The Cologne Post

The Cologne Post was a British military newspaper published in Cologne, Germany, during the period after the First World War when British forces remained stationed in the Rhineland. It began publication on 31 March 1919 and served the personnel of the first British Army of the Rhine, commonly associated with the British Army of the Rhine presence in occupied Germany. The paper provided a locally relevant news and information service for British service members, operating in an environment where military administration, occupation duties, postal services, and the everyday life of a British overseas force were closely connected. William Edward Rolston founded the newspaper and served as its managing editor. Rolston was a captain in The Buffs, formally the Royal East Kent Regiment. The paper was printed in Cologne by Kölnische Volkszeitung, linking the publication to the city’s established commercial printing infrastructure while retaining an editorial identity directed toward the British military community. Its publication was therefore distinct from an ordinary civilian regional newspaper: its principal audience consisted of British forces stationed in Germany, and its existence reflected the institutional needs of a temporary overseas military deployment. The Cologne Post was published as a daily until 17 January 1926. From 28 January 1926, it continued in a successor or expanded form under the title The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times. That combined title remained in publication until 3 November 1929. The change reflected the geographic and organizational circumstances of the British presence in Germany, particularly the relevance of Wiesbaden alongside Cologne as British military activity and administration evolved. A separate Upper Silesian edition was also produced for a limited period in 1921. Published in Oppeln, it ran from 17 June to 6 August and was intended for British forces serving in Upper Silesia. This edition demonstrates that the newspaper’s reach could extend beyond Cologne when British troops were deployed in other areas of postwar Germany and Central Europe. The paper’s institutional status was clarified in 1923. In a written reply to a question addressed to the Under-Secretary of State for War, Lieutenant-Colonel Guinness stated that The Cologne Post was an independent organization and was not financed from Army funds. This distinction is important to the publication’s historical identity: although it served a military readership and operated in the context of the British occupation, it was not presented as a newspaper funded directly from army appropriations. The newspaper’s final period coincided with the withdrawal of British forces from Germany. Army Post Office S40 had been established in Cologne in 1919 to support the first British Army of the Rhine and closed in 1929 when the force was finally withdrawn. The end of The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times in November 1929 therefore belongs to the same broader transition from an extended British military presence in Germany to the conclusion of that occupation-era institutional network. No evidence in the supplied reference material indicates that the newspaper continued under its original or combined title after 1929.

The Cologne Post emerged in the immediate aftermath of the First World War, when British forces were stationed in Germany as part of the postwar occupation and administration of the Rhineland. Its first issue appeared in Cologne on 31 March 1919. The newspaper was created for the British military community and operated as a daily publication rather than as a general German-language local newspaper. The founder and managing editor was William Edward Rolston, a captain in The Buffs, also known as the Royal East Kent Regiment. His military background reflected the paper’s intended audience and operating environment. Although connected to the British military community, the publication was printed by Kölnische Volkszeitung in Cologne. The available historical account characterizes The Cologne Post as an independent organization rather than a publication financed from Army funds. That status was explicitly stated in 1923 by Lieutenant-Colonel Guinness in a written response to a parliamentary question directed to the Under-Secretary of State for War. In addition to its principal Cologne edition, the publication had a short-lived Upper Silesian edition. This edition was produced in Oppeln for British forces in Upper Silesia from 17 June to 6 August 1921. Its existence indicates that the newspaper could adapt its geographic distribution to the deployment of British units and the changing needs of the force stationed in Germany and adjacent regions. The original daily title continued until 17 January 1926. After a short interval, publication resumed on 28 January under the title The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times. The revised title brought Wiesbaden into the newspaper’s identity and continued until 3 November 1929. The title change can be understood in the context of British military administration and the distribution of British personnel across German locations, although the supplied source does not specify the precise editorial or ownership arrangements behind the change. The publication’s final years coincided with the end of the British military presence that had supported its readership. Army Post Office S40 had been established in Cologne in 1919 to provide postal support to the first British Army of the Rhine. It closed in 1929 when the force was finally withdrawn from Germany. The ending of The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times on 3 November 1929 occurred during this wider institutional drawdown. The available evidence does not document a later successor publication under the same brand, and the newspaper is therefore treated as defunct.

1. 1929Publication ends

   The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times ceased publication on 3 November, during the withdrawal of British forces from Germany.

   Source
2. 1926Title changes to The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times

   Following the end of the original title on 17 January, publication resumed on 28 January under a combined Cologne and Wiesbaden title.

   Source
3. 1923Independent status is stated publicly

   Lieutenant-Colonel Guinness stated in a written reply concerning the newspaper that it was an independent organization and was not financed from Army funds.

   Source
4. 1921Upper Silesian edition appears

   A separate edition for British forces in Upper Silesia was published in Oppeln from 17 June to 6 August.

   Source
5. 1919The Cologne Post begins publication

   The first issue of the daily newspaper was published in Cologne on 31 March for the British Armed Forces serving in Germany.

   Source

A daily English-language newspaper for British military personnel stationed in postwar Germany, with a regional and service-community orientation.

• The Cologne PostDaily military newspaper1919

  The original daily newspaper was published in Cologne from 31 March 1919 to 17 January 1926. It served the British Armed Forces in Germany and was printed locally by Kölnische Volkszeitung. Its military readership and location gave it a specialized role within the information network of the postwar British presence in the Rhineland.

• Upper Silesian editionRegional military newspaper edition1921

  A temporary edition was published in Oppeln for British forces in Upper Silesia from 17 June to 6 August 1921. It extended the newspaper’s service beyond its Cologne base during a period when British military deployments covered more than one German region.

• The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden TimesCombined daily military newspaper1926

  The successor title began publication on 28 January 1926 after the original newspaper ended. It incorporated Wiesbaden into the name and continued serving the British military community until 3 November 1929.

• 1926Adoption of the Cologne and Wiesbaden combined titleStrategy

  The original The Cologne Post title ended on 17 January 1926 after serving as a daily paper for British forces in Germany since 1919.

  What changed. Publication resumed on 28 January 1926 as The Cologne Post and Wiesbaden Times, adding Wiesbaden to the title.

  Aftermath. The combined title continued until 3 November 1929, when it ceased publication during the withdrawal of British forces from Germany.

  Source

1. The Cologne Post