Alternative History Propaganda Posters
I love alternate history and I find propaganda fascinating, so I find taking alternative timelines and designing alternative history propaganda posters for them fun.
What is alternative history propaganda?
It’s simply using the techniques of propaganda but applying them to the imaginary world of an alternate timeline. Divorcing the propaganda from a real situation has ironic and sometimes humorous effect. It also helps us to see how real world propaganda is used to manipulate us.
D-Day Fails
In the film of Fatherland, the point of departure for the alternate history is the failure of the D-Day landings.
I took that scenario and imagined the message that General Eisenhower would have written to the troops after their defeat. It is based on two real artifacts:
- The content is very similar to the actual notes that General Eisenhower hand-wrote for a message in case D-Day did fail.
- The format of the message is from one that he actually sent out to the troops on Victory in Europe day.
A Revolutionary Republic in Britain
This poster is from a world where the French Revolution was more successful. The revolution spread across Europe, leaving Britain in the grip of a French style Republic. With the monarchy abolished and religion suppressed, the symbol of Britain is a silver lion rampant on a black background, a symbol that goes back to the Cromwellian Army. Finding a symbol of Britain that was not either religious or monarchist was quite difficult, as crowns, and crosses predominate.
The second poster from this anti-religious Britain urges citizens to report anyone practicing their faith to the authorities. It uses the standard propaganda techniques of Argument by Assertion (“Faith is Treachery”) and Dehumanising the Enemy (associating religious people with poisonous snakes).
Invasion of 1910
William Le Queux’s novel of a German invasion of Britain in the early 20th century contains several imagined propaganda posters including this flier urging the men of England to rise and defend their homes from their Teutonic oppressors.
What do you think?
If you’ve got a request for a alternative history propaganda poster please email me. If you like these ones then please share them using the buttons below.
