German sailors and troops in Kiautschou could send letters and postcards through the Marine Schiffspost (Naval Ship Post) / Marine Feldpost (Naval Field Post) system.  To distinguish military mail from that of civilians, military personnel were required to note their name and unit on the item, and the items were marked with handwritten or handstamped Marine Schiffspost / Marine Feldpost notations.  To satisfy this marking requirement, postcards were sometimes available that had the notation pre-written, and in 1897, a postcard was introduced bearing the overprint “Nur für Marine- Schiffsposten” (For Naval Ship Post Only).

For a brief period in February-March 1898 during which there was a shortage of pre-marked postcards, a two-line “Marine Feldpost” handstamp was used in Tsintau to mark Marine Feldpost postcards.  This mark often appears without the “Tsintaufort” line due to being applied at the top edge of the postcard.