Worldwide Postal History of Wars, Events & Historical Periods

Unusual - Austrian SMS Monarch ship mail on Holyland Jaffa postcard: stampless 'feldpost' (on active service/field post) 7 June 1916 dated message in Croatian on color picture postcard of Jaffa, written on board the ship SMS Monarch (also endorsed such in German by the sender) & endorsed "feldpost" for free military mail; addressed to ZLATAR Croatia (of the Austro-Hungarian "Kingdom of Croatia-Sla...

World War I French military mail via Egypt-Palestine: 19 Nov 1916 dated 'good wishes' message in French on stampless picture postcard of the Golden Gate (Old City Jerusalem; published by the Cairo Postcard Trust), addressed to LYON France & tied by French navy maritime anchor control handstamp MARINE FRANCAISE SERVICE A LA MER + postmarked same day by CORR D'ARMEES PORT-SAID double-ring datestamp;...

Spanish Civil War airmail: 25 Jan 1937 postmarked air mail cover sent from PALMA DE MALLORCA (Balearic Islands) to BRESLAU (Wroclaw) Germany, franked 1.25 pesetas + 10c Nationalist local issue Pro-Paro adhesive tax stamp (vertically misperforated at left-center) & tied by 3x strikes of the local postmark; routing endorsed "by air to Rome" in Spanish (manuscript) & French (red typewriting at base);...

Jamaica Patriotic Stamp League commercial cover franked by George V 1½d "War Stamp" + Stamp League Red Cross label (½d) - 3rd version, and tied by SP 17 1917 ANNOTTO BAY postmark. The league was founded in 1915 by Lewis Ashenheim to raise funds for the British Red Cross Society, establish a Jamaican airplane fund, and to provide relief for Polish Jews. These labels were sold at all post ...

1950 1st airmail to Russian Zone: 8 FEB 1951 "Lacol" austerity period stationary airmail cover from JERUSALEM to old age home in "RUSSIAN ZONE" BERLIN "Germany" (East Germany) franked 40pr at the FA-2a period rate to Europe using left marginal full tabbed 40pr (Ba #34) tied by single strike of local postmark, with Israeli "zayin" censor cachet on front; handwritten arrival 14-II-51 on front; slit ...

1968 Communist Bloc unsanctioned Israeli militaristic franks on mail: 2 Jan 1968 postmarked airmail cover sent from RISHON LE ZION to CLUJ Romania; franked 0.40 Lira with 'Straits of Tiran' stamp (Ba #377) of the 1967 IDF Victory in Six Days War issue for the postage rate & tied by machine cancel; backstamped 6 Jan arrival + Romanian numbered sorting office handstamp. Remarkably the letter was not...

1969 Communist Bloc unsanctioned Israeli military franks on mail: 16 April 1969 postmarked airmail First Day Cover for Israel's Independence Day, sent from JERUSALEM (return addressed DIMONA) to BUCAREST Romania; franked 0.95 Lira with tabbed set of 1969 Independence Day stamp issue (Ba #422-423) for the 0.50L postage rate & tied by full strikes of the illustrated JERUSALEM-79 postmark; backstampe...

Pilot Signed Hijack mail - 1974 BA870 Hijack: 19 NOV 1974 airmail air letter ex NEATH Britain to HAMERSLEY (Perth) Australia pre-franked 6d & tied by machine slogan cancel; this was part of a shipment of mail originating in UK between 16-20 Nov. & carried by British Airways flight 870, en-route to Brunei via Calcutta & Singapore when hjacked on evening 21 Nov. by 4 members of Abu Nidal Organizatio...

Independent States & CSA Use of US Postage > Georgia & South Carolina - 1st Day of the Confederacy: Feb. 4 1861 (1st Day of Confederacy) docketed cover from SAVANNAH Georgia to CHARLESTON South Carolina, franked 3c per period (US) domestic letter rate using US #26 dull red Washington Type III stamp, tied by round grid obliterator & FEB 5 [1861] local circular date-stamp in field (1s...

1st Day of the Confederate Postal System: stampless JUN 1 1861 postmarked cover from MOBILE Alabama to Dr. W. Hopkins of MACON Mississippi, tied by near-full strike of full-dated double ringed datestamp & boxed PAID 5 handstamp (CSA cat type B - similar but slightly different "5" digit); professionally rebacked with original cover backside; most of the original gum is intact - possibly mailed unse...

Interim Independent / Confederate Tennessee era mail: stampless "MONTVALE Tenn 20th JUNE 1861" manuscript dated cover to "Hon. Howell Cobb, RICHMOND, Virginia", with manuscript notation at top right "Pd 5 Cts".Interesting postal history: the Confederacy suspended Federal mail service within its borders as of 1 June - but not in Tennessee, whose government had not yet passed an Ordinance of Secessi...

Southbound Across-the-Lines Private Express mail: JUL 30 1861 postmarked 3c star-die (POD US watermarked) envelope (US #U27) from LOUISVILLE Kentucky to J. F. Dickinson of MACON Georgia, carried by the Adams Express Company, which tied its full-dated ADAMS EX. CO. circular datestamp to the embossed frank; the manuscript "2/-" near the frank was shorthand for the total express charge to pay over an...

Civil War 'Prize Court' captured "blockade-runner" mail: stampless AUG 15 [1861] postmarked cover from PENDLETON South Carolina to "Emilio Puig, Care of Spanish Consul, CHARLESTON S.C.", tied by full single strike of local circular datestamp in blue & [postage] PAID 5 handstamp (CSA type C) at top right. The year of dispatch is confirmed by the rate paid: on 1 July 1862 the domestic letter rate wa...

Confederate States Navy "MERRIMACK" / drop-letter rate mail: MAY 4 [1862] postmarked outer lettersheet (light-blue lined writing paper) to Mrs. H. Ashton Ramsay, Care of D?Arcy Paul, Esq., PETERSBURG [Virginia], franked 5 cents using a single blue CSA 4-2 stamp with large to full margins, affixed with red sealing wax & tied by single strike of local postmark in blue.The postage paid reflects t...

Confederate Army couriered mail: dateless/stampless cover addressed to "Captain Wm. Devlin, Com'dg C.S.R. Corps, PATTERSONVILLE, La [Louisiana]", with manuscript directive at lower left "Per Courier" & endorsement at top "Official | Hd. Qrs En'g. Officer | Psh of St. Mary". Opened roughly at right (piece missing); opened on all 3 sides for display.The cover was sent from the Headquarters of the En...

Second Boer War (1899-1902) mail: 25 JULY 1901 plain envelope from RAGAMA prisoner of war camp in Ceylon to addressee in HUMANSDORP in Cape Colony "South Africa", franked 6c, opened and sealed by censor using vertical black on pink E. Arms R. /Opened Under Martial Law label tied by oval camp censor cachet, then frank tied by RAGAMA CAMP skeleton postmark, same day COLOMBO transit (postmark on fron...

WWI era local Polish post: 25 JULY 1917 postmarked touristic picture postcard of Alexandrowo (by George Stilke publishers of Berlin) with German message, from CIECHOCINEK to WARSAW; as of 1915 the Warsaw region of the former area of Congress Poland was occupied by Germany and the zone renamed "General Gouvernement Warschau" (General Governorate Warsaw): the occupying force did not provide any loca...

"Force in Egypt" British WWI military mail in Egypt: full strike 19 XII 1914 MILITARY POST OFFICE ALEXANDRIA postmark (FB A1) tied to cutout of 1d frank SG337. "Military" PO here was Egyptian civilian post office located near British military establishments....

2 May 1915 very early use of the square British army censor mark (CM2) in the postal service of the 'Force in Egypt', here #2288 (Daniel unassigned) tied 1x on front & 1x on back to an On His Majesty's Service (OHMS) postal stationary cover endorsed On Active Service (OAS) & serving as postage-free army mail, postmarked 2 May 1915 from BAPO Z (ALEXANDRIA) using Proud D1 postmark & sent to BIRMINGH...

"Force in Egypt" British WWI military mail in Egypt: 6 V 1915 stampless OAS civilian stationary cover from BACOS (Alexandria) to LONDON, tied by local postmark on earliest known date of use (Firebrace lists this post office as serving British Army as of 6 May) & backstamped 16 V 1915 ALEXANDRIA-B transit; front-stamped 26 MAY 1915 HAMMERSMITH W machine cancel & locally re-routed; very fine....

British Force in Egypt WWI military mail: 25 May 1915 postmarked stampless On Active Service (OAS) cover, sent from Base Army Post Office BAPO Z (ALEXANDRIA) to LONDON; slit open at top....

MEF British WWI military mail in Egypt: 9 JY 1915 stampless OHMS cover from Army Post Service BAPO Z (ALEXANDRIA) to Base "Y" MUDROS, tied by BAPO Z postmark & blue oval "ARMY POST OFFICE | [crown] | BMEF" cachet (FB-APC1); cover marked "PO Circular"; torn open at back, complete....

"Force in Egypt" British WWI military mail in Egypt: 12 VII 1915 stampless OAS civilian stationary cover from CAIRO to BRISTOL tied by local civilian CAIRO-M postmark on earliest known date of use of type; endorsed by officer on front & passed censor; opened at back, peripheral tears to flap edge....

Unusual stampless British civilian WWI mail from Egypt: 20 AUG 1915 postmarked color picture postcard (Cairo Citadel) sent from CAIRO to Reverend at STURMINSTER NEWTON (Dorset); bearing no military unit cachets or "on active duty" endorsement & uncensored, simply endorsed "postage free" by the sender & mailed at the Egyptian civilian post office CAIRO-B unfranked and without sanction. At this time...