British occupation zone in Germany

The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country into four occupation zones  from 1945 to 1949.

The British zone consisted of Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg,  Lower Saxony and the present-day state of North Rhine-Westphalia.  The British military government was based in Bad Oeynhausen.

Bremen and Bremerhaven were surrounded by the British Zone, but were given to the United States, so that the Americans had a port. What is now Rhineland-Palatinate was to be a part of the British Zone.  It was given up to form part of the French occupation zone.

In May 1949 the British, French, and American zones were joined to form the Federal Republic of Germany.  The military governors were replaced by civilian high commissioners.  The high commissioners were part-governor and part-ambassador.  The occupation officially continued until 1955.  This is when the Federal Republic became a fully sovereign state, the western occupation zones ceased to exist, and the high commissioners were replaced by normal ambassadors. But the four allied powers still had special rights and responsibilities in Germany until the Final Settlement of 1990.

The city of Berlin, however, was not part of either state and continued to be under Allied occupation until 1990.

 The military governors and commissioners 
 Military governors 

 22 May 1945 - 30 April 1946 Sir Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein
 1 May 1946 - 31 October 1947 William Sholto Douglas
 1 November 1947 - 21 September 1949 Gen. Sir Brian Robertson, Bt.

 High commissioners 

 21 September 1949 - 24 June 1950  Gen. Sir Brian Robertson, Bt.

 24 June 1950 - 29 September 1953  Sir Ivone Kirkpatrick

 29 September 1953 - 5 May 1955  Sir Frederick Hoyer-Millar

 Related pages 

Allied occupation zone
American occupation zone
Soviet occupation zone

 References 
 Post-WWII commanders/governors of Germany

Category:West Germany
Category:1945 establishments in Germany
Category:1940s establishments in the United Kingdom
Category:1949 disestablishments in Europe
Category:1940s disestablishments in Germany
Category:1940s disestablishments in the United Kingdom