ERSATZ

During WWII, most participating countries found it necessary to change production methods and materials to manufacture their tools of war and the items used every day by their citizens. Faced with a huge, two-front battlefield Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime were forced to produce many ersatz (substitute) items to meet the needs of the masses of soldiers racing across Europe and Africa, and for the civilians left at home. Not only did these substitutes include fighting equipment, weapons, and decorations but also many items used by people living within the Third Reich’s realm.

When Hitler began his war by sweeping across Poland