1918 Swa Cover - On Service Of Late Postal Administration ?

I have picked up the following rather ragged cover, mailed in February 1918, from the "Frühere Kaiserlich Deutsche Postverwaltung" ("Former Imperial German Postal Administration") in Windhoek to Outjo and bearing the rubber-stamp marking "On Service of Late Postal Administration".

As the last German forces in Southwest Africa surrendered in July of 1915, I was rather surprised to find that the German postal administration was still somewhat operating there in some sense in 1918. Can anyone tell me just what they were doing at that time? Presumably wrapping up their operations, but I would have thought that they would have finished that by 1918.



Interestingly, the recipient of that letter reversed the envelope and sent it back later in July 1918. In this case, the marking "On Service of Late Postal Administration" was handwritten.

I wish I could speak with complete confidence, but my understanding is that German South West Africa adapted easily to South African control. I wouldn`t be surprised if many postal employees continued to work in their same capacities under Botha.

Perhaps so, but they would then be part of the new South African led postal administration, not of the old German one.

ek, the cover uses the terms `former` and `late.` I suspect that this was a generous gesture on the part of Botha. In the end, these are meaningless expressions. The postmarks themselves are S. W. Africa and not German. (I understand that many of the postmarks at this time are simply modifications of the original German cancel.)

Not to bore you with history, but the former German South West Africa became a mandated territory by virtue of the Versailles Treaty in 1919 but the South Africans never let go of it.