Pigeons of War

The Imperial German Navy’s Pigeon Service: 1876 – 1918 A.D.

We here at Pigeon of War often mention the Franco-Prussian War in our posts.  It’s an important moment in military pigeon history. By showing the world that homing pigeons could deliver messages in wartime, it led to a pigeon arms race all across Europe.  However, another significant event occurred during that War—the birth of the German Empire.  On January 18, 1871, German princes and military officials gathered in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles and proclaimed Prussian King Wilhelm I the Emperor of the German Empire.  For the first time since the Congress of Vienna, the balance of power in Europe had shifted.

With its Northern coast encompassing the North and Baltic seas, the newly founded Empire set to work improving the tiny navy it had inherited from its predecessor.   An immediate concern was communication between ships at sea and the shore. Inspired by the success of Paris’ pigeon post, naval officials began experimenting with pigeons in 1876. This initial foray sought to establish communication with light-ships stationed off the coast of the North Sea.  The port city of Tönning, located on the mouth of the Eider River, contributed a flock of birds to the light-ships Eidergaliote and Außeneider. The birds proved to be effective communicators, delivering news to port authorities of incoming ships, requests from captains, and emergency situations.  These deliveries are all the more impressive considering the birds regularly confronted severe gales blowing off the Eider River.  

Impressed with these results, in 1882, the Imperial Admiralty decided to establish a naval pigeon service. To ensure a constant flow of communication across two seas, naval officials organized the coast into several carrier pigeon districts.  Each district was 190 miles (305 kilometers) long, the maximum distance a pigeon could fly.  The Baltic Sea had two districts, with pigeon stations in Danzig (Gdansk) and Friedrichsort.  The North Sea had five districts, with pigeon stations in Cuxhaven, Heligoland, and Wilhelmshaven.  After considerable training, the birds attained speeds of 62.5 miles per hour (100.5 kph).  Although mostly used for ship-to-shore communication, some pigeons were trained for shore-to-ship communication.

Kaiser Wilhelm II took a personal interest in all things Navy-related, and pigeons were no exception. While vacationing on his yacht the Hohenzollern, he sent messages to the mainland via pigeons.  To promote pigeon rearing in Germany, he sponsored fancier groups.  Approximately 61 of these groups agreed to provide their birds to the Navy.  They set up their own stations at Kiel, Lubeck, Rendsburg, Nortorf, Hamburg, Bremen, and near Dusseldorf and Crefeld.  The Navy paid fanciers the costs of transporting the birds to the place of embarkment and for care while aboard ships. This freed the Navy from having to care for thousands of pigeons.  The Kaiser recognized the sacrifices made by these fanciers by awarding them medals throughout the years. 

A set of standardized procedures was developed to ensure successful transmission.  Duplicates of each message were required to be sent. For distances up to 50 miles, a pair of pigeons were released, while 3 to 5 traveled together at distances of 50 to 190 miles. The ship retained a copy of each message sent as well.  Messages were written onto gelatin paper and inserted into an india rubber case and glued shut.  The case was then secured to a pigeon’s foot with a rubber ring.  The manner in which messages were processed depended upon who owned the bird. Messages carried by the Navy’s birds were turned over to the central information bureau of the station in question.  Messages carried by private birds were sent to the proper commandant, who would forward them via mail or telegraph.

All warships—with the exception of torpedo boats—were required to travel with pigeons when embarking from Kiel or Wilhelmshaven.  This was to ensure that naval personnel had experience handling the birds.  The fleet also deployed thousands of birds each year during its annual maneuvers.  Sailors were allowed to use the birds to send private letters to the mainland, provided that the message included stamps for delivery by mail. 

The advent of wireless telegraphy, however, threatened the Navy’s pigeon post, as officials eagerly embraced the new technology.  In 1909, the German Colombophile Societies held a meeting in Frankfurt, inviting naval representatives to attend.  The fanciers tried to convince them that pigeons still had a lot to offer the Navy, regardless of technological advances.  The meeting had little impact on them—The pigeon service was officially dissolved that year. 

Yet, the Great War showed that wireless wasn’t always reliable or even feasible.  In recognition of this, the Navy revived its pigeon program to supply submarines and seaplanes with birds.  In the event radio communications failed, the pigeons allowed for contact to be maintained with naval bases.  


With the end of the War, the German Empire crumbled.  The Navy and its pigeon post likewise folded.  This was the end of Germany’s naval pigeon service; neither the Reichsmarine nor the Kriegsmarine implemented one in subsequent years.  It’s a shame the Navy’s pigeons don’t receive much acclaim.  For nearly 40 years, they greatly enhanced maritime communication throughout the Empire, no easy feat in an era before electronic communication.  That is an achievement worth celebrating.

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