The Superintendent for the Return of Railway Materials

This contribution to German railway and administrative history deals with the Superintendent for the Return of Railway Material. This was a subordinate civilian authority that emerged from the military administration of the territories occupied by Germany during the First World War. After the armistice, it coordinated the return of 5,000 locomotives and 150,000 railway wagons to the victorious powers. Although the Superintendency was later integrated into the Ministry of Reconstruction, it was not transformed into a National Superintendency (Reichskommissariat). The roots of the authority as part of the Royal Prussian Military Administration, i.e. a state administration, were retained. The abbreviation Rückeis was already used in the sources for the Superintendent for the Return of Railway Material and is also used in this text. Further explanations of German terms are given in the text.