Part 1 of Postage Stamps of War 1854-1914 This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Postage Stamps of War by Douglas B. Armstrong War's grim record inscribes itself in many strange and unexpected quarters, but nowhere more prominently than upon the postal issues of the nation's concern. It is indeed somewhat of a paradox that the humble postage stamp, the emblem of peace and commerce, and of the Concord of Nations, should be so closely associated with wars and rumors of wars, yet few modern campaigns have failed to have their trace upon the pages of the stamp album. Already stamp collectors are opening up fresh pages in their albums for the reception of new issues arising out of the present great war in Europe, which even now have begun to make their appearance, and then after years will be fraught with a deep historical and romantic interest. It may not be without interest, therefore, at this juncture to review briefly some of the most notable examples of postage stamps, whose issue has been occasioned by the wars and conflicts of the latter 19th and early 20th centuries. The collection and study of war stamps constitutes one of the most fascinating phases of the stamp collector's hobby, and as will be seen, the subject is by no means lacking in interest for the uninitiated. Apart from the special cancellations of the military post offices applied to the contemporary postal issues of the combatants, particular issues of actual adhesive stamps serve in many instances to mark outstanding events of modern warfare. Cremea, the invasion of the Cremea by the Allied Forces of Great Britain and France in September 1854, affords the earliest instance of use of the adhesive postage stamp in war, 14 years after its inception. A base post office in charge of an official of the General Post Office, with a small staff of assistance, was opened in Constantinople in November 1854 with advance offices at Scritari and Balaclava for dealing with the correspondence of the British forces in the field. The stamps used by these military post offices comprise the current one penny red and two penny blue of Great Britain, distinguished by the post marks with which they were cancelled. Two types of cancellation were employed. The first consisting of a crown between two stars set in a lips of heavy bars and the second of a star flanked by two ciphers. They were used in conjunction with a date stamp formed of the inscription Post Office British Army, arranged in the form of a circle with the date and control letter A in three lines in the center. On the withdrawal of the Allied Forces from the Cremea on June 12, 1857 the use of these special post marks ceased. It is worthy of note that this was the first occasion on which British postage stamps were employed outside the country of their origin. Stamps of the period bearing Cremea post marks are of considerable scarcity and are much sought after by collectors. On the French side the stamps employed by the military post offices on the campaign were those of the imperial issue of 1853 through 1860 with the head of Napoleon III cancelled with rhomboid post marks posed of a number of small dots and enclosing various initials and abbreviations to indicate the different divisions such as A O B C Army Orient Bureau Central, A O A Army Orient Bureau A T P, etc. American Civil War Very striking is the great struggle between the rival factions north and south in the American Civil War of 1861 brought home to the stamp collector through the medium of two distinct series of postage stamps issued during these parlous times. As a result of the secession of the southern states considerable quantities of the regular United States postage stamps of the series 1851 through 1860 on handed southern post offices fell into the hands of the Confederates. In order to prevent these stamps being brought into use to the detriment of the United States revenue it was deemed expedient to make an immediate change in the design of the northern postage stamps with the advent of the new series to declare all previous issues invalid for postage. Accordingly on August 15, 1861 an entire new issue of postage stamps was brought into use throughout the federal states displacing that of ten years previous which was declared to be demonetized. In the Confederate states the general issues of the Republic gave place on October 18, 1861 to a special issue bearing the likeness of President Jefferson Davis somewhat crudely printed by a firm of local lithographers in Richmond, Virginia. Meanwhile it had been decreed as far back as March 15 that pending the preparation of particular postage stamps for the Confederacy all postal charges should be prepaid in cash. The inconvenience of this method induced a number of postmasters to issue their own provisional postage stamps for local use. Unpretentious in design and limited in number several of these Confederate postmaster stamps are of such extreme rarity as to be almost unknown. Towards the end of 1861 a confidential agent of the Confederate government was dispatched to England provided with funds for securing the necessary dyes and plates for printing a new permanent issue of postage stamps which were accordingly ordered from the famous London House of Thomas de La Rue and Company. Only the five cents denomination of this series was actually issued however for the vessel carrying the original plates and a further consignment of one in five cent stamps fell in with and United States cruiser of the port of Wilmington North Carolina when the plates were thrown overboard but the stock of stamps was captured by the Federals. Other local issues followed down to the end of the war when the regular postage stamps of the United States were again brought into use throughout the Union. Amongst the philatelic souvenirs of the American Civil War must also be included the curious postage stamp currency employed in the United States during a temporary shortage of small coins caused by the war. The French in Lombardy. The French victories over Austria on the plan of Lombardy resulting in the annexation of Savoy to the French Empire and the successes of the Mexican campaign were duly commemorated by the addition of a laurel wreath to the portrait of the emperor as shown on the French postage stamps. Franco-German War. Louis Napoleon's triumph was destined however to be short-lived. War with Prussia broke out in July 1870 and by the end of September the investment of Paris was complete. As a result the imperial government was overthrown and the Republic restored. So soon as it became evident that Paris would be besieged the Committee of Public Safety caused the stocks of postage stamps available in Paris to be distributed amongst the provisional post offices but these were speedily exhausted and as no further supplies could be obtained from the beleaguered capital the delegation at Tours decided to create a provisional 20 centimes stamp representing the French inland postal rate at that period for use in that part of France unaffected by the hostilities. The branchment at Bordeaux to which city the seat of government was subsequently transferred was entrusted with the preparation of this stamp the design of which showing the head of Serres emblematic of the Republic was based on that of the first French stamps issued in 1849. This design was engraved on stone by a local artist Montsour Leopold Young whose name in tiny capitals was cunningly introduced into the vine leaf in the hair from this engraving lithographic transfers were made to make up the stone for printing the stamps in complete sheets. The Bordeaux stamps being all produced by this process instead of by typography as in the case of the normal French issues. The actual printing of the stamps was carried out under the supervision of Montsour de Le Bequet director of the mint at Bordeaux by the local firm of Angélée de Lilleau no perforating machines being available the stamps had perforce to be issued without this convenience between November 1870 when the Bordeaux provisionals first appeared and March 1871 when they ceased to be printed a total of 410,000 sheets of 300 stamps were struck off in addition to more than two and a half million provisional postage due stamps the dies in lithographic stones were all destroyed in the August following Meanwhile in besieged Paris itself the public had protested against the continued circulation of stamps bearing the effigy of the deposed emperor in instances recorded of the imperial portrait being actually cut out of the stamp before it was affixed to the letter and there is no doubt that public feeling ran high on the subject. To meet the emergency therefore the discarded plates of the Republican issue of 1849 through 1850 were unearthed and again pressed into service and printed from throughout the siege when the war was over this type was generally adopted for the French postage stamps new plates being made from time to time for values necessitated by alterations in the postal tariff. The heavy war indemnity exacted by Germany made necessary the raising of the charge upon inland letters from 20 to 25 centimes and that of town letters from 10 to 15 centimes stamps of these values being issued in September 1871 Interesting philotelic mementos of the siege of Paris exist in the form of letters sent out of the city by special means that were adopted to ensure they were penetrating the Prussian lines including balloons, pigeons and clockwork devices resembling small submarines for travelling under the waters of the same. For the balloon posts special cards and letter sheets were issued whilst letters sent by the service for the superscription Ballon Monte on the Prussian side particular stamps for use in the occupied French provinces were issued from the postal administration of Nancy in September 1870 for the use of the civil population and were employed as far afield as Abbeville on the north and Le Mans on the west the severe typeset design of these stamps consisting merely of the word post and the value inscription upon a network ground was evidently prepared by the officials of the imperial printing works in Berlin more with a view to practical utility than with any eye for artistic effect they remained in general use until March 24th 1871 when following the conclusion of peace they were withdrawn from circulation in all districts except the seated territories of Alsace and Lorraine were they were employed provisionally until superseded on January 1st 1872 by the first unified stamps of the German Empire this issue of the German occupation is familiarly known as the stamps of Alsace and Lorraine Chile and Peru during the invasion of Peru by the Chilean forces from 1879 through 1884 the contemporary postage stamps of Chile were issued in a number of occupied Peruvian towns between the dates July 1882 and October 22nd 1883 it may be found with the post marks inter alia of Arica, Kalao, Iquique, Lima Paíta, Pisagua, Pisco Tacua, Ica, etc a number of the current Peruvian stamps were also overprinted with the device of the Chilean arms and so issued for public use in December 1881 followed at the new year by a further overprint of the inscription Union Postal Universiao with the word Peru at the foot in token of the provisional administration following the entry of Chilean troops into Lima on January 17th 1881 and the unification of the Republic of Peru on December 2nd 1885 a number of local provisional issues of postage stamps were made in various departments of the Republic which however are too numerous to particularize Araby Pasha's Rebellion it was at the engagement of Kasasin in the Egyptian Revolt that the then newly organized Army Post Office Corps received its baptism of fire a detachment in charge of a field post office being attached to the expeditionary force under General Wolseley which landed in Egypt in August 1882 the contemporary one penny and two and a half penny stamps of Great Britain were issued by this military post office canceled at first with a small E in red ink and afterward by a narrow lozenge shaped mark composed of small dots which finally gave place to conventional circular date stamps inscribed British Army Post Office Egypt around the circumference this mark was again employed in the operations in the neighborhood of Suakim in 1884 Majuba Hill the postage stamps and use in the Transvaal when the Burgers repudiating the British Dominion proclaimed the second Republic at Heidelberg on December 16th 1880 or the stately profile of Queen Victoria but after the disaster at Majuba Hill early in the following year the country was handed back to the Boers subject to the return of Great Britain this event was signalized by the surcharging of the Queen's head stamps in local currency and ultimately by the reissue of national postage stamps emblazoned with the arms of the South African Republic in this manner is the great historical event perpetuated in the memory of the stamp collector Chino-Japanese War she honored the memory of two princesses of her royal house who fell in the war with China by placing the portraits upon the two commemorative stamps issued on August 1st 1896 to mark the conclusion of the peace of Shimonoseki Greco-Turkish War on the retirement of the Greek forces from the northern part of Thessaly between April 12th and 24th in 1897 the public treasuries of Larissa, Trecala, Cardissa and Agina containing large stocks of postage and revenue stamps fell into the hands of the enemy in order to prevent the circulation of these stamps it was ordered that the stocks of stamps on hand at the other treasuries should be impressed with the official seal around Handstamp having the Greek crown in the center Tamiyon, Treasury, followed by the name of the province around the circumference the Turkish occupation of Thessaly was followed by the issue early in the year 1898 of postage stamps of curious octagonal design showing in the center beneath the sign manual of the Sultan a vignette of the town of Larissa they remained in circulation for a short period only and were withdrawn as soon as the terms of peace had been agreed upon by the two governments Matabelle Rebellion Stamps of the British South African Company surcharged one penny or three pence and issued at Bilawayo in April 1896 recall the dark days of the Matabelle Rebellion the capital, Salisbury where the headquarters of the postal service were located was completely cut off from Bilawayo and in consequence no fresh supplies of postage stamps could be obtained recourse was at first had to surcharging new values upon such stamps as were available but eventually these became completely exhausted and the Cape Government was requested by Wyher to lend a small supply of its own stamps to meet immediate requirements this was done, the stamps being over printed British South Africa Company and used provisionally until the end of the war when a new permanent issue was obtained from England the Sudan Campaign the first series of postage stamps for the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan comprising the contemporary stamps of Egypt over printed Sudan in French and Arabic and issued at Wadi-Halfa Camp on March 1st, 1897 was almost exclusively employed in franking correspondence of the British and Egyptian armies under Lord Kishner involved in the reconquest of the Sudan the establishment of the post office coinciding with the advance of the troops the design of the present stamps depicting an armed camel postman crossing the desert next to our tomb is the work of an army officer Colonel A.E. Stanton, O.L.I a picturesque series of stamps for use on military telegrams in the Sudan was in use down to the year 1902 the design showing a detachment of the camel corps on the march, Spanish-American War there is no lack of philotelic souvenirs on either side of the Great War between Spain and the United States over the Liberation Cuba military post offices supplied with a contemporary issue of the United States accompanied the American troops specimens so used being distinguishable only by means of their cancellations Consequent on the American occupation of Cuba a series of provisional stamps was issued from the town of Porto Principe and new value of the obsolete stamps of the Spanish regime the substitution of civil for military government was followed by the appearance of contemporary United States postage stamps overprinted Cuba and new value in local currency which continued in use until replaced by an issue of permanent design prepared in the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Puerto Rico and the Philippines the same procedure was followed, ordinary stamps of the United States overprinted being supplied for temporary use a Gilbertean episode of the war is recalled by the overprinting of the US stamps for the Pacific Island of Guam when the US cruiser Charleston steamed into the harbor of Agana and fired a shot from one of her big guns to demand the surrender of the island the Spanish governor put off in a launch to apologize for his inability to return the salute as he had no ammunition for his batteries he was unaware that the countries were at war and greatly surprised when he found himself a prisoner subsequently Guam was placed under the control of the Navy department as a coling station and for a time the stamps used there were overprinted with the name of the island other islands of the Marian group which remained under Spanish control after the annexation of the Philippines by the United States overprinted their stocks of Philippine postage stamps with the inscription Mariana's Españolas to render them valid for postage the regular Spanish issues of the Philippines having been demonetized at the conclusion of the war these islands together with those of the Caroline group were sold to Germany and in due course were provided with stamps of the usual German colonial type various provisional stamps were issued during the early stages of the war by the Spanish authorities in Cuba and Puerto Rico whilst at home a special war tax stamp was brought into use which was required to be affixed to all letters in addition to the ordinary postage fee the curious local stamps of the Philippine revolutionaries under Aguinaldo must also be counted amongst the philitellic souvenirs of the Spanish-American war South Africa 1899 through 1902 perhaps the most familiar of all war stamps both to the stamp collector and the layman are those which owe their issue to the Great War war on the occupation of Blomfontein in March 1900 instructions were given for the whole of the available supply of postage stamps of the late Orange Free State to be overprinted with the initials VRI for use under the military administration and the same was done as regards the contemporary stamps of the transfall after the fall of Pretoria three months later the overprint was afterwards changed to ERI in consequence of the accession of King Edward VII for a time there was a veritable boom in VRIs and a scramble to secure some of the rarer varieties every officer and soldier brought or sent home sets of these paper trophies whilst the stamp collecting world was almost wholly given over to the studying collection of raised and level dots and specimens with dots omitted Mortimer Menpies and his war impressions draws the following pen picture of the state of affairs produced by the issue of these VRI stamps during this campaign there was an extraordinary craze which had never before occurred in any war on the world but may possibly play a very considerable part in the wars of the future and that is the craze for postage stamps I was now quite an authority on stamps and a rabid collector too nothing ever happened connected with stamps without my being on the spot all my thoughts were on stamps they were food and drink to me all the world lived at the post office now generals jostled sergeants and privates hustled doctors and the eagerness to buy up the two pence half pennies but I noticed that in a rush for a missing dot doctors invariably came out on top while the clergy came in a very good second special siege stamps were issued in a number of South African towns during their investment by the bores at different periods in the war amongst them being Lindenburg, Rustenburg Schweitzer, Renneke, Wohlgrust and Wohlmaranstan but most famous of all the issues of the South African war are the renowned siege stamps of Maffa King at first these stamps took the form of contemporary stamps of the Cape of Good Hope and Betuana land protectorate overprinted at the offices of the Maffa King mail with the words Maffa King besieged and a new value to meet the high rates of postage upon letters sent by Kaffa runners through the enemy's lines there was also a local issue for use upon messages conveyed at different points within the defenses which was produced by a photographic process one of these stamps for a representation of a cyclist orally lost on the other appeared the portrait of the Gallant commander of the garrison Major General R. S. S. Baden-Powell the finest collection of these historic postage stamps extant is owned by His Majesty the King whose enthusiasm for the hobby of the fallately is well known when the Bore forces seized Weiberg in November 1899 they surcharged the Cape stamps found in the post office with their values in the letters ZAR Zood Afrikanes Republic afterwards replacing them by the current issue of the transfall in May 1900 the town was reoccupied by the British who retaliated by surcharging the Bore stamps V. R. Special Post the last phase of the war is represented by the crude typeset provisionals issue that Petersburg in the northern transfall once the seat of government of the South African Republic had been removed during March in April 1901 they were roughly printed in the press of D. Zartes-Spainburg of Okta and on the arrival of the British troops in the district the remainders were destroyed relief of the Peking Legations the field post offices attached to the Indian contingent forming part of the Allied army dispatched to the relief of the Peking Legations during the Chinese Boxer rising of 1900 were as usual supplied with the contemporary postage stamps of British India for convenience of reckoning it was decided to fix the rate of exchange between China and Indiana and as this allowed a slight margin it was deemed expedient to place some distinguishing mark upon the stamp sold in China at this rate to aviate the possibility of their being exported to India in large quantities at a profit they were therefore overprinted with the initial CEF China Expeditionary Force and so distinguish are employed to this day by the British and Indian troops in China command Chinese stamps surcharged British Railway Association are likewise reminiscent of the dark days of the siege of the Legations the military post offices of the other allies French, German, Russian, Japanese American, Italian, etc all made use of the regular home issues of their respective countries without distinguishing overprint and these also must be counted amongst the philatelic records of the boxer rising Russo-Japanese war 1904 through 1905 for the benefit of the widows and orphans of soldiers who fell in the war with Japan the Russian government issued early in 1905 a set of charity postage stamps adorned with reproductions of monuments to national heroes they were sold for three months in excess of their actual postal values which some was appropriated to the war fund in commemoration of the great triumphal military review at the conclusion of the war two particular postage stamps showing trophies of arms were placed on sale by the imperial Japanese post office for one day only on April 30th 1906 Italo-Turkish war the war between Italy and Turkey which ended in the annexation of Tripoli is recalled by the overprinting of the present Italian postage stamps with the name Libya which has been bestowed on her new protectorate and with the names of a number of Aegean islands during their temporary occupation by Italian troops Balkan war the special issues of postage stamps arising out of the war between the states of the Balkan League Turkey are by far the most numerous of any stamps of war and space forbids more than a passing reference to them they include Greek stamps over printed Hellenic administration for the occupied districts of Thrace, Macedonia and Thessaly and in Crete in addition to local issues for the islands of Lemnos Somnos and Mitalin and independent issues emanating from Albania Epirus and Thrace Bulgarian and Greek stamps also exist over printed Degetes, Cavale and Geomulsina when those towns were arrested from the Bulgarians in the second phase of the war in addition we have a prominent Greek war series in two designs inscribed Expedition of 1912 the first showing Jupiter and the guys of an eagle with a serpent in its beak pouring above Mount Olympus as an omen of victory taken from Abbas relief on the west front of the Parthenon the work of the sculptor Phiteus and the second depicting the famous vision of the fiery cross which according to popular legend appeared to the emperor Constantine the great in the year 313 with the motto Enhoc Signo Vincis Turkey celebrated the recapture of Adrianople by the creation of a handsome postage stamp vignette of the world famous Mosque of Salim in that city whilst the union of Crete with Greece is commemorated in the design of a special 25 leptostamp which depicts the hoisting of the Hellenic flag over the bastion at Suta Bay other notable wars in campaigns by special stamps or post-marks include the Abbasinian expedition of 1867 when Indian stamp were employed by the field post offices and cancelled with the letters FF set in a rhomboid frame the occupation of Svelzvik Holstein by Austria and Prussia and subsequently by Prussia alone the stamps of the revolutionary movement being superseded at first by a conjoint issue and later by separate issues for Svelzvik occupied by Prussia in Holstein occupied by Austria after the Austro-Prussian war of 1866 however the two duchies were formerly annexed by Prussia and used the contemporary stamps of that kingdom until they were superseded in 1868 by those of the North German Confederation the Karlist insurrection in northern Spain in 1878 provided some interesting lithograph labels bearing the likeness of the pretender Dom Karlos the military operations against the Karlis also led to the introduction of war tax stamps by the Spanish government on January 1st 1874 they bore a design of the arms of Castile and Lyon and were required to be included in all letters for a certain period in addition to the ordinary postage the stamps issued by the provisional government in Spain following the revolution of September 1868 also come under the category of war stamps as do also all stamps of Bosnia which appeared under the military administration during the war with Paraguay 1864 through 1870 colon military forces were furnished with some unpretentious labels bearing a plain typeset inscription in a rectangular frame reading Exército, Army or Armada Navy and Operations contra or Paraguay which Frank their letters free to all parts of Brazil stamps of eastern Romelia over printed with the Bulgarian lion in 1885 and the revolt of that state and its union with Bulgaria as South Bulgaria a curious set of labels printed in a large variety of colors with the Spanish arms in the center and inscribed Espania Correos Vancuacía Bostal Espudicionario Exército Melia appeared at the time of the Spanish expedition to Morocco in 1893 but are believed to have been operated by a private speculator and without any official status whilst Crete was occupied the allies during the insurrection of 1898 special stamps were issued both by the British and Russian authorities in their respective spheres of influence the Indian stamps over printed British Somalia land in 1900 although appearing at the time of the military operations against the Mad Mula were not supplied by the Indian field post offices which made use of the ordinary home issue without over print those additionally over printed on HMS for official purposes however were chiefly employed by the military authorities at that time prior to the introduction of adhesive postage stamps there are many postmark souvenirs of war that are of surpassing interest amongst them relics of the Napoleonic wars campaigns of Frederick the Great the French Revolution etc etc but these together with purely postmark varieties evolved during more recent campaigns do not come within the scope of this work which is primarily concerned with special issues of adhesives influenced by war end of part one part two of postage stamps of war 1854 through 1914 this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org postage stamps of war 1854 through 1914 by Douglas B. Armstrong stamps of the Great War at the time of writing the war of the nations is scarcely three months old yet it has already produced no inconsiderable number of postal and philatelic mementos which are being added to almost daily postmark varieties so far constitute the larger proportion but there have also been some highly interesting issues of adhesive stamps by the nations involved and the cry is still they come a collection of war stamps and postmarks forms one of the most fascinating permanent and instructive records of the present great European crisis even for those who are not themselves collectors it will possess in after years a deep historical interest by securing all varieties as they appear such a collection can be formed at comparatively small cost red cross stamps a remarkable philatelic feature of the great war has been the number of red cross charity postage stamps that have been issued by the combatants on both sides a class of stamp that has hitherto played an inconspicuous part in the pageant of the stamp album stamps of this character sold for varying amounts in excess of their actual postal denominations in aid of the national red cross funds have been issued recently in France Monaco, Morocco Belgium and Russia while others are said to be in preparation in Germany it is reported that the entire stock of German colonial stamps on hand for sale to collectors and dealers at the Special Stamp Collector's Bureau in Berlin have been imprinted on the face with a large Geneva cross to the same end but as yet this rumor lacks confirmation it is to be hoped that every stamp collector will see to it that one full set of at least all red cross stamps issued by the allies finds place in his album thus contributing his might toward the noble work of that magnificent organization the red cross other war stamps not all of the postal issues of the great war have been however of a charitable nature as witness the German stamps overprinted for use in Belgium under the Imperial Governor Generalship stamps of Togo and the familiar German colonial type overprinted Anglo-French occupation Indian stamps overprinted IEF for the use of the military post offices of the Indian expeditionary force in France etc the naval and military post marks and sensor marks of the different armies are also worthy of attention and make an important contribution to the philotelic record of the war the following notes upon the stamps and post marks of the great war that have come under the notice of the rider up to the time of going to press bring the story of the postage stamp and war right down to the present time they are of necessity somewhat brief and incomplete owing to the impossibility of obtaining definite information concerning some of the issues whilst hostilities are in progress but an effort has been made to include all important varieties together with such details as are at present available when peace shall once more have come into her own further particulars regarding many of these war stamps will doubtless be forthcoming and doubtful points cleared up it is hoped to embody these in a subsequent volume which will also contain a record of the issues appearing after the publication of this work in the form of a sequel the two books constituting a complete popular history of the postage stamps of war Great Britain the embodying of the territorial forces following the outbreak of war with Germany on August 4, 1914 resulted in many cases in a local shortage of half-penny and one-penny stamps and amongst the earliest philotelic souvenirs of the Great War must be counted letters and postcards from territorial marked no stamps available to which ordinary postage do labels have been affixed by the postal authorities an early example was inscribed no obligation but instances are known where the full amount of postage do was collected by the postal authorities although instructions were subsequently issued by the postmaster general that no charge should be made upon such communications with the dispatch of the British expeditionary force to France and Belgium in the early days of August the army post office corps forming a special service section of the 8th county of London territorial battalion post office rifles was mobilized and placed in charge of the postal arrangements of the expedition under the direction of Colonel W. Price CMG director of army posts created by Royal warrant at the time of the Egyptian campaign of 1882 the army post office corps first saw service under Lord Woolsey and later its attachment took part in the operations round Suikim in 1884 through 1885 in the South African war 1899 through 1902 the establishment of the army post office corps and the field reached a total of 648 of all ranks several of whom were killed in action while about 50 died of disease a number of base offices and some 50 field post offices were maintained in operation during the war and high tribute was paid to the efficiency of the service by Lord Roberts in dispatches an indication of the amount of work that fell to the lot of the army post office corps in the South African war may be gleaned from the fact that in a single week 313,416 letters etc and 19,019 parcels were received from England and sorted and distributed to the troops and 108,150 letters and registered packets were forwarded in the home mails until the outbreak of the great European war the army post office corps had not since seen active service the following is a copy of an army order relating to the organization of the army postal service in the present war 3rd army orders by Lieutenant General Sir W. E. Franklin K. C. B. 3rd Army Central Force Headquarters Luton Hoo 28th September 1914 Part 2 Army Postal Service an army postal service R. E. Territorials is in course of formation and one complete will be attached to the central force that follows war establishments at each army headquarters one assistant director of postal services a subaltern one staff sergeant branch field post offices at each army headquarters one sergeant two sappers and pioneers at each divisional headquarters one sergeant three corporals at each mounted brigade headquarters one sergeant one corporal one sapper or pioneer at each infantry brigade headquarters one corporal two sappers and pioneers as regards payment etc further instructions will be issued as to the date upon which these details will join for duty R. D. Govins Brigadier General D. A. and G. Third Army about 50 field post offices as well as a number of base and advanced base offices appear to be operating with the British army on the continent the earliest type of cancellation applied to the correspondence of the expeditionary force consisted merely of a circular cancelling stamp formed of a number of heavy bars and reminiscent of the early English duplex post marks this mark bearing no indication as to the date and place of posting was in use during a brief period only and has now been superseded by the regulation type of date stamp with two concentric circles inscribed around the circumference army base post office advanced base post office or army post office 1 through 50 a second type of post mark with a single outer circle also known regulation field service post cards with an impressed one penny stamp imprinted on the back with a carefully tabulated list of stereotype messages such as I am well I am wounded I am in hospital etc. are supplied to British troops on active service the method of use being merely to cross out such sentences as do not apply to the particular case in addition letters and post cards are impressed with the census mark in red the highest number so far recorded being number 394 unlike the army the Royal Navy has no regular postal corps of its own but correspondence for the fleet is handled by a special branch of the great central sorting office of the general post office at Mount Pleasant this department is in daily communication with the military as to the whereabouts of the various vessels and letters addressed to the care of the GPO are forwarded with the least possible delay Navy letters and times of peace are usually cancelled with the ordinary post mark of the town at which they are put ashore but the necessary conditions of secrecy obtaining in wartime have evolved a large number of curious post mark varieties the formation of concentration camps for the internment of alien enemies in Great Britain as prisoners of war is responsible for the creation of yet another group of war post marks three are censors marks and one the Frank all being impressed in violet ink Austria two particular charity postage stamps in aid of a fund for the relief of widows and orphans of soldiers killed in the war were issued by the Austrian government on October 4 in accordance with the terms of the following ministerial decree of September 24 1914 issue of new stamps of five and ten hellers for the assistance of widows and orphans of fallen warriors during the continuation of the war new stamps of the five and ten hellers denominations will be issued which will be sold at two hellers above face value that is the stamps are sold at seven and twelve hellers respectively by purchasing the complete sheet of eighty copies the price is five kroner 40 hellers and nine kroner 35 hellers the proceeds gained in this way will be devoted to the aid of the widows and orphans of fallen warriors the stamps are eight millimeters longer than the current five and ten hellers stamps and they bear the design of these and besides in the space between the portrait of his majesty and the figures of value is placed 1914 and white figures on colored ground surrounded by foliage ornament the new stamps will be issued on and after October 4 1914 until further notice these stamps may be used besides those of the current issue for franking postal matters of the interior service and exchange service with hungry Bosnia, Przegovna and Germany exchange or return of these stamps are not entertained signed Schuster MP from the description given it would appear that these stamps resemble closely the elongated birthday commemoration issue of November 1910 checklist October 4 1914 charity postage issue two values head of emperor francis joseph types of 1906 adapted dated 1914 surface printed at imperial printing works Vienna no watermark perforation twelve and a half denominations of five five slash seven heller green ten slash twelve heller rose hungry a similar issue has been made in hungry where the remainders of the five and ten filler flood relief stamps have been overprinted in black war relief across the center and on the label at foot creating the original inscription checklist October 1914 war relief stamps overprinted as on charity issue of November 1913 in black surface printed and overprinted at Hungarian national printing works Budapest watermark multiple cross perforation fifteen five slash seven filler green slash twelve filler rose the military post offices attached to the austral Hungarian armies in the field will be making use of the contemporary postage stamps of Austria or Hungary canceled with special dyes inscribed KUK felt a post or with some similar inscription but at the moment of writing no specimens are available for reference Belgium the German invasion of Belgium was followed by the establishment of field post offices in all Belgian towns along the line of advance and accordingly many of the current German postage stamps may be found with Belgian post marks toward the end of September the civil postal service in all the occupied districts was taken over by the German postal administration with headquarters in Brussels in the summer of 1901 or about October 1st a series of four special stamps for use under the imperial governor general ship of Belgium was provided by overprinting corresponding low values of the German type of 1902 inscribed Duchess Reich with the word Belgian and value in Sintimes the overprint in two lines of black Gothic type was applied at the imperial printing works resembling that on the sense series for the German PO in China of 1905 checklist October 1st 1914 provisional issue of German occupation overprinted Belgium and values in Sintimes in two lines of black Gothic type upon contemporary German issue of 1902 surface printed and overprinted imperial printing works Berlin watermark lozenges perforation 14 3 cent on 3 fennig brown 5 cent on 5 fennig green 10 cent on 10 fennig red 25 cent on 20 fennig blue the above issue is stated to be merely of a provisional character it being proposed to substitute for it in due course permanent stamps on the lines of those issued for Alsace and Lorraine etc in the Franco-German war of 1870 1871 of doubtful authenticity are Belgian stamps of the 1912 series overprinted diagonally Duchess Reich specimens of which are being offered in certain quarters during the destruction of the Belgian national printing works during the bombardment of Malines two series of red cross postage stamps for internal use only were manufactured at Antwerp by lithography the one in design showing the national memorial to the war of independence of 1830 three Belgian soldiers one of whom is wounded defending the flag and the other a modern portrait of the Belgian king Albert I they were issued on October 3 and were sold for double face value at post offices in that part of Belgium not as yet occupied by the German armies checklist October 3, 1914 red cross postage stamps lithographed on white wove on watermark paper at Antwerp perforation 13 and a half red on all values a national memorial five centines green 10 centines red 20 centines purple head of King Albert I 10 centines brick red 20 centines purple the printing of the regular Belgian postage stamps of 1912 with head of King Albert must have been suspended quite early at that time preparations were in progress for the production of a new permanent pictorial issue of the de Jardine process of dry printing from line and grid plates for which special machinery was on order in London but the outbreak of war has for the time being at least quashed this issue military postmarks and censor marks are believed to have been affixed to the contemporary postage stamps of Belgium prior to the final withdrawal of the Belgian government from its native soil but no particulars are available at the time of writing a Belgian post office is operating in the little town of Saint Andres near Hove where the Belgian ministry is at present enjoying the hospitality of France 10 centines is said to be the charge upon local letters and 25 centines to Hove Belgian stamps with portrait of King Albert are used and obliterated with a special postmark Canadian contingent a few years ago an up-to-date postal corps was added to the Canadian army and a field post office under its direction accompanied the Canadian troops who landed in Great Britain in October 1914 a special postmark of a large circular pattern surrounded by a crown with a great belief in the centre is applied to correspondence passing through this office France as early as August 18 a provisional Red Cross postage stamp was issued in France under the authority of M. Thompson minister of posts and telegraphs the current 10 centines postage stamp in the sewer design being imprinted on the face with a small Geneva cross in the figure 5 centines in Vermilion near the foot of the stamp and sold at post offices for 15 centines 5 of which were appropriated to the Red Cross fund this was later followed by a permanent stamp of the same character but with the Geneva cross and additional value incorporated in the design together with the inscription Croix Rouge although their use is entirely optional many thousands have been sold in France during the past few months checklist August 18 provisional Red Cross postage stamp overprinted 5 centines on contemporary French postage stamp at government printing establishment Paris perforation 13 and a half and 14 10 centines now 15 centines Karman September permanent Red Cross stamp surface printed 10 centines with a cost of 15 centines Karman the following is the text of the official decree authorizing the issue of Red Cross postage stamps in France the president of the French Republic on the advice of the minister of commerce of works of posts and of telegraphs decrees Article 1 a special postage stamp is sold for 15 centines the difference being the sale price and the postal value after allowing for the regular rebate of 1% will be diverted to the commission instituted by the decree of August 18 the public shall have the privilege in the interior region only of using the stamp which will be valid for postage up to the extent of 10 centines only to be instituted by the decree of August 8, 1914 by the ministry of war under the authority of the military department of health and with the approval of the societies forming the French Red Cross Article 3 as a temporary measure in pending the printing of the new stamp the public will have at their disposal ordinary postage stamps of 10 centines bearing in surcharge the device under the authority of 5 centines Article 4 the minister of commerce and the minister of finance are charged each in their own part with the execution of the present decree given at Paris the 11th day of August 1914 upon care for the president of the republic the minister of commerce and works of posts and of telegraphs Gaston Thompson the minister of finance Louis-Lanes consequent on the removal of the seat of government from Paris to Bordeaux at the end of September the French government printing establishment was transferred to Marseille where a branch stamp printer has been created which will be charged with the production of the current French postage stamps while hostilities continue beyond a slight rearrangement of the sheets which will in future consist of pains only. It is announced that there will be no difference between the stamps printed in Marseille and those formerly produced in Paris, but when the Marseille printings do make their appearance, Philitellus will doubtless discover some slight divergency in shade or paper that will enable them to be differentiated. The field service postcards applied to the French troops is a much more elaborate production than its British prototype emblazoned with a cluster of the flags of the Allied nations in colours after a design of Monseigneur Stern. It is cancelled with the French military postmark Trésor et Poste. In a concentric circle, and there is no indication of value being inscribed, correspondance des armées de la repoblie carte d'infranchise. Whilst the table is provided for the name, rank, and core of the sender to be filled in. On the reverse side is printed that only general matters are to be referred to and no indication given as to the whereabouts of the sender. Failing the observation of which rule the card will not be transmitted. Germany. Here a number of censor marks in naval and military cancellations are in use, details of which are not at the moment obtainable. Mr. S. R. Turner informs me that he has the censors mark upon a letter dated as early as July 31st, 1914. German colonies. It is reported from Berlin that the stock of German colonial postage stamps in the existing Hohenzollern design on hand at the special stamp collectors post office in that city has been overprinted with a large Geneva Cross and sold for the benefit of the Red Cross fund, but at present the rumor is unconfirmed. Indian Expeditionary Force. Some 24 fully equipped military post offices are included in the regular establishment of the Indian Army, a number of which have been attached to every expeditionary force sent out of India in recent years. A somewhat curious anomaly exists in connection with the use of postage stamps by these field post offices. Soldiers letters being in reality conveyed free of charge in accordance with an announcement in the Indian postal guide, but with a view to facilitating their transmission, postage is in the first place prepaid in the ordinary manner by means of adhesive stamps, the total value of those used by each unit being recovered at monthly intervals. In the case of the Indian Expeditionary Force in France, it has been found expedient, presumably on account of currency differences, to overprint the contemporary Georgian postage stamps of British India supplied to the military post office with the initials IEF in large black Roman capitals. Checklist October 1914. Contemporary Georgian issue of British India overprinted IEF in black Roman capitals at the government of India's Central Printing Office, Calcutta, Watermark Star, Perforation 14. Three P.A.s, Gray, One Half Ana, Green, One Ana, Carmine, Two Ana's, Purple, Two and a Half Ana's, Blue, Three Ana's, Orange, Four Ana's, Olive, Eight Ana's, Mauve, Twelve Ana's, Carmine Lake, One Rupee, Brown and Green. Luxembourg. German postage stamps are stated to be in use here. The last issue with portrait of the Grand Duchess Marie Adelaide being temporarily withheld from circulation. Monaco. Following the example of her French protector, this tiny reverian principality is overprinted its current 10 centimes postage stamp with the portrait of Prince Albert with the cross of Geneva and an additional value of five centimes for sale in aid of the French Red Cross. Checklist. October 14th overprinted plus five centimes on contemporary Monaco postage stamp of 1901 through 1902, head of Prince Albert. Surface printed on medium white wove on watermark paper, perforations of 14 and 13 and a half, 10 centimes at a cost of 15 centimes, red. Montenegro. The contemporary postage stamps of the Black Mountain Kingdom bearing the likeness of King Nicholas I are doubtless being employed by the field post offices attached to the Montenegro forces operating in Bosnia and Herzegovina against the Austrians. Monaco. For a period of three weeks from September 1st, 1914, the current 10 centimes stamp of the French post office in Monaco with value overprint in Arabic was on sale in aid of the French Red Cross. Additionally, overprinted protector at Francaise in two lines in black supplemented by the Red Cross in figure five C in red. Checklist. September 1st, 1914, provisional Red Cross stamp overprinted on French issue for post office in Monaco of 1911. Surface printed at French government printing establishment Paris, no watermark, perforation 14 and 13 and a half, 10 centimes at a cost of 15 centimes, blue on Carmine. Newfoundland. A particular postage stamp to be sold for 25 cents in aid of the National Relief Fund, but whose postal validity is limited to two cents is reported through an American source to be about to make its appearance in this British colony. New Guinea. Following the seizure by an Australian expedition of the former German possession of Kaiser Wilhelm's land on the Australasian island of New Guinea, the stock of postage stamps in the regular German colonial type on hand at the chief post office at Reval is stated to have been converted to postal use under British administration by overprinting with the Cypher GRI. No details as to the values, etc. So treated have been received up to the time of going to press with this volume. Poland. The following extract from an American newspaper refers to what is presumably a mythical issue of stamp circulated for political purposes and entirely devoid of any postal validity. The New York American prints a dispatch from Petrograd, St. Petersburg, in which it quotes a Galician soldier is saying, when we left Vienna, we were told Austria had taken Belgrade. At Krakow, we were told all Serbia was conquered and the army was approaching Nish and that the Germans had entered Warsaw. When we were led to positions, we were informed that a Polish monarchy was already established, proof of which was shown by stamps with the effigy of King Sobieski the third. Russia. Field offices accompanied the Russian advance into East Prussia in the early stages of the war and were supplied with stamps of the 1912 issue with Portrait of Bazaar. Specimens may therefore be found with the postmarks of towns in that region. It is assumed that Russian stamps have likewise been employed in Galicia and other districts penetrated by Bazaar's armies. At Petrograd, there has just been placed on sale a series of Red Cross postage stamps showing the flags of the Allied nations with their staves encircled by a laurel wreath against the background of the rising sun. Samoa. In a like manner to those of German New Guinea, the stock of former German colonial stamps found in the post offices of the Samoan group has received the imprint of the Royal Cipher and a new value in English money for use under the New Zealand administration. According to information to hand, the series comprises seven values as follows. Checklist. October 1914. With this date in question. Overprinted GRI and new value in British currency on German colonial issue of 1900 inscribed Samoa. No watermark. Perforation of 14. One penny on three Phoenix Brown. One half penny on three Phoenix Brown. One half penny on five Phoenix Green. One penny on 10 Phoenix Carmine. Two and a half pennies on 20 Phoenix Blue. Three pence on 25 Phoenix red and black on yellow. Four pence on 30 Phoenix black and orange on buff. Five pence on 40 Phoenix black and Carmine. Six pence on 50 Phoenix purple on buff. Surveyor. Surveying stamps of the current issue have no doubt been in use by the field post offices attached to the troops operating in Bosnia and Hungary, but no particulars can at present be given regarding the precise form of postmark, etc. Switzerland. A correspondent in Switzerland sends me two field service postcards stamped with the national arms, which accordingly travel free through the post. The one for use by the soldiers themselves bears a notice in German, French, and Italian to the effect that the whereabouts of the troops must on no account be disclosed, while the other to be used by friends and relations in communicating with the troops on mobilization states that the correct address of the various units may be ascertained from the official military post bulletin. Togo for several weeks following the occupation of the former German West African colony of Togo by a combined British and French force. The ordinary current stamps of the adjacent British colony of Gold Coast were employed in franking foreign letters, whilst for local postage, the old German colonial stamps were temporarily allowed to do duty. A stamp of the German colonial type over printed GRI by means of a rubber hand stamp was it is true noted in a newspaper paragraph, but it is believed to have been unauthorized. By the last West African mail in October, however, came to hand examples of the first authentic postage stamp issue under the condominium in the form of erstwhile German colonial stamps inscribed Togo over printed in three lines of heavy blackface type Togo Anglo-French occupation and in some cases new values in British currency also only values up to 50 phoenix have actually been seen. But the higher denominations are understood to exist with this overprint. Checklist October in this month is in question 1914 provisional issue over printed locally on German colonial issue of 1900 through 1914 surface printed at Imperial printing works Berlin. Some with a watermark of Los Angeles perforation 14 one half penny on three phoenix brown one penny on five phoenix green with a watermark 10 phoenix Carmine with a watermark 20 phoenix ultra marine with a watermark 25 phoenix black and red on yellow 30 phoenix black and orange on buff 40 phoenix black and Carmine 50 phoenix purple on buff 80 phoenix black and Carmine on rose one mark on Carmine although this is questioned two marks blue three marks violet and black five marks Carmine and black this completes the record of the postage stamps and postmarks of the great war down to the commencement of November 1914 so far as the available data will permit it is safe to assume that the stamps referred to are but the forerunners of countless other issues and varieties that will serve to perpetuate the memory of the war of nations in the lines of stamp collectors for all time. End of part two part three of postage stamps of war 1854 through 1914. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. To learn more about LibriVox or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org. War on the Stamp Market by WHA Williams. War leaves its mark on everything. There's hardly in existence anything so insignificant as to be impervious to the wondrous changes brought by such a war as this in which we are still in the throws as I write. Great as have been the effects in the financial world in this country the shock has been withstood with the greater ease than the most sanguine would have prophesied six months ago and stamp collecting as a hobby has along with interests of superior magnitude stood firm. I've often known the Philistines say we will wait and see how your hobby stands the first few weeks of some great national calamity. Well the first few weeks are now long since passed and the hobby flourishes perhaps circumstances taken into account as it never did before. In spite of the dislocation of our usual methods of life all the stamp dealers of importance are still doing good business and inquiries in the trade produce hardly one discordant note August and September were quiet but August and September are always quiet for the leisure classes have not returned to their homes and their stamp albums in these months. Business naturally is slightly below the normal level. There are too many good philatelists serving with our forces to leave no effect on the dealers. There's probably no vocation which pursues for lately so ardently as that of the army whilst there are many collectors of importance in the Navy. Hundreds more who formerly followed civilian life have volunteered for service and these good citizens are naturally quiescent so far as their philatelic activities are concerned. There has however been no panic no fine collections of 20th century stamps have been slaughtered at half face no accumulations of fine Sydney views are to be found at one third catalog price. All these things and more were prophesied but those who know give the same information that there never was a time in the history of stamp collecting when less stamps were on the market. This does not spell panic nor does it spell any fallen prices all that exists at the present time is a temporary lull and a natural and inevitable quietude inseparable from occasions when one's attentions and pecuniary resources are centered on more vital interests. We will examine in more detail the possible and probable effects. Rarities business and these guilt edged securities during the war will be quiet they will not depreciate in value and none will be picked up at low rates except by accident. The latter contingency is not confined to war time. There is no better investment than a rare stamp this is true of all times. The individuals who handle them are not as a rule affected and frightened out of their senses at the first cloud which looms on the financial or philatelic horizon. Medium British colonial stamps there will be a steady increase in demand for these stamps for years they have occupied a truly medium position but the boom and patriotic feeling will bring them more into their own. 20th century colonials always the most popular type of medium stamps will occupy the same firm position whilst the new issue business will boom collectors will see the chance of obtaining plenty of provisionals issued through exigencies occasioned by the war and will accordingly make sure that their supply of new varieties is not allowed to lapse. Good old imperforate British colonial stamps are still almost unobtainable in fine condition at any discount of catalog rates and this will hold good. Foreign stamps old German states on account of the present unpopularity of anything German will show two more normal position they have been overrated for some years now but the depletion of the Germanic exchequers and the consequent attrition of individual Germans means will bring so many of these stamps on the market that the prospect is by no means bright for these stamps. German colonials will naturally enjoy a temporary boom but we should not advise a too lavish expenditure on these stamps. After the war immediately following the successful termination of this war and we anticipate no other result the attentions of the stamp collecting public along with other classes of society will be so occupied in the new trade openings etc that it is at this time when the stamp business will possibly be very quiet. Afterwards however the hobby will reoccupy the strongest possible position and the recent rise in prices will be more than maintained. End of part three. End of postage stamps of war 1854 through 1914 by Douglas B. Armstrong.