German field-post
Outside this the German Field-post for the army functioned also. Many troops had been stationed in Vilnius. Also the provisioning of the 10 th Army went by way of Vilnius and so also the post. The field-post of the 10 th Army was established October 1915 in Vilnius.
Further three field-post-stations, of which more data are known, has functioned in Vilnius: No. 166, 171 and 282.
The fieldpost-stations 166 and 171 had been employed by the 40 th Reserve-Corps and with this marched from the area Wilkowischki-Mariampole. The 40th Reserve-corps was one of the four corpses of the 10th Army. The 10th Army was composed of the 1th Army Corps, the 3th Reserve Army-corps, the 21th Army corps and the 40th Reserve Army-corps.
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Original print size of this image: 14,029 x 9,305 cm (is something more as the postal item). This picture and all pictures below on this page, if not mentioned otherwise: scanned about 300 dpi. Then set right and cut out - noted the actual print size-, resized 25 % of this image and saved as jpg. The postmark of the fieldpost-office 166 in Vilnius, resized 50 %:  |
The picture-side of the card:
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The unit-postmark, - a unit of the 10th Army, resized 50%: |
Field-post station 166:
The first (known) postmark from Vilnius is 30-9-1915, and the latest is 25-12-1918.
Field-post station 171:
From the end of September to the end of October in Vilnius (no exact data). In the weeks before this Field-post station was in Kaunas, after that in Soly.
Field-post station 282:
This is the field-post office of the Etappen-Inspection 10', which in April 1916 came to Vilnius, and with that also the field-post. The first postal item from Vilnius is with the date 10-5-1916. This Etappen-Inspection 10 has been incorporated in the Militär-Gouvernement Litauen in the beginning of August and changed then in Feld-Intendantur. Also field-post station no. 282 went to the Gouvernement, and stayed in Vilnius. The last known postal item is with the date 4-12-1918.
Further many field-post offices for the marching troops were short or long in Vilnius, but about this I have not found exact data. Other field-post stations, which (temporarely) functioned in Vilnius: No. 74: last half 1917 to the end of the war
No. 169 en 173: short time in 1915
No. 226 en 229: last half 1917 to the end of the war
2th Infantry Division
No postmark, but -with a picture from Vilnius- apparent yet field-post from Vilnius:
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We know that Vilnius is conquered by the 10th Army, that was divided in four Army-corpses, under these the First Armycorps. The composition of this First Armycorps, just before the war- I have find on Internet Every Army-corps was composed of two divisions. Every division was composed of two brigades, and every brigade was composed of two regiments. The 1th armycorps:
When we look to the hand-written indication of the unit, we see on the end 'I Korp', above this 'II Division'. At the top you can read 'R. 44' (Regiment), and then Brigade- is not clear to read. So the Brigade must be 3th Infantry Brigade. The 44th Regiment was a part of 3th Infantry Brigade, which was part of 2th Infantry Division. This division -a part of the first Armycorps- was a unit withhin the 10th Army, the Army which conquered Vilnius. |
Original print size of this image: 14,486 x 9,178 cm (is something more as the postal item). The indication of the army-unit of the sender, resized 50 %:  |
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Germany was before the war divided in 24 Army-Corps-Districts and the 1th Army-Corps was quartered in the Army-Corps-district Eastern Prussia, with Headquarters in Königsberg and garrisons Insterburg, Memel and Tilsit. With the start of the war the first Armycorps belonged to the 8th Army under command of Generaloberst Paul von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg. More about this card: |
Front of the card, the 'Grüne Brücke, Wilno' (Green bridge, Vilnius):  |
Information about the military units is also in a table from: Der Weltkrieg 1914-1918. - Achter Band. - Berlin, 1932. - p. 524.
In the table you see that in the beginning of september 1915 the 2nd division (I.D. = Infanterie Division, Infantry Division), in peacetime part of the first Armycorps, was placed in the 10th Army (10. Armee). This division was active in the battle of Vilnius and was involved then in operations north of Vilnius
Also -according the table- part of the 10th Army:
31th Infantry Division
According the table also the 31th Infantry Division was a unit of the 10th Army. From 1912 the 31th Division was subordinated to the XXI th Army Corps. This XXI Armeekorps was between 4-4-1915 and 2-1-1917 under command of Generalleutnant von Hutier. The XXI Armeecorps was composed of the 31 th Infantry Division and the 42 Infantry Division.
With the Armycorps the 31th Infabtry Division passed the river Nemunas near Prienai, and marched north of Vilnius.
Here below a card, sent via the 'Feldpostexpedition der 31 Infanterie-Division'.
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Original print size of this image: 14,867 x 9,610 cm (is something more as the postal item). |
The picture side of the card above: |
On the card: Antokol is an old suburb of Vilnius, eatern part of the city along the right bank of the Neris river.. Antokol is the Polish name, in Lithuanian Antakalnis, 'the place on the hills'. |
From 2 august 1914 the 31th Division is redesignated the 31th Infantry Division, with the folowing composition:
10. Lothringisches Infanterie-Regiment nr. 174
and 2. Unter-Elsässisches Infanterie-Regiment nr. 137, and
Infanterie-Regiment Hessen-Homburg nr. 166
2. Unter-Elsässisches Feldartillerie-Regiments nr. 67
An overview of the Army Corpses and their commanders in World War I: see: Internet
An overview of the 31th Division (history and order of battle), you can find in Wikepedia on Internet.
76th Reserve Division
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Card with the postmark of 76th Reserve Division, mentioned in the table above as unit of the 10th Army. Original print size of this image: 14,258 x 9,356 cm (is something more as the postal item). The postmark, resized 50 %:  |  |
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The 76th Reserve Division -belonging to the XXXX th Reserve Corps- was also unit of the 10th Army (according the table above) and take part in the battle of Kaunas and then marched along the river Neris (Wilija) and take part in the battle of Vilnius. Thereafter, from november 1915 to september 1916, the Division was near Riga. Then the division moved from the Baltic to Romania. The XXXX th Reserve Corps was in the period 24-12-1914 to 6-8-1918 under command of General der Infanterie Litzmann. During the war the composition of the divisions changed, but on 29 december 1914 units of the 76th Division were: An overview of the 76th Reserve Division (history and order of battle), you can find in Wikepedia on Internet. An overview of the Army Corpses and their commanders in World War I: see: Internet | The picture side of this card:  The text on the card: 'From the Eastern battlefields. Vilnius. The first colums cross the Wilija-river |
14th Landwehr Division
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Card with the postmark of the fieldpostexpedition of the 14th Landwehr Division, also unit of the XXXX Reserve Corps and sunordinated to the 10th army according the table above. The 46 th Landwehr Brigade, subordinated to the 14th Landwehr Division, was the first German unit marching into Vilnius, under command of count Pfeil. It was also the last unit, leaving Vilnius in 1919. Belonging to the 40th Reserve Army Corps within the 10th Army: 3 rd Reserve Dision, 76 th Reserve Division (see above), 79 th Reserve Division and 14 th Landwehr Division. See: Original print size of this image: 14,131 x 9,280 cm (is something more as the postal item). |  |
| On the picture side: Infantry passing the cathedral, Vilnius. The postmark, resized 50 %:  | The other side of the card: |
Fieldpostoffice 210 in Švenčjonėliai
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A fieldpostcard, written in Wilna, Vilnius, and sent to Magdeburg. Original print size of this image: 13,902 x 9,152 cm (is something more as the postal item). |
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Fieldpoststation 210 was situated in Novo Swenzjany, in Lithuanian Švenčjonėliai from july 1916 to december 1918. The postmark 210, resized 50 %:  |
Fieldpost-office 209 in Kaunas
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In Kaunas fieldpostoffice 209 was stationed from august 1915 to january 1919. The postmark of this card, see below, is 20-12-1916. Original print size of this image: 13,953 x 8,975 cm (is something more as the postal item). |
 | The fieldpostmark, resized 50 %: |
More about this subject:
The German Government
Outside the postmarks of Postgebiet Ober-Ost and the field-post, we find from this time also the postmarks of the German Government. The administrative division of the Land Ober-Ost was something complicated and changed more times.
After the conquering a municipality was formed in Vilnius (Stadtverwalting), but this did not coincide with the Verwaltung (Administration) Wilna and the new Gouvernement Wilna.
The 'Verwaltung Suwalki' was discontinued on 1-3-1916 and joined with the 'Verwaltung Wilna' in the 'Verwaltung Wilna-Suwalki (25-4-1916). Vilnius became the seat. This 'Verwaltung' has been joined on 4-3-1917 with the Deutsche Verwaltung für Litauen in the Militärverwaltung Litauen, established in Vilnius. On 27-1-1918 the junction of this followed with the Militärverwaltung Bialystok in Militärverwaltung Litauen, divided in region North and South.
To an independent Lithuania
On 11 November 1918 the armistice was in force and from half Novenber the Germans began withdrawing out Lithuania. Before, on 16 February 1918, the declaration of independence had been taken, which was recognized by the German emperor on March 23. Russia had ceded Lithuania by the Peace of Brest-Litowsk (3 March 1918).
With the German capitulation on 11 November 1918 Lithuania became really independent with Vilnius as its capital. Ober-Ost finished its activity on 26 December 1918, and then the first Lithuanian postoffice is opened in Vilnius. On 27 December the first Lithuanian stamps makes one's appearance. Hoever the area around Vilnius was claimed also by the again independend Poland.
Transition
During a war it comes often to -also postally- transitionsituations. Proparly the postcard below is used provisional:
 | A postcard from 1916, with the German cancellation Wilna, 27-9-1916. Further the card is Russian, although the Russians were away and Vilnius had been occpied. For cancellation here is used Type I, with three stars at the bottom. Original print size of this image: 14,258 x 9,203 cm (is something more as the postal item). The postmark, resized 50 %:  |
Maybe more strange is this card:
| The card is completely Russian, with an reasonable unknown postmark of Vilnius, 1917, during the German occupation. Via Internet a number of collectors have sent solutions for this mystery. A possibility should be that - similar as in Latvia- postal authorities have taken with them stamps and used somewhere else. But the card comes really from Vilnius, as appears from the text, which Antanas Jankauskas for me translated: "July 5, Dear mommy, Concerning Petja, no news, but probably …. (unfortunately, unreadble). I’ll leave Vilno on July 6. Kissing you – Petja and me." Original print size of this image: 13,978 x 8,695 cm (is something more as the postal item). |
| The card is send to Petersburg. Because of the wrong postage (10 kop. instead of 3 kop.) it could be a falsification. Also the date could be simply wrong, but that is something too easy. Finally: it is a real railway-postmark of the Railway-post Department of the railway station Vilnius. It can be provisional, because there was no German postmark. The postmark, resized 50%:  |
Front of cover:
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