S.H.A.E.F. expo
In June 1945 Psychological Warfare Division, the propaganda service of the Allied Supreme Command, organized the exhibition “Since 1939” in the Antwerp Grand Bazar and on the Groenplaats.
The PWD was to influence the minds of friend and foe alike for the benefit of the Allies.
Formed in 1944, this "Psychological Warfare Division" had as its first task to act on the enemy soldiers but also civilians in Germany and the occupied territories, among other things by throwing out billions of propaganda leaflets. In areas that had been liberated, the PWD would "consolidate" by spreading propaganda through radio, film and publications until these tasks could be transferred to national services and corporations.
“c. Consolidation Propaganda conducted towards the civil population in the rear areas, with a view to ensuring friendly cooperation, particulary in restoring essential services, and to creating opinion favourable to the war and post-war aims of the United Nations.”
SHAEF Memorandum 8, 11 March 1944.
An important aspect of the PWD “Publications and Exhibitions” department was the realization of posters, press photos and formal photographic exhibitions in addition to all publications (except books). Although posters were quickly distributed in Normandy and Brittany and small photo exhibitions attracted a lot of interest, the importance of the formal photo exhibition only became clear after the liberation of Paris at the end of August 1944.
The first formal photo exhibition in Paris proved a great and, above all, welcome success. Between October 20 and December 24, 1944, no less than 204,578 visitors came to the exhibition “Photos Documentaires de la Guerre Mondiale”. On the ground floor of No. 17 Boulevard Des Capucines, some 250 photographs were displayed in 16 sections, mainly on the Anglo-American contribution, with themes from the Battle of Britain to the latest news coverage. Although consolidation propaganda may initially have seemed superfluous among the euphorically reacting liberated population, this was already very different in the autumn of 1944. SHAEF had planned to disband the AIS division in France on 15 October before D-Day but this proved to be premature. The morale of the French was far from optimal and the PWD would not finally surrender its last task to the French services until 1 May 1945.
Curious people at a PWD display in Cherbourg, 1944. For consolidation operations in France, the “AIS” (“Allied Information Service”) was established within PWD, the name referring to psychological warfare, which was not considered conducive to working with allies at the time.
Special publications were considered interesting to prolong the effect of a temporary exhibition.
Mobile versions were introduced to boost French faith in the Allies outside Paris as well.
In addition to a growing food shortage, the approaching winter and disappointment in the dragging on of the war (where a few months earlier there was still talk of “Christmas in Berlin”) were a major factor in the waning national morale. Fearing that due to the rapid advance through France, large parts of the population did not understand the scale of the war effort, it was decided to try to replicate the success in Paris elsewhere. The PWD decided to make seven similar displays to send around the provinces. In addition to some 200 photos on 60 panels, there was also a large world map showing all the places of action to dramatically show the scale of the world conflict, all designed to fit into a standard US 6×6 army truck.
The first places visited were Toulouse on December 20, 1944 and Lyon 3 days later. After the cities, smaller towns in the region were also next, the duration of a few weeks to days depending on the size. After the last show in Montpellier closed on April 5, 1945, 6.8 million visitors had been counted, assuming about 5 million people who visited the expo 1 or more times, at the following locations: Lille, Roubaix, Tourcoing, Arras , Amiens, Rouen, Poitiers, Reims, Troyes, Nancy, Metz, Dijon, Besançon, Rennes, Redon, Nantes, Angers, Le Mans, Tours, Angouleme, Bordeaux, Bayonne, Vichy, Limoges, Clermont-Ferrand, Lyon, St. Etienne, Grenoble, Périgueux, Cahors, Montauban, Albi, Auch, Toulouse, Pau, Tarbes, Carcassonne, Perpignan, Montpellier, Marseille, Aix-en-Provence, Toulon, Nice.
Although the liberation had also gone quickly for a large part of Belgium, with soldiers advancing towards Germany handing out chocolate and chewing gum, many allied troops remained in the country long after the liberation. Here, too, the euphoric attitude towards the liberator cooled when, some 3 months after the liberation, the supply of food and coal turned out to be worse than under the German occupier before D-Day. The chief of the state security section within the Belgian liaison mission with SHAEF wrote to General Erskine in January 1945 that he had been reported several times that American armies were destroying or decaying large quantities of their food. This created an “extremely unfavorable impression” as it also happened in front of the hungry population. On February 25, Bernard De Groot in Antwerp wrote in his diary that the families who remained in the city despite the rain of V-bombs received a ration of “Bibber (shiver) coal” for the first time. Influences like these made the “No. 12 PW Consolidation Team” under the “SHAEF mission to Belgium” had reasons enough to use the formal photo exhibition as a propaganda method here as well.
From 22 February, the general public could visit “Depuis 1939” in the Vanderborght Frères shop in Brussels.
It was officially opened on February 21 by the head of the SHAEF mission to Belgium, General Erskine. Given the great success with 180,000 visitors in the first 3 weeks, the planned duration of one month was eventually extended to April 24. According to the PWD, observers called the exhibition the most popular of its kind ever seen in Belgium at the time. Although photos of the interior are unknown to us, there was also at least some weaponry inside. On March 17, the press described "A 'one-man submarine' that was recently captured off the Belgian coast" as a "latest addition" to the exhibition.
On the cover of the brochure “Depuis 1939” the purpose of the expo was once again emphasized:
Represented here, with photographs, the history of years of war. It is only a small overview of the work, the sacrifices, of lives given to drive the agressor out of Belgium and other countries of free men.
“Since 1939” is before anything the history of united effort. Men from different nations, but with the same goal, pursuing the war to the heart itself of the enemys’s country, to ensure the final victory of the Allies.
Although British Major Bremner (Civil Affairs) stated in May 1945 that eventually half a million people visited the expo in Brussels, there are few photos known to us. To date, only a few images have been found in Cegesoma's photo archive, unfortunately only of the P-51 Mustang at the entrance (click here to see them). Any additional information or images that anyone could possibly provide would of course be greatly appreciated.
Although the war in the West was over and from May many of the PWD's activities were handed over to the post-war successor, there was still a large PWD/SHAEF exhibition in Antwerp. Possible motives for this range from the political situation in Belgium during this period to the fact that the region had been under heavy fire a few months earlier due to the crucial role of the port in Allied logistics. In addition to political or festive motives, gratitude may therefore certainly have played a role (click here for an example of the latter).
From "Gemarteld Antwerpen" (1945), by Gaston Schuermans.
On its way to the Groenplaats, the V2 was photographed on the Waverschesteenweg in Brussels, May 31, 1945. (IWM – BU 7154)
On June 1, 1945, amid great interest, the PWD/SHAEF exhibition in Antwerp was solemnly opened at 5:15 pm in the main hall.
A welcome by Major Knight of the SHAEF mission to Belgium was followed by a speech by US Ambassador Charles Sawyer in which he paid tribute to the Antwerp population and dockers for their steadfastness under the V-weapon offensive. After also mentioning the efforts of the resistance and his hopes of successfully ending the ongoing war with Japan, he declared the exhibition open. A British military band successively played the Belgian, American and British national anthems, after which senior military and Belgian personalities were the first to visit the expo.
In addition to series of photos explaining the war since 1939, visitors also got to see what he was fought with. Although only about 10 photos are known to us from the inside, these and press reports still allow us to form an impression of what was on display. In addition to the Spitfire on the ground floor, the Royal Air Force could also be found on the second floor.
On display inside the Grand Bazar:
_Spitfire fighter plane (“PT754″)
_3.7-inch (94mm) anti-aircraft gun
_One-man submarine
_Parachutes, rescue equipment
_Equipment front soldier
_Bombs & Grenades
_ Ball turret + tail gun B17 bomber
_Mortar
_U.S. Navy; 20mm Anti-aircraft gun, missiles + launcher.
_Mines, mine detectors, Jeep with mine detection device
_”Link” flight simulator
_V1
_Hitler's armored Mercedes
_Large world map
_…?
In addition to the Anglo-American war effort, the efforts of local organizations were also highlighted.
The display on the resistance movements, to the right of the submarine, was mentioned several times in the press, especially the tomb that had been recreated. Such a shelter in one of the cemeteries around Antwerp had provided shelter to Belgians and Allied airmen fleeing from the Germans. In addition to sabotage techniques and devices for sending and receiving messages, texts and photographs also explained what had seemed mysterious to many over the years, such as the repetition of strange messages on the BBC radio. Apparently enemy material was also on display here given the mention of “some Gestapo torture devices” by a journalist.
At least one organization of aid workers had a stand in the Grand Bazar, the Passive Air Defense of Antwerp. They had undergone enormous changes throughout the V-weapon offensive against the city to meet this challenge and here they showed the work they had done and the tools with which they had rendered these vital services to the city. Most of the photos that were shown also ended up in the PLB photo album of Major Goemans, which can be found digitally on our PLB page (click here to see them).
During the opening, U.S. Ambassador Charles Sawyer looks at the V2 at the Groenplaats with a few senior Allied soldiers.
In addition to tanks and other allied material, a V2 was also set up on the Groenplaats.
To the best of our knowledge, this V2 was the first ever to be exhibited to a large public, in the city that a few months earlier was known as the city of sudden death because of this weapon. The less sudden but equally deadly V1 that had been fired at Antwerp in even greater numbers was not yet to be seen in the first days. In addition to photos, this is also apparent from a request on 4 June from Major Bremner to the city of Antwerp. Since the military authorities could not provide him with a V1 he asked for the one from Antwerp donated by Armstrong, to loan for the duration of the expo. Although Armstrong had indeed already donated a V1, this first shot down and incomplete copy was certainly not a showpiece. The brand new one that Antwerp received from Armstrong on 12 June was also never seen there, so Bremner apparently needed a maximum of a week to find one somewhere for the Groenplaats. The American P-47 and P-51 fighters were also not at the opening, but they arrived before the V1.
From June 2, many thousands of ordinary citizens and soldiers visited the exhibition “Since 1939”.
As before in Paris and Brussels, this exhibition was free to visit 7 days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., "enlivened in the afternoon by military orchestras and cinema screenings". Although the V1 would have been photographed on July 5 at the Groenplaats, there are no further indications that the entire exhibition was extended beyond June 30.
Posters for the exhibition, visible behind the 2 soldiers at the entrance of the Grand Bazar, were supplied by the City of Antwerp. On 4 June, the Bernaerts printing company was commissioned to print 740 posters, of which 100 were intended for city signs and 640 for SHAEF signs. They apparently worked well because according to the PWD, the exhibition attracted 25,000 visitors a day in June in the “battered city of Antwerp”.
Many photos of the expo on the Groenplaats are known showing different stages in the expo.
The V2 was photographed from the moment it arrived and the positioning of the war equipment around was also recorded. That this picture shows the V2 arriving is evident from the fact that there is no “Danger-Hazard” painted in thick white letters on its nose. The Horsa glider in the middle is being unloaded and to the right of it the 8th Field Squadron of the Royal Canadian Engineers is still setting up a “Bailey bridge”. Damaged by a British bomb himself on 23 November 1940, Rubens in the center undoubtedly had his own thoughts about all this war equipment.
These and a lot of other interesting images of Antwerp during WW2 can be found in the archive of the photographer on the website of Amsab-ISG (click here for the collection Louis Van Cauwenbergh).
In this photo, some elements show that it was taken in the first days after the opening:
_Front left the wooden supports that later supported the V1.
_Front right V2 payload transport casing, same spot as during visit Charles Sawyer.
_”Danger” on V2 nose is written in chalk but was later painted in bold.
The Spitfire was already behind the V2 and to the left of the sailor you can see the rear of the LVT, a type of landing vehicle that was also used in the Battle of the Scheldt. In front of the kiosk you can see the antenna of a radar type that had also served in the battle for Antwerp a few months earlier.
Another Antwerp X veteran was placed near the radar, an American 90mm automatic anti-aircraft gun complete with director and peripheral equipment.
There were also several types of early vehicles such as a heavy Churchill tank, 2 medium Sherman tanks (1 x 76mm “Firefly”), presumably also the light M5 Stuart tank and certainly the M8 Greyhound reconnaissance vehicle. At the Sherman Firefly, a sign read in French:
“Tanks of this type were used by the 11th Armored Division when advancing towards Antwerp on 4 September 1944. The crew of the tank exhibited here took part in the battles for Antwerp on September 4, 1944.
Sign military police.”.
For now, the photo of the M5 Stuart tank is the only one known to us that has this vehicle as its main subject. This rare photo was taken by Mr. Pighini who visited the expo several times as evidenced by his photo archive. You can view this rich collection digitally on the Cegesoma website, as well as a few others with photos from the Antwerp expo:
Click here for the collection René Pighini (also many other photos of Antwerp around WW2.).
Click here for the collection Georges Van Merode.
Click here for the collection E. Laureys.
Their material can usually only be seen in the background of photos, but thanks to Theodoor Goemans' photo albums they can be seen in detail. In addition to the trucks for ladders, the light group and heavy recovery, there was also a smaller vehicle for light recovery. The PLB had another one to pull the mobile command post, but this combination was apparently not present. Unlike the truck with ladders and the truck for heavy recovery, it was more difficult to indicate with certainty the lighting group. Thanks to a detail on the above photo of the M8 Greyhound, this can still be confirmed, the generator in the cargo bay.
Centrally at the top of the P.L.B. ladder can be seen.
The photo album of a soldier of the American 268th Port Company shows that the warnings on the V2 nose were only painted after the 2 American fighter planes arrived. Although we may suspect that the payload was not present in the V2, "Danger - Danger" was painted on the right side of the nose, which was repeated on the other side with "Do not touch" underneath. Whether this was supposed to protect people against the glass tube on the detonator or just the tube against people hunting for souvenirs is not certain, but with the Psychological Warfare Division as organizer, the latter should come as no surprise.
Filmed by Averum Chudnow in Antwerp, 1945. The SHAEF exposition can be seen from 1:55 to 3:22. (Cedarburg History Museum)
On the 24th floor of the “Boerentoren” one could get an overview of the impressive collection on the Groenplaats. This “Panorama” was also advertised in the impact map “Le Bilan V1-V2” released around the time of the SHAEF expo (can be viewed on our "V-weapons" page).
Only known photo of 90mm searchlight (UK) at the expo, by Georges Van Merode.
2) M8 Greyhound (“60125655”)
3) Daimler scout car (“F329645”)
4) M29c Water Weasel
5) M6 Tractor
6) DUKW (“7029789”)
7) Churchill tank
8) V1
9) P-47 Thunderbolt (“276335”)
10) V2
11) Spitfire
12) 2 x Leyland Retriever
13) Sherman tank (“30114793”)
14) M5 Stuart tank (“T271371”)
15) SCR-548 radar
16) 90mm M3 Anti-Aircraft gun
18) AS58 Horsa 2 glider (“TK843”)
19) P-51 Mustang (“413595”)
20) 4 x PLB vehicles.
a) Chevrolet C8 CMP
b) Bedford OY (lighting)
c) Bedford OY (ladders)
d) Dodge D15
21) Bailey bridge
22) Miscellaneous
_Ladder truck
_M3 Halftrack
_Bus
23) LVT (A)-2 (“P6110312”)
24) Daimler scout car (“F255593”)
In the photo there are a few “Jerry cans” in front of Rubens' pedestal among all the large war equipment. If we are to believe the cartoon, it were mainly these small practical objects that stole the show or perhaps the fuel that was usually transported in them and was not available during the war, at least not officially. Even Rubens can't resist watching from his pedestal.
Some photos indicate that some things changed now and then, such as the presence of an information board or a continuous fence around the V2. At one or more times, some hatches in the nose of the V2 were also opened so that visitors could take a closer look at the compartments containing the control components.
Regardless of the exact duration of the exhibition itself, the Groenplaats was not empty in one day. Photos show that the American fighter planes, Spitfire, radar and the Horsa glider left before the V2 and Sherman tank.
This photo shows that the sign above the Grand Bazar entrance, and the British and American flags to its left and right, also disappeared before the V2 was taken away.
End of the exhibition where the sign with “Exit-Sortie” in the background is upside down. On the right the Churchill tank is gone but the V1 is still there, just like the M8 Greyhound on the left.
In these photos from the same angle, the graphite jet fin rudders of the V2 are already being dismantled. The soldier on the right, key in hand, allows a civilian to make a final inspection.
Over the years, misunderstandings and even fabrications have arisen about the Antwerp V1's and Reichenberg regarding their origin and relationship to the SHAEF expo. In documents of the last decades it is found that Armstrong would have organized the expo on the Groenplaats and left behind some V-weapons, the 14m long V2 was even thought to have been lost. In a 1945 city document (viewable here on our "Reichenberg survivors" page”) fortunately the situation is clearly described. No Antwerp V1 was ever seen at the SHAEF expo, the Re4 that arrived on June 23 was set up in its context, but at the Steen and not at the expo itself.
Spitfire with the same marking (“PT754”) as in the Grand Bazar in Antwerp, at an RAF expo in Brussels. ©IWM CL1579.
In August, the “Biber” (Beaver) mini submarine with identification “1E3” also surfaced in Reims, France.
The fact that Eisenhower, chief of the SHAEF, had established his headquarters here between February-April 1945 and that the German surrender was signed there on May 8 may of course have had something to do with this. An exposition took place in front of the town hall where, in addition to the war trophy from the Battle of the Scheldt, there was also at least a V1 (coming from a tunnel in Rilly-la-Montagne where the Germans had prepared V1s), V2, Reichenberg, Sherman tank, 75mm howitzer , landing craft and Weasel were on display. The same Biber “1E3”, V1 and black and white painted V2 as in Reims were also exhibited in Nancy in front of the town hall in December, together with at least one more Reichenberg.
Especially in connection with the Antwerp exposition a word of thanks is owed to Jean Dillen, the young man you should have already encountered several times in pictures of winged weapons. Without the impressive photo archive that he was able to assemble in the following decades, it would have been very difficult to form such an overview.
Of course I would also like to thank all other sources of documentation or photos mentioned that made this research and this page possible.
In 2021, Ed Straten visited the museum and kindly donated some photos of the V-weapons at the expo.
They were taken on a busy day at the expo, presumably by an American soldier. We are grateful to be able to share his donation here with everyone!
Early 2024, the museum received a donation, including some SHAEF expo photos, from Scotland!
After WWII they were taken home as a souvenir by a Scottish soldier who had been in the city for the entire V-bomb period, so it should come as no surprise that he visited the SHAEF expo. More information about how Robert “Bob” Inglis ended up in Antwerp during WWII can be found in the news article "Donation from Scotland!".
