Cigarette card collecting has been a popular hobby for most of this century. Cigarette cards have covered numerous topics. The armed forces have always been a major theme amongst the many sets published. To the militarist and military historian these cards offer a wide range of emotional, intellectual and academic interests; from the one extreme, as an important source of detailed and accurate historical information of a pictorial, documentary and narrative nature; to the other, of a whimsical and entertaining one. The military theme covers many aspects of the armed forces and relates to various periods of history. So it is possible to subdivide specific areas of interest in the broad theme to allow more specific and detailed study. A very important era, both in historical content as well as in the quantity of sets issued, was the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth centuries. South Africa featured prominently during this period and is extremely well represented in the subject. It is the threefold purpose of this paper to provide an overview of this specific area of involvement, an introduction for anyone interested in further pursuit of the topic and to present examples of the type of detailed information that is available.

In order for the reader to understand and enjoy cartophily, some background to this hobby and the companies producing the cigarettes and distributing the cards is provided.

BACKGROUND HISTORY OF CIGARETTE AND TRADE CARDS

Sir Walter Raleigh brought the tobacco leaf to England and introduced smoking, primarily to the aristocracy. With industrialization and improved farming methods, the product soon became available to all classes of society. The first use of any type of card began in the eighteenth century as a form of advertising by tradesmen. Cigarette cards were initially used as stiffeners to the soft packets of cigarettes but very rapidly assumed the advertising aspect previously reserved for trades people. The next step in the evolution of cards was to print some form of pictorial information with or without associated descriptive detail, in addition to the direct cigarette advertising. The concept of a series of cards on the same subject matter, was a clever approach to stimulate cigarette sales and ultimately led to the hobby of cigarette card collecting (cartophily). The firm W D and H O Wills was the first British company to produce cards in England in 1888. John Player and Sons followed in quick succession. In the last decade of the nineteenth century the biggest firm, Ogden's, had developed its own cards. In fact in 1894, it introduced the Guinea Gold card which, over a period of 13 years, produced thousands of photographs of politicians, war leaders and various people accomplished in the cultural spheres of life.

CIGARETTE COMPANIES AND CARD PRODUCTION

After James Duke had gained control of almost the entire American cigarette trade in the nineteenth century, he tried to achieve a similar status in the British market. At the time that he acquired the firm of Ogden's Ltd in 1901, there were 150 cigarette companies in the United Kingdom. The British recognized the danger of his takeover efforts and amalgamated into a large group called the Imperial Tobacco Company (ITC). It included such famous companies as Wills, Lambert and Butler, Player, Smith, Hignett, Ringer, Biggs and Adkins. Faulkner and Churchman subsequently joined this group. Resolution of this trade war resulted in the Imperial Tobacco Company and the American Tobacco Company operating independently in their respective countries and separating off their subsidiaries worldwide to form a joint company - British American Tobacco Company (BAT) - which operated in other areas in the world. All of these British and American companies issued enormous numbers of sets under their individual company and even brand names. Some of these sets were identical, originating from a common supplier.

Since it was predominantly men who smoked, the themes chosen were those considered most likely to attract them. Thus actresses, beauties and sports were popular themes. The many armed conflicts of the Victorian era gave rise to topics covering this sphere. There were three major periods of cigarette card production: 188O to 1900, 1900 to 1939, and, finally, 1945 to the present day. Each era produced an enormous number of sets but it reached its heyday in the period between the two World Wars when over 2 000 series were issued. Unfortunately, most of the cards produced before the Second World War have disappeared. It is interesting that during the earlier stages of the First World War a great deal of activity occurred, to take advantage of both the public's interest and to promote the war effort through propaganda. However, since the cards were very detailed, extremely accurate and had a wide circulation, they were subject to censorship. In 1920, J Taddy & Co. went out of business. Their cards were of an extremely high quality and only very limited numbers exist and, hence, prices tend to be very high for their sets.

BEGINNING A COLLECTION

There is virtually no limit to the type of collection that can be accumulated. For the military enthusiast, some focus is already established but within it there are diverse opportunities. Methods of collecting may also vary. One might collect either sets or types of cards, which are usually single cards from a series or, in certain cases, of rare and expensive cards when the complete set is unavailable. Alternatively, a collector might choose only those cards from a more general series which accord with his interest. Further, collecting may be confined to a specific period or to certain manufacturers. Most cards were published on rectangular pieces of cardboard but certain novelty issues existed as well, for example, die-cut or silk cards or sectional series.

To encourage collecting, some firms produced albums to accommodate the sets. However to obtain a complete series subsequent to cessation of publication, became technically very difficult. Therefore in 1927, Colonel C L Bagnall formed the London Cigarette Card Company Ltd., which bought, stocked, traded, sold and auctioned cards. Other card dealers proliferated and held regular auctions. A significant volume of literature is available to the collector to enable him to become more familiar with the subject. These are important reference sources and fulfil the need to remain up to date and involved. Storage, display and cataloguing is an important consideration once the collection has reached a significant size. This is readily accomplished by the use of plastic slip-in leaves which insert into albums using metal ring binders.

Cards are similar to stamps and there are obviously financial considerations involved. The value of a card depends on a number of factors including availability, quantity and quality. The military subject involves all of these and varies from low priced sets to extremely expensive ones and the range extends from several rands to several thousand rands for a particular set. Prices have tended to rise dramatically in the last few years and so for the serious collector, a significant investment mar materialize.

Cartophilic societies around the world provide further stimulation, ongoing research and information to maintain the interest of its members.

THE MAJOR COLLECTIONS

No better indication exists for the stature ot cigarette card collecting and the importance placed on their role in society than by describing a few major collections which are held by some of the world's most prestigious institutions. The best collection of American cards was bequeathed by Jefferson Burdick to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Hundreds of albums are available for study in the Print Room. Today, the biggest collection belongs to Mr E C Wharton-Tigar, MBE, President of the Cartophilic Society of Great Britain, who has agreed to donate his entire collection to the British Museum which will provide a special building to house his collection. Another major collection is the M L Horne and B R Lillington Collection in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University. Of the 71 albums in the collection, the armed forces fill ten. They contain a number of superb sets such as Smith's 'Boer War Series'; Player's 'England's Military Heroes'; Gallagher's 'South African Series'; and Salmon and Gluckstein's 'Heroes of the Transvaal War'.

THE MILITARY THEME

In the strict sense, the term 'military' has a very specific connotation. It is in fact the military component of the total armed forces and is that part which 'pertains to soldiers or army or land warfare'. Within this military section of the armed forces, there is an enormous number of sets covering all aspects of soldiers, their accoutrements, armed conflicts, and personalities.

The account which follows may manifest a distinctly British bias. There are many obvious reasons for this. The most important is that it was British cigarette manufacturers who issued these cards, British artists and historians who did the research for them, and it was at the height of the British Empire that so many of these cards were produced. The detailed description on some of the cards may in some cases seem somewhat distasteful in terms of manner of description as well as in the use of certain terminology. However, one ought to be aware of the era in which many of these were produced. It should be seen in the context of an era of not only tremendous pride (and justifiably so) in the power and accomplishments of the British Empire, but it was also unfortunately an era of jingoism as well as a somewhat superior attitude. Despite this emotional perspective, the beauty and value of these cards are worthy of admiration.

Military cigarette cards cover a broad spectrum of interest and are best presented under the following headings, which classification has been developed by the author. Since no previous classification existed, the development of this is somewhat arbitrary but is based on a personal collection which is of a sufficiently broad spectrum as to include most topics of interest. However, ongoing enhancement of the collection might naturally lead to a modification of this classification.

• Royalty and Notabilities
• British Regiments
• Home and Colonial, Colonial and Territorial Troops
• Victoria Cross Heroes
• Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902)
• Militaria
• The First World War 1914-1918)
• Military Portraits
• Miscellaneous Military Items
• Ogden's Tabs and Guinea Gold Series

British Empire, Royalty and Notabilities

Information on cigarette cards relative to South Africa extends from the late eighteenth century to just prior to the Second World War. This also happened to correspond with the most vigourous formative years of the country and many events occurred and personalities were involved in this dynamic evolution. The cards that will be examined will be of the appropriate historical background as well as the regal, political, civilian and military celebrities who both shaped and were caught up in the events.

Aspects of the British Empire

Churchman's 'History and Development of the British Empire' (1934) has several cards in the series which cover the earliest aspects of the Empire relative to South Africa. The first one (card 45) is titled 'Union of South Africa'. The picture on the front of the card shows the British first occupying the Cape Colony in 1795. The brief description on the back gives a capsule of British involvement right through to the Union of South Africa. It describes their occupation of the colony in 1795, the restoration to the Dutch in 1803, its re-occupation in 1806, the formation of the separate colony of Natal in 1843, the establishment of the Transvaal and Orange River Republics, the grant of responsible government after the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902) in 1906 and 1907 and finally the self-governing colonies becoming united in the Union of South Africa in 1910. Cards 46, 47 and 48 are respectively titled 'The Cape of Good Hope', 'Natal' and 'The Transvaal' with descriptions of the various colonies including their history. It is interesting to note that in 1814, the Cape was finally ceded to Great Britain for an amount of six million pounds!

John Player's 'British Empire Series' (1904) is a set of 50 cards depicting aspects of life in the various colonies throughout the world. Number 4 shows a South African postman and has on the back of the card this description: 'the native post runner wears no clothes, so he has no pockets and experience has shown that the surest and cleanest way of getting a letter delivered is to make the bearer carry it in a cleft stick where he has it always in view yet does not soil it with his hands'. Three other cards in the sequence show a Zulu carriage, a wagon crossing a drift and a jinricksha in Natal. Both the above description of the postman and subsequent ones have a rather derogatory tone distasteful in today's climate, but understandable in the context of the early Edwardian period when the set was published.

Notabilities

J Wix and Company in its 'Kensitas' series of cigarettes published a set in 1937 called 'Builders of the Empire'. In essence, it is a set depicting personalities responsible for building the Empire and covers royalty, other nobility, political and military personalities. Thus pertinent ones include several of the rulers of Britain, Lord Milner and Joseph Chamberlain, who was Colonial Secretary in the British Parliament in 1895 and responsible for sending Milner to South Africa in 1897 as High Commissioner. Kitchener and Roberts are included as well. Cecil Rhodes was obviously included and, interestingly, General Botha The latter card is based on a portrait of the General in the National Portrait Gallery. He was held in the highest esteem by the British as can be judged by the contents of the back of the card which describe him as one of the ablest and bravest of the Boer commanders in the Anglo Boer War. He was described as having to carry out the peace terms and thereafter having become a staunch friend of Great Britain, one of her more trusted Imperial statesmen and one of South Africa's representatives at the Peace Conference in Versailles in 1919. The same set also contains a picture of Sir Harry Smith. The back describes his various military feats in South Africa, including his winning the Frontier War of 1836, his defeat of the Boers in South Africa in 1848, after becoming governor the year before, and his winning of the subsequent Native Uprising. It further describes his measures to strengthen British control in South Africa and how his name and that of his wife have been perpetuated there.

Brooke Bond Tea (1969) produced a set of 50 'Famous People' containing pictures of Lord Baden-Powell and Cecil Rhodes. An entertaining card is from the trade card set by A. B. and C. on 'Winston Churchill'. Card number three is a picture of the poster written in Afrikaans offering 25 pounds for the reward for Churchill's capture, either dead or alive!

MAJOR LEWIS GINTER:

INVENTOR OF THE TOBACCO CARD?

By Franklyn Roberts

I expect a good many of you recognise the name (half a famous cigarette manufacturer, Allen & Ginter). Born in New York in 1824 he began life as Lewis Guenther (his parents were Dutch).

His early life is now largely lost in the mists of time. What is known is that his father was a successful merchant in a busy community near the mouth of the Hudson. In his early teens he moved to Richmond, Virginia. He remained in Richmond for almost all of the remainder of his life.

BUSINESS BEGINNINGS

His original business venture was the selling of fine linens. There was quite fierce competition in this area and so he developed various sales strategies to increase trade. Some people even credit him with the idea of 'gift' wrapping.

The Civil War was to see Ginter as a successful businessman but he enlisted in the quartermaster corps. He earnt the nickname, 'The Fighting Commissary' because he always seemed to end up in the fighting. After driving back a Union attack, he gained the attention of General Jackson at the second battle of Manassas. However he declined the rank of Lieutenant-General offered him at that time. He later accepted Major, a title he maintained in later years.

After the Civil War he returned to Richmond but the linen trade was not the success it had been previously. Moving to New York he set up a banking business with financial aid from some friends. This was a success until the crash of 1873 which left him penniless.
     
He returned to Richmond looking for employment. He found it with the firm of John Allen & Co. manufacturers of tobacco. It was here that he made something of a quantum leap. Noticing that cigarettes were becoming more popular (still pipes and chewing were the predominate uses of tobacco) he felt that it would be a cost saving to make cigarettes out of Virginian tobacco. It was customary till then to make cigarettes from more expensive foreign tobacco.

MARKETING INNOVATIONS

In 1875 John Allen was persuaded to try out this venture. Richmond Gems were created, probably the most famous brand of cigarettes the firm ever had. He employed 20 women to roll and pack the cigarettes being potentially the first time cigarettes were ore-packed.

Such was the breakthrough this represented that the packet was exhibited at the Centennial Exhibition of the American Republic, Philadelphia 1876. Soon the orders were flooding in and other brands were created including, Virginia Brights, Perfection, Dandies and Little Beauties. Expansion meant the form went multinational with branches in London, Paris and Berlin.

There is also strong evidence that Major Ginter also created the cigarette card (and certainly the earliest known UK cigarette card was from a packet of Richmond Gems). Producing over 80 sets of cigarette cards during the period, 1885-1890 including the set, Women Baseball Players [1887]. Indeed the beautiful sets that were produced by this firm are among the most sort over sets from the early history of cigarette cards.

By 1884 a thousand workers were making two million cigarettes a day. It is perhaps in this area that Major Ginter made an uncharacteristic error of judgement.  In 1881 James Bonsack of Virginia invented a machine that could roll cigarettes. Most of the majors felt that this would not be appreciated by the public and so turned down the technology. This list included Major Ginter but not James B Duke.

Everyone is allowed one mistake but Major Ginter may have made another when Duke approached Ginter in 1889 (by now Duke had cornered about a third of the market) with the suggestion of a merger. Major Ginter is reported to have said, 'Listen Duke, you couldn't buy us out to save your neck. You haven't enough money and you couldn't borrow enough.'

In 1890 the two firms joined forces along with sundry others to create the American Tobacco Co. (which effectively ended the production of cigarette cards under the name Allen & Ginter) in which Major Ginter was offered the presidency which he declined taking a place on the board instead. He was to remain there till his death in 1896.