Enlistment to the British Army – Poster Designed by Otte Wallisch, Early 1940s

Enlistment to the British Army – Poster Designed by Otte Wallisch, Early 1940s
Curchill Al Bnei HaYishuv HaOmdim Al Mishmar HaMoledet [Hebrew: Churchill about Those Guarding the Homeland], a poster calling Jews in Eretz Israel to enlist to the British army. "HaPo'el HaTza'ir" Cooperative Printing Press Ltd., Tel-Aviv, [early 1940s]. Design: Otte Wallisch. Signed in print: MW [Atelier Machner-Wallisch].
A portrait of Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Britain appears on the upper part of poster with a quote from an address to "those guarding the homeland" (Hebrew): "Jews were the first victims of Hitler, and were always in the forefront of the opposition to the Nazi aggressor. Jewish communities all over the world contributed to the Allied Forces… I am grateful for the assistance of Jews in Eretz Israel… the government of the United Kingdom risked its survival in the dark days of 1940 in order to fulfill its obligations in the Middle East…against Nazi Germany".
Below the quote appears a triangular flag with the Hebrew initials גע (Gedudim Ivri'im) topped with a Menorah [logo of the enlistment center of the Jewish Agency and the Jewish National Council]. On the lower part of the poster appears the Hebrew inscription "The Homeland is Calling to You, Enlist!"
When World War II broke out and during the war, many members of the Jewish Yishuv in Eretz Israel joined the British Army in order to fight Germany. Late in 1939 the National Institutes in Eretz Israel organized a roll-call to examine the willingness to join the British Army. Some 40,000 young people expressed their wish to fight with the British forces. At first the British were reluctant to draft Jews but over time, and in view of the German threat, they agreed. The Jewish Brigade was formed in 1944.
47.5X64 cm. Good condition. Folding marks. Creases and stains. Some tears at margins and folding marks; open tear at right margin. Mounted on acid-free paper.