The German term Donnerbüchse means "thunderbox" and is the nickname for the four-wheeled, open, passenger coaches, built from 1921 onwards, that served with the Deutsche Reichsbahn. In contrast to the
A Thunderbox on a South German Railway Museum special service at Crailsheim, December 2007
A 1921 Di-21, rebuilt to a Cid-21 in 1928.
Deutsche Bundesbahn, or DB, was formed as the state railway of the newly established West Germany on 7 September 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft. The DB remained the state
Telegram announcing the formation of the Deutsche Bundesbahn
V200 number 010 pulling passenger train in West Germany, c. 1961
West German trains ran through East Germany. This 1977 view shows how barriers were made near the tracks to keep people away.