In the late 1800s the area which became Tanganyika, and then Tanzania, was part of German East Africa. The country’s first stamps (1893) were surcharged German stamps, and three years later, they were overprinted Deutsch-Ostafrika. In 1900, the Kaiser’s Yacht Hohenzollern “key type” stamp was used, as in other German colonies. After World War I, the colony was occupied by British forces and became a British Protectorate. When it joined with the People’s Republic of Zanzibar in 1964, it became Tanzania (pronounced Tan za NEE’ a). Interestingly, the first four stamps of the new nation were not valid in Zanzibar. The United Republic of Tanzania is a member of the British Commonwealth.