Postage stamps and postal history of the Falkland Islands
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This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of the Falkland Islands.
Early mails
Early mail service depended on occasional calls by ships connecting to the
In October 1877, the Secretary of State of the
Before 17 July 1861 postage costs could not be prepaid, and from 1869 prepaid franks are known, used by the local postmaster.
First stamps
The first stamps, 1
In 1880, carriage of mail was made mandatory for any ship calling at Stanley, and regular service was contracted to the German Kosmos Line, which operated steamships on a route from Hamburg to Callao, Peru. The first post office opened in Stanley in 1887.
On 1 January 1891 a need for 1/2d stamps resulted in the authorization of
The twentieth century
In 1900, the Pacific Steam Navigation Company got the contract, which operated until 1914, when the opening of the Panama Canal made Cape Horn roundings unnecessary, and regular mail service to the Falklands was not resumed until 1927.
In 1904 new stamps of the same general design, but depicting
The 2d purple stamp was surcharged 21⁄2d in 1928 for use on the island of South Georgia only during a stamp shortage.
In 1929 the first pictorial design appeared, featuring small images of a whale and penguins beneath the profile of George V. This was followed up by the much-admired centennial issue of 1933, a series of 12 stamps featuring local scenes and wildlife evocatively rendered; a full set is today priced at about US$3,000.
Starting in the 1930s, the Falklands took part of the
A last definitive series for George VI appeared in 1952. Of the 14 stamps of the issue, six were re-issued between 1955 and 1957 with a portrait of
In 1964, a series of four stamps commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Falkland Islands became notable for the HMS Glasgow error, in which the wrong warship was printed on a few of the six-pence value.
The Falklands War
During the Falklands War of 1982, occupied islands used stamps of Argentina, and postmarks with the wording "Islas Malvinas". Since that time, a British garrison has been maintained; while forces mail to home is free, mail to other destinations requires postage franked with British stamps, and as of 2003 was cancelled with two intertwined circles saying "Falkland Islands BFPO 655 Post Office".
Post codes
In 2003, the Islands were given their own
Privatisation
On 1 August 2014 the Falkland Islands postal and philatelic bureau services were privatised by a decision of the Falkland Islands Government as the Falklands Post Service Ltd.[3]
See also
- HMS Glasgow error
- Maude Carey
- Postage stamps and postal history of the Falkland Islands Dependencies
- Postage stamps and postal history of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
- Revenue stamps of the Falkland Islands
References
- ^ Upland Goose
- ^ "Rammell welcomes new Postcode for the Falkland Islands". Mercopress: South Atlantic News Agency. 2003-05-19. Retrieved 2011-05-08.
- ^ Brock, J. (19 July 2014). "Falklands' Postal Services Go Private". Falkland Islands News Network. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
Sources
- Stanley Gibbons Ltd: various catalogues
- AskPhil – Glossary of Stamp Collecting Terms
- Encyclopaedia of Postal History
- Upland Goose, newsletter of the Falkland Islands Philatelic Study Group
- Stuart Rossiter & John Fowler (1991). World History Stamp Atlas (reprint ed.). pub: Black Cat. ISBN 0-7481-0309-0.
- "Specialised Stamp Catalogue of the Falkland Islands and Dependencies 1800-2013", author Stefan Heijtz, ISBN 978-91-637-2341-4
Further reading
- Grant, B.S.H. The Postage Stamps of the Falkland Islands and Dependencies. London: Stanley Gibbons, 1952.