1945 Ek Anti-Fascist Propaganda Broadside of Allied Bombs Falling on Hitler

This is a 1945 Sándor Ék anti-fascist propaganda poster created shortly after the liberation of Budapest by the Soviet Red Army. Centered on a large Nazi helmet with significant sections missing, Ék is making it apparent that the Nazis are losing the war. Large numbers of Allied bombs are illustrated in the top corners, with American and British bombs on the left and Soviet bombs on the right. Graphically, this poster is definitely pro-Soviet (which is not surprising, seeing as it was made by a Red Army soldier), suggesting that the forces brought to bear by the Soviet armed forces outweigh those of the other Allies. Hitler is illustrated with a broken hand and arm trying to escape from underneath the destroyed helmet and is met by a phalanx of sharpened bayonets. There would be no escape.

Hungary During World War II

Hungary in the 1930s became increasingly linked to Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. Hungary was even awarded territory it had lost due to the Treaty of Trianon after World War I. Eventually, under pressure from Germany, Hungary joined the Axis in 1940 and Hungarian troops participated in the invasions of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union. When it became apparent that they had chosen the losing side, Hungary started armistice negotiations with the United States and the United Kingdom. After Germany became aware of Hungary's betrayal, German troops staged a retaliatory invasion on March 1944. The Red Army crossed into Hungary in September 1944, and a unilateral armistice between Hungary and the Soviet Union was signed in October. After this second betrayal, Nazi forces deposed the Hungarian president and installed a fascist leader, Ferenc Szálasi. Budapest was liberated on February 13, 1945, after a fifty-day siege by the Red Army.

Publication History and Census

This poster was drawn by Sándor Ék in 1945. We are aware of one example in an institutional collection at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.