Gold and Silver Coins: A Safe Haven Then and Now

In the Final Days of World War II

It was April 1945 a month filled with historic events that began with the U.S. invasion of Okinawa. In Europe, the Allied forces captured Hanover Germany on April 10. The Nazi regime was toppling. On April 13, the Soviet troops captured Vienna, Austria. On April 18, the last of the German troops trapped on the Ruhr River surrendered. It was on May 7, when Germany surrendered unconditionally. V-E Day is declared victory in Europe on May 8.

The Gold and Silver Stash

American soldiers moving through eastern Germany came upon a small town called Plauen in late April. There was a post office in the town. A post office employee spoke of a safe inside the building. Unable to locate the key, U.S. engineers broke into the safe with explosives.

Those American soldiers discovered a hoard of gold and silver stashed by the Nazis in that post office that had served as a secret vault. The U.S. soldiers found 900 kilos of gold primarily in the form of coins and 70 kilos of silver, along with Swiss francs, Norwegian kroner and Dutch guilders.

Documents show that the stash was directly linked to SS chief Heinrich Himmler. Historians believe that the SS chief hid this valuable treasure in the small town as an escape fund for S.S. men who might seek to elude Allied justice after the end of the war. It is believed that the Reichsbank used the secret vault in the Plauen post office during the war to hide gold and money as Allied bombing raids obliterated buildings in Berlin.

The U.S. soldiers quickly moved the safe and its contents to Frankfurt for safekeeping as the town of Plauen would be under Russian control once the war ended, according to the famed Yalta agreement.

Today, the exact whereabouts of this gold find is unknown, although historians speculate that it was shipped to the U.S. as part of war reparations and could be housed today in Fort Knox or the New York Federal Reserve.

This somber tale of an exciting gold find is a reminder of the importance of physical gold and silver coins. Throughout history, gold and silver coins have represented a safe-haven of security. A vehicle to build and store wealth in a highly transportable form that you can have in your possession at all times.

Individual investors buy and hold gold and silver coins for many reasons. Safety and security of a portion of one’s assets is one compelling argument for diversification into physical gold. Gold has the power to store and grow wealth.

Getting Started

Blanchard and Company recommends that its clients allocate 10-15 percent of their investment portfolios to gold.We do recommend insuring your stored gold, which does cost a nominal amount of money. But having physical possession of your asset and having a piece of mind that no one can get to it but you makes it worth the relatively small cost.

Keeping gold in a home safe or in a safe deposit box is easy for most people as many investors already own or pay for these types of security services. Riders on insurance policies are usually inexpensive compared to the price of the policy.

Buy From the Best

It goes without saying that investors looking to establish a position in physical gold should always buy from a reputable tangible asset firm that has been in business for a long time. When the price of gold increases, fly-by-night companies can open to take advantage of people like they do in many other industries (such as construction and home repair companies after damaging storms).

Investors should do some research and find a firm that has a well-known and well-established reputation, like ours. We have a long history of providing individual investors with financial counsel and physical metals delivery. At Blanchard and Company we stand behind the authenticity and purity of the precious metals we sell.

Call us today at 1-866-827-4314 for a free and confidential consultation with a Blanchard portfolio manager about your individual investment goals.