In WWI, Tytuvėnai (Tytavėnai, Cytowiany, Citovjany) was passed through by Bavarian cavalry the following day after the German push into Žemaitija began on April 27, 1915. The cavalrymen were from the reco Abteilung Gonnermann of the Bayerische Kavallerie-Division which was speeding to flank Šiauliai from the south. During the German occupation Tytuvėnai acquired some importance when a strategic railway line was built in 1915 – 1916 from Tilsit (East Prussia) via Tauragė to Šiauliai. Though Tytuvėnai already had a post office Citovjany in czarist times, no such facility was set up during the German occupation, the nearest Postgebiet Ob.-Ost branch being at Kielmy / Skaudwile.
When the German army retreated from Russia at the end of 1918 and the Red Army advanced through northern Lithuania and Šiauliai in the first half of 1919, the southern part of the vital railwail line Tilsit – Šiauliai was not abandoned but was still guarded by Detachement Randow within Generalkommando 52. For the rest of 1919, this rail route, including Tytuvėnai, acquired some military priviledge as a supply route to German units in Latvia and northern Lithuania, and continued being supervised by German volunteer border guards (Grenzschutz). In 1919, for their postal needs these troops normally used the volunteer Feldpost 3072 in Šiauliai.
A mandate to set up, as įgaliotinis, a Lithuanian post office at Tytuvėnai was given to Kazys Užumeckas from the Skaudvilė P.O. While his appointment was dated as from July 17, 1919, the date of actual opening is not certain. In June 1920, K. Užumeckas was transferred as a valdininkas to the Raseiniai P.O. and was replaced on June 21, 1920 by Juozas Putramentas, also from the Raseiniai P.O.
The earliest stamps known from Tytuvėnai were values of Fourth Berlin Issue, followed by the Sėjėjas Issue etc. As Tytuvėnai had no formal postmarker, cancelling was done by means of a makeshift two-line cachet indicating place, date and the year in full (1919, 1920), with a symmetric adornment at both ends.
At first,Tytuvėnai had no formal registration cachet either, so such marking was also done in manuscript. It was only in 1920 that Tytuvėnai acquired a regular registration cachet, though cancelling of stamps continued to be done by using the makeshift two-line cachet.
A formal calendar-type postmarker was obtained in late 1920 or early 1921, with the early spelling TytAvėnai, but subsequent postmarkers spelled TytUvėnai.
Known provisional markings:
Cancelling with the two-line ornamental cachet:
18 II 20 letter to Germany Berlin IV 60 [colln. Lapas]
16 X 1919 single, Berlin IV 1a [colln. Doniela]
5 XI 1919 [reported by Fugalevičius]
date unclear, registered letter No. 315 to Tauragė, Berlin IV 20, 40 [colln. Bubnys]provisional registration markings:
5 XI 1919 registered letter No. 166 to Tauragė, Berlin IV 60 [colln. Liesis]
24 X 1921 [?] registration No. 1344 [reported by Fugalevičius]