. 7, 1941. With Uncle Sam raising his fist at warplanes overhead, the appeal marked a key moment in the war when Americans became motivated to spurn isolationism and join the cause.

Uncle Sam is rolling up his sleeves, flexing his muscles, and clenching his fist in this U.S. Army "Defend Your Country" recruitment poster. Simple and bright, it presents a sense of confidence and strength.

Rosie the Riveter, declaring "We can do it!" in this poster, is one of the most recognizable U.S. icons to emerge from World War II. Yet the poster was only displayed for two weeks in Westinghouse factories. It wasn't until decades later when modern-day feminists adopted the image that it enjoyed widespread popularity, showing that women could perform jobs traditionally held by men.

The "Is YOUR Trip Necessary?" poster of the bright-eyed, eager faces of troops gathered in front of a train was used by the U.S. government's Office of Defense Transportation to remind civilians that the railroad was needed in the war effort. By 1943, the government restricted leisure use of automobiles and busses to conserve fuel and rubber, leaving just trains for traveling long distances. Commercial artist Montgomery Melbourne, who made the image, is credited with designing advertising images for Kool cigarettes, Morton Salt, and Wrigley's Spearmint Gum.

"Keep Us Flying! Buy War Bonds" by an unidentified artist portrays Lt. Robert W. Diez, a Tuskegee Airman. Black men who registered for the draft served in segregated units like the Tuskegee Airmen of the U.S. Army Air Corps. The unit was highly decorated for bravery and distinguished service.

The U.S. poster "This is Nazi brutality," showing a hooded prisoner in chains, tells the story of the Czech village of Lidice, where all the men were shot and the women and children sent to camps in retaliation for the assassination of SS officer Reinhard Heydrich. Initial German intelligence indicated the villagers had helped the resistance, but eventually, there was no evidence they were involved. The poster was created by Lithuanian-born American artist Ben Shahn, known for his portrayals of social and political topics.

This German poster reads, "Der Feind sieht dein Licht—Verdunkeln!" or "The enemy sees your light—blackout!" The dark and threatening imagery shows a skeleton flinging a bomb from an airplane, with lit windows in a building below. Allied forces bombed Germany from 1941 to 1945, and German citizens were asked to cover their windows at night to make targets difficult for bombers to find. The poster was designed by German propaganda artist Otto Sander-Herweg.

Celebrating the alliance of the Soviet Union and Great Britain, pilots from each nation shake hands from their cockpits as they drop bombs over Berlin in this "Meeting over Berlin" propaganda poster that declares, "This handshake will not be healthy for the Germans."

The poster was created by Kukryniksy, the name used by three artists—Porfirii Nikitich Krylov, Mikhail Vasil'evich Kupriianov, and Nikolai Aleksandrovich Sokolov—who collaborated for many years on cartoons, book illustrations, and poster designs. Their work was widely published and honored by the Soviet government.

Glorifying the power of Allied forces, flags from each of the Allied nations are wrapped around the powerful cannons in the poster expressing, "United we are strong. United we will win." Artist Henry Koerner fled Nazi persecution of the Jews and immigrated to the United States from Vienna in 1938. He returned to Europe as a U.S. soldier and learned that his family had been deported and died.

The "Become a Nurse" poster was produced by the U.S. Public Health Service to encourage women to become military nurses. The nation had a shortage of nurses during the war, and in 1943, Congress established the Cadet Nurse Corps. Almost 120,000 women trained with the Corps and served in military hospitals and other facilities.

This German and Vichy French propaganda poster urged citizens to join the Service du Travail Obli­ga­toire (STO) or Compulsory Work Service. It depicts lines of workers filing into factories under the image of a helmeted soldier and the words: "They give blood, give your work to save Europe from Bolshevism." The STO required workers in collaborationist France to provide two years of service, and they were put to work in Germany, France, Austria, Poland, and Czechoslovakia.

A handsome blonde, blue-eyed soldier, his head wrapped in a bloody bandage, asks, "Doing all you can, brother?" in this U.S. government poster advertising war bonds. During World War II, Americans bought more than $185 billion worth of war bonds that came in denominations as small as $25, were sold at a discount, and matured in 10 years. Commercial illustrator Robert Sloan was commissioned by the government to create the poster and given a Citation for Distinguished Service for the work.

A bright-eyed young woman in a kitchen apron clutches jars of preserves and vegetables as she declares, "Of course I can. I'm as patriotic as can be—and ration points won't worry me!" Her cheerful face was part of the government's War Food Administration campaign that encouraged Americans to can food to cope with shortages and rationing. Artist Dick Williams was a commercial illustrator whose work appeared in newspaper and magazine advertising.

The ominous shadow of a Nazi swastika darkens this poster of three children playing with a doll, a toy airplane, and a makeshift American flag. The depiction of their innocence was used in the exhortation to help fund the war effort by purchasing war bonds, with the message: "Don't let that shadow touch them." Creator Lawrence Beall Smith served as a combat artist who traveled on U.S. military aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean and witnessed the D-Day landings in Normandy, France, in 1944.

In this Italian poster, America's Statue of Liberty, with the face of a grinning skull, presides over destroyed buildings in flames. The phrase "Ecco i Liberatori!" or "Here are the liberators!" was a comment on the barbarity of U.S. forces by the Italian government.

This German recruitment poster portrays a helmeted soldier in profile, staring into the distance, with the words "Waffen-SS" and "Eintritt Nach Vollendetem 17 Lebensjahr," meaning recruits must be at least 17 years old. The Waffen-SS was the military arm of the feared SS elite security force in Nazi Germany and included Adolf Hitler's bodyguards and battalions that ran concentration camps.

Looking more like a watercolor painting than propaganda, the "Buy War Bonds" poster shows a flag-bearing Uncle Sam in the clouds, directing troops brandishing bayonets. The godly image conveys a sense of the divine virtue of the Allied effort against Axis forces.

American illustrator Adolph Treidler created several posters during World War II celebrating Women Ordnance Workers or WOWs, who made military materials such as weapons and munitions. The motivational poster shows a beautiful woman tackling a traditionally male job with the line, "She's a WOW."

The "When You Ride Alone, You Ride with Hitler!" poster calls upon Americans to carpool and conserve fuel for military use. It was created by American artist Weimer Pursell, who designed well-known advertising for Coca-Cola, American Airlines, Winchester Rifles, and the 1933 Chicago World's Fair.

The menacing eyes of a helmeted enemy soldier dominate this U.S. government poster that reads, "He's watching you," cautioning Americans that spies could lurk anywhere. A survey of the public by the government's Office of Facts and Figures in 1942 determined many viewers misinterpreted the poster, with some mistaking the German helmet for the Liberty Bell. The Office of War Information was created later that year to oversee poster production and control messaging.

The U.S. Office of War Information's "Food is a Weapon" poster was part of a campaign to trim food waste amid shortages and rationing. The admonition to "eat it all" also reminded Americans of the need to stay healthy and strong as the war raged.

"Plant a Victory Garden" shows a soldier and a gardener chatting over a white picket fence with the words "I see we're fighting the war together." Americans grew their own vegetables and fruits in victory gardens as commercial crops and transportation were taken up by the war effort, and food rationing was imposed. The victory garden campaign was employed to remind Americans they could pitch in and show patriotism in their own yard. Former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a victory garden of her own on the lawn of the White House.

The "Freedom Shall Prevail!" poster shows uniformed soldiers from Allied countries, their flags forming a "V" for victory. The poster reminds viewers of the far-flung members of the Allied front, such as New Zealand, Southern Rhodesia, and South Africa. It was a creation of William Little, an artist commissioned by Great Britain's Ministry of Information during World War II.