The Oriental Philatelic Association of London

11th F e b r u a r y 1 9 9 9

No. 196

OPAL

A POTTED HISTORY OF OPAL

The inaugural meeting of the Oriental Philatelic Society of London was held at Harmers on 8th November 1949. It appears that the 25 founding members were mainly collectors of Sudan and Egypt, but gradually others interested in neighbouring countries spread the geographical focus, until the Society evolved to its present form, covering the territory of the Ottoman Empire in its heyday, though stretching a point here and there.

Fifty years on, and from time to time, the Society's proper title gives rise to fierce debate. This stems from the word "Oriental" which has changed its meaning over the years from "east of the Mediterranean" (Concise Oxford Dictionary) to its modem meaning which takes in the whole sweep of Asia south and east of the Himalayas. As a result we get people applying to become members from Japan and S.E. Asia. However the current concensus is that the acronym "OPAL" is how we are best known, and so that is how we will stay.

Like most societies OPAL has had its ups and downs, the late 70's was a low point with the membership less than 100. The Society as it now exists stems from a well attended meeting held at "London 1980" and the appointment of a more vigorous committee led by Keith Tranmer as Secretary. The current definition of OPAL's aims were set out at that time, and a proper constitution was adopted

Current membership is 275, with half in the UK and the rest spread around the world. There are over 50 in North America where we liase with TOPS our US equivalent; European members number slightly less with a strong group in Germany where we are linked to the equivalent national society. There is a strong Turkish group and the remainder are scattered across the rest of the world from Chile to Iraq and Sweden to Australia.

The wide geographic spread has its disadvantages when it comes to meetings. Only one regular annual meeting is held; however major exhibitions are always an opportunity for a get-together; and in recent years there has been a strong move towards small local meetings in the UK, plus one in the USA and one in Paris. The main unifying thread in the Society is the Journal, currently edited by Jeff Ertughral who has established it as the leader in the field, and won both the 'Albert Harris' and the 'Francis Webb' trophies for philatelic literature.

Many of the Society's members have distinguished themselves in the world of philately. A quick scan through the Journal Index for the early days brings names such as John Coles, Bruce Conde, Terence Verschoyle, Major Stagg. Currently we have Howards Walker (who with John Coles won the Crawford medal for "Postal Cancellations of the Ottoman Empire"), Keith Tranmer ("Austrian Post Offices Abroad") and most recently John Phipps ("Stamps and Post Offices of Albania and Epirus"). Society members consistently win the highest awards at International and National Exhibitions.

Not least among our present distinguished members is John Dight - still a member fifty years after attending the founding of the Society and we are delighted that he has supplied the first frame of our display today.

LlST OF EXHIBITS

SUBJECT EXHIBITOR

Sudan Travelling Post Offices John Dight

Early Levant Mail to Europe Brian Asquith

Turkish Stamps - Toughra & Duioz types O.D.Cumming

Foreign Post Offices in Smyrna Michael Fulford

Tripoli di Barberia John Davies

Turkey Pot-pourri Keith Tranmer

Foreign Mails from Constantinople (1450 1815) Hans Smith

Mans Smith

Otto Hornung

Austrian Lloyd Steam Navigation Co.

Branch Offices of Istanbul,Turkey

Ottoman Mail Censorship - World War 1 John Carton

Ottoman Posts in Iraq Patrick Pearson

Turkish F.P.O's in Dardanelles & Gallipoli Keith Tranmer

Turkish Post in Palestine (1840 - 1918) Zvi Alexander

Turkish Airmails between the Wars Bill Robertson

Turkish Stamps (1914 - 1953) Mike Perrin

Austrian Post on Crete ( 1 8 5 8 - 1914) Hans Smith

Iraq - Occupation issues Alfred Khalastchy

Arab Government in Syria - 1920 issues Rod Unwin

Yugoslavia and Bosnia-Herzogovinia Keith Tranmer

Cyprus under the Ottoman Rule Christopher Cruttwell

Cilicia (1919-1921) Jack Cousins

Albania during World War One John Phipps

Sudan Norton Collier

FRAMES

I

2

3,4,5,6

7,8,9,10

11

12

13

14

15,16,17,18

19,20

21,22

23

24,25,26

27,28,29

30,31,32,33

34

35,36

37,38,39,40

41,42

43,44

45,46

47,48

49,50.51,52

SUDAN TRAVELLING POST OFFICES.

Rather than attempting to deal with all Sudan T.P.Os. in so few sheets, it was felt better to show some postal markings of just one route - the White Nile route.

The White Nile T.P.O. operated on a steamer running on the White Nile through the great plain of central Sudan from Khartoum to the far south' of the Sudan. The distance, from Khartoum to Juba, is 1090 miles, with a drop in water level of only 82 metres over that distance.

The T.P.O,. dealt with all postal matters both on board and at the postal stops. As with all Sudan T.P.Os, the postmarks gave the route only, with no mention of the direction of travel, so that the postal crew of, say, T.P.O. No. 1 worked for the whole return journey.

The steamer also carries a number of barges - often up to eight -for passengers and cargo, with the T.P.O. itself usually being located on the main steamer. There were four classes of passengers, with second class being reserved for the European servants of first class passengers; fourth class passengers were allowed to sleep on the deck of one of the barges.

The major impediment to navigation was, and still is, a vast swamp of floating, decaying, vegetation, which needs continuous navigation to keep the channels open, and extends for 400 miles along the Nile.. These swamps have been a continuous hazard, and, for example, Nero's expedition to discover the source of "Nilus" was lost in this swamp; known as the Sudd.

Stagg states that from 1944 the mail on the northbound journey was transferred to rail at Kosti in order to speed the mails. However, sheet 4 shows that such a transfer took place much earlier, in 1921. Following the transfer, the steamer continued on its journey, using different postmarks, one of which, the Kosti Geteina T.P.O. is shown on sheet 12 - the only example of this mark known.

KOSTI - GETKINA T.P.O

Following the transfer of mail from steamer to rail at Kosti, the steamer continued to Khartoum, using the marks KOSTI - KHARTOUM from 1944 to 1948, KHARTOUM - KOSTI/LOCAL SERVICE from 1949 to 1957 and finally the KOSTI - GETEINA nark in 1959.

S.S.G. type KOGl.

Diameter: 30 mms.

stagg type 278.

Reported dates of use:-31 AUG 59 only.

cover from Yanni Girgis, of Ed Dueim, to Khartoum, cancelled type KOGl dated 31 AUG 59.

Backstamp: KHARTOUM machine, Stagg type 85, 1 30 PM/ 2 SEP/ 1959.

LEVANT This exhibit sets out to show a selection of postal markings, rates and routes from the Levant to Europe from 1784 to 1846, starting with a forerunner from 1438.

Constantinople to Venice 4 April 1438

Photocopy of 1598 map (reduced)

1438 (4 April, arrived 14 May) EX. from Zuane Marexini to Lorenzo Dolfin in Venice, a fine long letter with arrival date noted in the address panel, with interesting contents :-"We are all in great fear here, being anxious lest the Turk should lay siege to this land. He has a great host by sea and land, and has made great buildings amongst the woods that are

around this place, and has made peace with the Emperor of Hungary. Our one comfort is that Venetians and Genoese who are in Adrianople write that it does not seem to be his intention to

come here...I pray God that it will turn out best for Christianity." Constantinople was conquered by the Turks in May 1453.

LEVANT Smyrna - Francomont, 2 April 1809

The Austrian Mail Route via Sophia to the Austrian border at Belgrade was in operation from 1700 onwards, mail being dealt with by a "postal agent" at the Austrian Embassy.

Note "d'autriche" single line origin marking, struck in France. 19 decimes to pay by the recipient.

Francomont, now in Belgium, was in the French Empire at this time.

Smyrna - Lyon 3 May 1826

"Turquie" and "AT" Austrian Transit marks

"AUTRICHE PAR

HUNINGUE" French entry

mark

Entire to Lyon via Austria, disinfected at Semlin (Now Zemum in Yugoslavia) " "NETTO DI FUORA E SPORCO DI DENTRO" - "Clean outside unclean inside".

34 decimes to pay by the recipient B/S Arrival Lyon 10 June 1826

T U R K E Y

Issues of Sultan Abdul Aziz Toughra and Duloz types

e stamps are of two kinds (a) for mail from places with a P.O. - a different colour for each value (b) for mail from other places - brown for all values

e distinction was not always observed in practice

sued 1 Jan. 1863 O.S.

Toughra type

withdrawn 31 Dec. 1864, (Old Style)

Produced in 3 operations: (1) Design lithographed in black, on white paper ) face of sheet then covered, by lithography, with a coloured surface, and (3) the Treasury, receiving the printed sheets, overprinted them between alternate rows with typographed rizontal control bands 6 mm. wide, coloured red except on the 5 piastres and the brown npaid' stamps, where they were blue.

There were 3 settings.

t setting 2 pi. & 5 pi. only: pelure paper: coloured band overlaps design, either at top

bottom. Only a few sheets were printed, in 1862. They were considered unsatisfactory cause of the overlap: issued only during a shortage of stamps in December 1863.

Designed by Sekekyanbashi Abdulfettah Effendi, Master of the Imperial Mint, a noted biographer. The arabesques, which differ for each value, are from the gates of the Alhambra Granada.

The wording in the crescent signifies SUBLIME OTTOMAN EMPIRE

The toughra reads ABDUL AZIZ KHAN BIN MAHMOUD , AL MUZAFFER DAIMA

(Abdul Aziz Khan, son of Kahmoud, the ever victorious)

T U R K E Y

2nd s e t t i n g

Pelure paper. Printed in sheets of 144 (12 x 12). By inverting even rows in the plate and increasing the space between rows where foot to foot, the bands (now always at foot) have been kept clear of the design; in even rows the bands are inverted in relation to the stamps.

20 paras black/yellow: foot to foot, space between, 61/2 mm.

2 piastres, black/blue, head to head, space 3 mm.

20 paras, 1, 2 &, 5 piastres

Layout of top 4 rows in sheet of 1 piastre, shewing the bands where stamps are foot to foot. When separated, the inscription on the bands is inverted in relation to stamps in the even rows.

T U R K E Y

2nd setting, contd.

Among the more marked colour shades are:

20 paras pale yellow, deep yellow, golden-yellow 1 piastre purple, slate, lilac, mauve, grey 2 " blue, deep blue, greenish blue 5 " rose, carmine

T U R K E Y

'Paid at destination' stamps

Mail arriving at a place where there was a P.O., if coming from a place without one, had to be paid for at destination, and was then franked, without penalty, with a brown adhesive.

All these adhesives were printed from the plates of the 'prepaid' set (2nd setting).

20 paras

1 piastre

5 piastres

All the above are from odd rows in the sheet, with upright inscriptions on the control band

The wording on the bands is Nazareti maliye devleti aliye (Ministry of Finance of the Sublime Government) repeated just over 5 times across the sheet.

2 p i a s t r e s

T U R K E Y

Even row 'paid at destination' stamps

0 paras

piastre

2 & 5 piastres

Inverted

band

FORGERIES of 20 paras (centre) S. 5 piastres (right): genuine 20 paras (left) for comparison.

Numerals misshapen, bands incorrect; the 3 'whiskers' at SE corner of toughra are too long;

fake cancellation on 20 paras.

Stamps without control band,

as 1 &, 5 pi . below, probably

filched by printing staff,

had no franking power. (The

1 pi. is 3rd setting).

T U R K E Y

3rd s e t t i n g (1864)

20 paras & 1 piastre only- Medium thickness paper: plate layout as for 2nd setting, but with dividing lines between stamps only where foot to foot

The difference between the pelure paper of the first 2 settings & the medium paper of the 3rd setting is obvious when stamps are viewed from the back.

A few stamps exist coloured yellow at the back in error

IMPERIAL OTTOMAN POST Two Letters to Damascus

6 Sep. 1S63 1 piastre, 2nd setting, blue band (postage payable at destination)

2 Aug. 1864 1 piastre, 3rd setting, redband (postage paid by sender)

Both letters have a pious invocation at top centre, above the address, and the talismanic figures 8642 at bottom centre.

At upper right is the destination sham (Damascus).

THE FOREIGN POST OFFICES IN SMYRNA

Foreign entrepreneurs were attracted to Turkey in the early part of the nineteenth century to develop trade between Turkey and the major European powers. Trade required communications and it was clear that the Ottoman government was completely unable to provide more than a basic internal postal service. Therefore certain major powers decided to provide a service for themselves. Because of their great influence they were able, whenever a Treaty of Commerce was concluded, to insist on a foreign national post office being opened. Most of the foreign post offices were established in Constantinople, especially if they were attached to the Embassies, and the Smyrna post offices were opened at later dates. The first one to be opened was the Austrian which was established around 1817. The French office was opened in 1835 after the war between Turkey and the Allies over the independence of Greece. The Greek government opened a postal agency operating from their Consulate in 1834 and the post office was set up in its own right in 1857 until 1881 when it was closed by the Turkish authorities. The Russian office opened in 1862 after a big effort to re-establish a merchant fleet after the Crimean war. It was run by the Russian Company for Shipping and Trade. The Egyptian office was established in 1865 and was run by the Khedivial Mail Line from the building of the Turkish post office. In 1881 it was merged into the British post office which had opened in 1872, closely followed by the Italians in 1873. Last in the field were the Germans in 1900. The Great War spelt the end of the line for the Italian and German post offices, whilst the rest of the foreign post offices were closed by the early 1920's with the onset of the National Movement in Turkey led by Mustapha Kemal.

BRITISH POST OFFICE

Parcel post label concerning the sending of a map to Liverpool Although surcharged stamps were introduced in 1884,

unsurcharged British stamps were still in use in Smyrna after that to simplify accounting procedures within

the steamship and railway companies involved in the transmission of these classes of mail.

EGYPTIAN POST OFFICE

The Egyptian Post Office was opened in Smyrna during 1865. The first handstamp was a single ring inscribed ' POSTE

VICE-REALI EGlZIANE SMIRNE' and the date in three lines. It is likely that the office itself was housed in the Turkish

Post Office building as the Khedevial Mail Line, a Turkish Company, carried the mail between Turkey and Egypt.

AUSTRIAN POST OFFICE

Opinions vary as to the opening date of the Austrian Post Office, Although there is general agreement that it was open by 1817.

There were two offices, the Main Government Post Office and a smaller Branch office operated by the Austrian Lloyd Shipping Agency.

The Main Post Office used both straight line and circular handstamps. The first one issued was a straight line SMIRNA without a date.

The earliest known use was in 1841.

SMIRNA

Letter to London despatched 29th September 1843. AT - Transit par L'Autriche - send through Austria.

It was disinfected at Semlin, crossed the Franco - German Border at Forbach on 23rd October and arrived in London, Where it was rated 1/6, on 25th October 1843 - 27 days

FRENCH POST OFFICE

Under the most favoured nation clause of a Treaty of Commerce concluded between France and Turkey in 1812 a French Post Office was added to those

of the other Powers already established in the Ottoman Empire. It was temporarily suspended on the outbreak of war between Turkey and the Allies

over the independence of Greece in 1827 and re-opened in 1835 when the office in Smyrna was established. The first handstamp was a double circle

25mm in diameter inscribed ' SMYRNE (TURQUIE)' with the date in three lines.

1838 Entire to Syra.

Disinfected by slitting.

1845 Entire to Marseille.

Disinfected by slittmg at Malta. Pacquebots de la Mediterranne handstamp.

RUSSIAN POST OFFICE

After the signing of the postal agreement with R.O.P.I.T. the Russian Authorities issued a large size 6 kopec stamp, which was used for a

couple of years. Then R.O.P.I.T. issued its own stamps which were in use until 1st May 1868 when the postal contract was renegotiated. At

this point the Russian postal authorities issued stamps with a large numeral in the centre and the words equivalent to Eastern

Correspondence around the numeral. 1,3,5 and 10 kopec values were issued. In 1875, due to a reduction in the letter rate to Russia the

10 kopec stamp was overprinted '8 ' and in 1879, when the letter rate was reduced yet again. There was another overprint this time '7'. There were several types of postmarks in use, the one illustrated is a single ring with SMYRNA in large thick letters and the date in

three lines. It was introduced around 1870.

1880 Registered letter to Alleppo,

The letter has a 10 kopec stamp overprinted with a '7' plus an unoverprinted 10 kopec stamp and also a 1 kopec stamp to make

the registered internal rate.

TRIPOLI DI BARBERIA

The Turkish Post Office in their viliyat of Tripoli di Barberia was opened in 1880 with a temporary undated Tripoli handstamp (Brandt type lX/150). This was replaced by Brandt type lXA/10, which again is in the Arabic script but using the word 'Garb' = 'West' plus a number 94. These handstamps did not comply with the Universal Postal Union Regulations concerning International Mail and as a result a bilingual double circular (Arabic/French) handstamp was introduced - which read in French "TRIPOLI DE BARBARIE". These were later replaced by "TRIPOLI (AFRIQUE)" or "TRIPOLI (D'AFRIQUE)"

The exhibit shows examples of the above handstamps and some of their usages on Postal Stationery and cards, including irregular usages and stamps being added for the correct rate. Some of the stamps show the Arabic letter 'B' overprint, indicating that they were sold at a discount. This exhibit covers the period prior to the Italo-Turkish War 1911-1912.

TRIPOLI DI BARBERIA

Stamp of Turkey, 1868

Tripoli Office (opened 1880)

Temporary Undated Handstamp

Turkish one piastra imperforate 1868 series, overprinted using the Arabic script 'Post of the Turkish Government', bisected for the 20 para internal letter rate. The handstamp is similar to Brandt type IX/150.

T U R K E Y P O T P O U R R I

This frame contains a selection of Turkish and Turkish related stamps and postal history to illustrate the diversity of just a few of the subjects that add to the richness of the philatelic world to which I was introduced by more enthusiastic members past and present and those non-members, Major Sandes M.C. and Sir Joseph Napier who were veterans of the Great War.

Liannos Local Post. In 1865 a firman was issued to a Greek merchant,Liannos,to establish a local postal service within the city and suburbs of Constantinople. It was to handle internal mails and the delivery of letters arriving from outside the area. Nine poet offices seem to have been opened and the service operated from December 1865 to March-April 1367 when owing to financial difficulties it was withdrawn. Some of his postmarks remained in use when the Government established a service. Page 3 is such an example.

The YEMEN from where very little mail was posted is represented by a cover opened out to show a bisected 20 para green as part of the 2pi 20para postage rate to Aden.

Dorset and Turkey are brought together and represented by a cover of 1916 posted at British F.P.O. W.l. in the Western Desert. This cover represents a complete service correspondence of 100 letters written by a Trooper of the Dorset Yeomanry between 1914- 1919. It contains a letter giving a vivid account of a full cavalry charge at a place called AGAGIA some 15 miles south of Sidi Barani. This soldier fought at Gallipoli and through the desert campaign to Aleppo in 1918. He was present at Gaza, the charge at Mughar Ridge which culminated in the fall of Jerusalem. A correspondence of hardships,close quarter combat,horses, and incidents which are now a part of history and which provide an eye witness account of the events which more than anything else brought about the demise of the Ottoman Empire.

The revival of Turkish fortunes was the War of Liberation under Kemal Ataturk and the removal of foreign domination of Turkish territory,and represented by a cover from a Turkish officer of Infantry.

Space is given to Dunsterforce,and the use of overprinted Turkish fiscals stamps and used for postage at Mosul, the 1910 French Commission in Tripoli

sorting out bounderies,British P.O.W.s in Turkey,the provisional Turkish postmark of GAZA used for one week before the fall of the town to General Allenby,and old Turkish postmarks which are the forerunners of countries which became independent.

Foreign mails from Constantinople 1450 - 1815

Byzantium has long been a by-word for intrigue and institutionalised treachery, but at the same time its legendary wealth made it a centre for trade between East and West for more than a millennium. Italian merchants - and the Italian Black Sea colonies - traded not only with Byzantium but, after its fall in 1453, with the Turkish successors to the Empire.

Trade bloomed under the Sultan Mohamed II, who wished to return Constantinople to its earlier grandeur, but eclipsed under his anti-Western successor Bajazet, never to be fully restored.

Venetian influence was predominant under Mohamed II and mail flowed to the West, either along the old Byzantine Imperial Highway or by sea. During this period the Venetian ambassador maintained a twice-monthly postal service probably overland via Sofia, Nis and Cattaro, then by sea to Venice.

Only at the end of the 16th century was there a resurgence in trade, Austria being granted a concession for diplomatic mail in 1616. This was reinforced by the Treaties of Carlowitz (1699) and Passarowitz (1718), from which latter date private letters began to appear in the diplomatic bag. By 1720, mail to destinations beyond Austria was being forwarded by official agent in Vienna (Palm Bros) and in 1747 Austria appointed an official postmaster at its embassy in Constantinople.

Austria with its control of old Imperial Highway via Belgrade (and of subsequent, alternative land routes added in 1784 and 1788) retained its supremacy in carrying the mail, its only real competitors - Venice and Naples - being at a disadvantage in having to rely at least partly on the slow and hazardous sea routes.

Mail was from the earliest days disinfected after crossing the Turkish frontier, mainly at Semlin, near Belgrade. The circular quarantine cachets and wax seals introduced by Austria becoming a distinctive feature of internation; I mails from the Ottoman Empire. Austria briefly introduced a hand-stamp CONSTAN/TINOPEL in 1787 but abandoned it in 1788 when a declaration of war forced the Austrians to leave Constantinople.

Austria attempted to arrange a continuation of the overland mail service through the French embassy in Constantinople but this failed (apart from one or two attempts) and the service was instead undertaken by the Neapolitans via Dubrovnik, with qualified success.

Austria's attempts to revive the mail route after 1790 proved slow and difficult, mainly due to the anarchy now prevailing in the Balkans. Increasingly embroiled in the revolutionary wars, Austria lost its hegemony of the Turkish mails to France when the puppet "Kingdom of Italy" acquired Austria's "Illyrian" provinces, and the French were able to run a successful mail service from 1811 to 1813 via Kostainica on the old Turkish border, again along the old Imperial Highway.

The Austrians returned in 1814, having learned a thing or two from the French on how to run an efficient mail service, and remained the dominant player in the Ottoman foreign postal scene for the next 100 years.

The French Pos t a t C o n s t a n t i n o p l e , 1812-1813

On France acquiring a common frontier with Turkey with i t s annexation of I s t r i a in 1811, a postal service was set up by the French Embassy in April 1812, to compete with the Austrian; a full PO replaced i t a month la ter

Invoice dated 22.4.1813 to Lyon via Lubiana and Milan

Merchant's letter of 19.5.1812 to Florence, arr. 25.6.

The A u s t r i a n Pos t a t C o n s t a n t i n o p l e

The Ambassador ' s pos t 1727-1737

Private mail was carried by the Austrian ambassador's grace and favour and forwarded in Vienna by Palm Bros

Letter dated Aleppo 9.10.1734 to Venice (no arrival date) via Constantinople (postage paid 8 kreutzer). Forwarded from Vienna 12.1.1735 by the firm of Palm Bros who handled the Embassy's 'through' mail. The letter bears a symbolic bird's feather, to indicate urgency, and was disinfected at Parakin (wax seal).

The private posts of the Austrian Lloyd Steam

Navigation Company, 1833-1914

Austria did well out of the Napoleonic wars. It gained not only extensive territories along the Adriatic but the rich trade pickings that went with them, culminating indirectly in the formation in 1832 of the "Austrian Lloyd" - an insurance and shipping intelligence "pool" which in turn set up the Steam Navigation Company as its "Second Division" a year later. As insurance business steadily declined, the shipping arm went from strength to strength by 1850 was already operating through over 100 shipping (and insurance) agencies in the Adriatic and Eastern Mediterranean.

The Lloyd's sleek merchant ships were fast and fairly reliable (arriving one day late on average), so that the company soon acquired a virtual monopoly of cargo handling in the area, despite high freight charges. But the ships were also coal-guzzlers and in addition to the commercially rewarding shipping agencies, the Lloyd was also forced to establish coaling stations at strategic ports along its routes. With admirable foresight, the company had included the object of carrying "port-to-port" mail in its Articles of Association of 1833. It also had legally to obtain the Austrian government's blessing to its Articles, which stood it and its subsequent mail services in good stead in future years. Although the Lloyd never received financial backing from the Austrian government, the tatter's diplomatic support was to prove invaluable; in fact, as a matter of policy, the Austrian consuls in the Ottoman Empire were appointed as Lloyd agents whenever possible and, conversely, Lloyd agents were appointed as Austrian vice-consuls.

The Lloyd developed its semi-private mail services gradually up to the mid-1850s by which time most of the viable agencies had been incorporated into the Austria extra-territorial postal system. Nonetheless, for political or commercial reasons, the Lloyd retained and, when circumstances required, occasionally exercised its own postal prerogative. It also operated major sorting offices at Constantinople, Corfu, Ruschuk and Syra (Greece).

In the Adriatic, the Lloyd ran a private postal service between Ancona (Papal States) and various Greek ports, under contract to the Papal authorities. In the Levant, the company's agencies carried their customers' shipping documents and otherwise handled mail in principle only when no consular postal services were available. Today's display is confined almost entirely to these semi-private, port-to-port posts, for which the agencies applied their oval company seals to the mail handled by them as evidence of payment of the Lloyd's postal charge. Early usage shown includes mail from Corfu and Piraeus, the latter illustrating two types of seal on one cover. Late usage includes mails from Santa Maura and Vathy. The Lloyd is also shown acting as a government postal agent variously at Aleppo, Cesme and Port Said. Finally, use is shown at Jerusalem, although not a port.

The company's Levant business ended with the outbreak of war in 1914. The Lloyd was itself ceded to Italy in 1919 in war reparations, when Austria lost its entire Adriatic seaboard, and became the (Italian) "Lloyd Triestino".

Ionian Islands

Corfu: Lloyd agency. 1837-1888 Postal sorting office from 1840

The Lloyd maintained a sorting office on Corfu, a British protectorate until 1864, but was prohibited from offering postal services. Exceptions nonetheless existed.

Entire letter 26.12.1857 to Trieste, arr 29.12, placed on a passing Lloyd vessel on the Alexandria-Trieste express route, consequently wrongly receiving the Alexandria arrival handstamp and charged 9kr. for Adriatic mail at Trieste. Earliest known use of the Lloyd agency's seal, two versions of which exist, on postal material from Corfu.

G r e e c e

A u s t r i a n L l o y d a g e n c y p o s t

P i r a e u s , 1 8 3 7 - 1 9 1 5

Although the Lloyd was s t r i c t l y p roh ib i t ed from providing a pos t a l s e rv i ce in Greece t h i s c l e a r l y did not extend to i t s own mail c a r r i e d p r i v a t e l y by messenger under i t s own s e a l . Closed with the Lloyd l e t t e r sea l in red wax s imi la r to i t s company cachet bu t with the name ' P i r e o ' in Gothic l e t t e r s .

Letter 8.3.1866 from the Lloyd Piraeus agency to Athens, arr the same day concerning discounts for goods carried by ship.

TURKEY

BRANCH OFFICES OF ISTANBUL

Istanbul has a special place in Turkish history. At the time of the Ottoman Empire it was the political, economic and cultural centre, and it has retained most of its importance. It was also the postal centre, and duo to its size more and more new post offices were opened. They used hundreds of various postmarks. In view of their huge number this exhibit is mainly concentrating on the postal history of the branch offices, the ones with their own name.

Special attention is paid to the postal rates valid at various times, to their explanation and also to the movement, routes, timing and circumstances of mail times. The exhibit starts with samples of some shipping lines operating in Istanbul in early times and continues with the first Private Post of Liannos - 1865/67. It continues with a recently found unknown handstamp of Boyacikoy on a newspaper. Then the Government City Post, which started in 1870 and its four periods following Liannos, as described by A. Passer. Then follows a variety of branch offices in alphabetical order, irrespective of where they were in Greater Istanbul, whether on the European or Asian side of the Bosphorus, during the Ottoman Empire.

All through the exhibit the aim is to show covers, postcards and other postal material with special meaning and importance, like unusual rates, wrong rates, mistakes in handstamps, late posting, censorship. Special markings and handstamps etc. Material is shown complete, i.e. no cut-outs. Just covers, postal stationery, postcards and some other postal material. (n.b. CW means Coles Walker handbook)

Turkey LIANNOS PRIVATE POST

G a l a t a Pera

Registered Smyrna-Istanbul 6/4/1866, arr. 26/3 = 8/4. Endorsed top left "Otto-man postage to be paid by addressee". Red "Express" probably applied by Liannnos agent Smyrna. Intaglio Postahaneyi Izmir 1278 (Post Office Smyrna 1862). Handed to Liannos in 1st. No stamps, but '-/stamp 1/1 Liannos charge for local delivery h/stamps Galata & Fara, both 5= evening. Oist. 93 hrs rate 2-3-1 Lian. = 7 Kur.

Turkey LIANNOS

B o j a c i Kioy

Official daily "Ruzname-i Ceridei Havadis" 2/5/1866. Newly found h/stamp BOJACI KIOYI M (morn.), Bojaci K8y suburb on Bosporus north of Tarabya. So far 5 known

Turkey Galata

City Post, 2nd period, beginning 1870-6/1873, stamps no overprint. Letter from Salonica to Istanbul 17/8/1871. Front handstamp Selanik 81 (Salonica 1865) CW3. Sea rate 1 Kurus - yellow stamp affixed in Salonica, but cancel. Galata 81 CW2. In Istanbul 1 K. postage due affixed &. canc. octagonal Galata CW7 for local de­livery. Also Liannos type Bachtche Capussi 23/8/1871, arrival date. Ex Passer.

Turkey Edi rne Kapu

To Switzerland. Violet h/stamp Edirne Kapu Posta Subesi (Adrianople Gate Branch Office). Dep. Const.-Galata 24/12/1893. On back Istanbul-Mustafa Pasha TPO 25th 4 Locarno arr. 29/12. Double rate 30 gr. 2 Kurup. One known so far ex A. Oassar

TURKEY OTTOMAN MAIL CENSORSHIP

BACKGROUND

Even before the entry of the Ottoman Empire into World War I on the 5th

November 1914, general mobilization took place at the end of the summer.

The Government forced foreign post offices to close and prohibited

public notices in non-Turkish script.

THE ORGANISATION OF POSTAL CENSORSHIP

From November 1914, censorship at the centre points of the mall service

was placed under the control of the German military. For the remaining

areas of the Ottoman Empire, domestic censorship was carried out by

trustworthy officials.

In February 1916, censoring reverted to the Turkish military, who set

up Censorship Central Istanbul and special censorship commissions

throughout the Empire. These central offices, consisting of linguists

and trustworthy personnel, also controlled units in the outlying post

offices.

In 1917, after Germany/Turkey conquered Rumania, a censorship office was

opened in Bucharest.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Garton, John P.. "Censorship Harks on Foreign Kail Passing Through

Istanbul During World War I". OPAL Journal, Numbers 163 and 178.

Garton, John P.. "Postal Censorship of Mail by Turkey During World War

1". OPAL Journal, Numbers 179 and 183.

Steichele, Anton. "Ottoman Hail Censorship". OPAL Journal, Number 150.

Turkey Ottoman Mail Censorship

Postal Censorship in Daily Practice

All envelopes, even registered letter envelopes, had to be left unsealed. After censorship, the censor was required to seal the back flap. Occasionally, however, this was not done, which in the case of registered letters, was contrary to postal regulations.

This registered letter sent from Turkey to Berne, Switzerland, was found on receipt in Zurich to be unsealed. The omission was noted by the application of a violet catchet which translates IT HAS BEEN RECEIVED OPENED; ZURICH LETTER DESPATCH.

Turkey Ottoman Mall Censorship

al Censorship in Daily Practice

object of military censorship was to ensure that Information was not losed to the enemy. Correspondance harmful to the war effort was er retained or returned to sender.

This postcard to Switzerland was retained by the Turkish censor. It was released for posting In May 1919 by the British. A red cachet was applied: whose text reads DETAINED; BY TURKISH CENSORSHIP.

This registered letter from Smyrne addressed to Holland, has been returned by the censor to the addressee. A black cachet was applied whose text translates RETURNED.

Turkey Ottoman Mail Censorship

Postal Censorship in Daily Practice

Mall to foreign countries had to be transferred in all cases to the supervisory office for disposition. Mall posted in Turkey was forwarded unsealed to Constantinople, where it underwent examination. This practice was applied even if the city of posting had a military censorship unit as below for Smyrne

This letter has passed through both British and Turkish censors because at the time of posting, the United States had not joined the war.

OPENED BY

The cachet was used o transit mail en route neutral countries by British authorities a not released until af the end of hostilitie

IRAQ - THE OTTOMAN POSTS

Iraq, the Ottoman posts including Turkish military posts. Following the establishment of the Ottoman postal service in 1840, offices were opened in Mosul and Bagdad in 1842. To start with negative seals were used and after the issue of the Duloz stamps in 1865 these were provided to the offices in Iraq.

Shown is a range of negative and other obliterations used at offices in Iraq. Also examples of the Bagdad bisects of 1889 and 1892, and other unofficial bisects. Some of the markings are not fully recorded by Byandir or Coles and Walker.

The military letters include censor markings, mail from Prisoners of War, and from the Ottoman FPO 45 with the location in manuscript.

OTTOMAN POSTAL SERVICE - TURKISH FIELD POST OFFICE 45

The Turkish forces operated their own Field Post Offices but these are very scarce. FPO 45 was with the 45 Division of the Turkish XIII Army Corps which in April 1916 was at Kut the other divisions being split between the Turkish positions on the left and right bank of the Tigris below Kut.

29 June l916 From FPO 45 at Kut ul Amara with the FPO number inserted in blue crayon. A second strike has the date inserted, also in blue crayon; this may have been applied by the Censor as there is no other Turkish censor marking on the cover. With all Turkish arrival datestamp of Istanbul in blue on the reverse.

TURKISH POST IN PALESTINE- 1840-1918

The first Post Offices opened in Palestine in 1865. Prior to that time, all mail from Palestine was prepaid, and handled by the Beyrouth Post Office, which opened in 1845. Beyrouth was responsible for providing postal communications to Jerusalem and to the relay stations en route to Beyrouth i.e. Jaffa, Haifa, Acre, Sour (Tyre ) and Salda. This courier service, by horse riders, operated once a week. The couriers were employed by private lease holders. The courier collected the letters and noted in the upper left comer of the cover, the name of the town, the weight of the letter in Dirhems ( 1 Dirhem equals approximately 3 grams) and below it the postal charge. This charge was based on the weight and on the distance to Beyrouth computed by the number of travel hours. When the name of the town is missing, it may be deduced from its distance from Beyrouth. When stamps became available in Beyrouth, from 1863 onwards, such letters were franked and cancelled on arrival in Beyrouth. There arc approximately fifteen letters of both categories known. Some of them are shown in frame 1, including a 1868 incoming letter to Jaffa. The earliest recorded postal letters from Jerusalem and from Jaffa are displayed in the exhibit.

Frames 1 and 2 - The first postmarks of Palestine were of the Box type and the Seal type. These seals were inscribed with the name of the town and with either 'Posta Ve Telegraph' or 'Posta Hanesi' (Post Office), or 'Posta Shubesi' (Branch P.O.) or 'Telegraph' only. They all appear to have been used indescriminately on letters, telegrams and documents. However, only one type of a Seal was in use at any particular Post Office at any one time. The Seals were, probably, primarily intended for official use of the Post Office and the Postmaster. This hypothesis may explain the fact that to this day, a hundred or more yeas later, unknown seals are still being discovered. Some such discoveries have been made due to the recent opening of old Turkish archives. Previous unknown Seals of Acre, Beni Saab, Bireh, Haifa, Jaffa, Jenin, Ramleh and Shefa Amer are shown in the exhibit.

Frame 3 - Turkish Field Post Offices in the Palestine Campaign. Very few such items survived and several of the F.P.O's. exhibited here are the only known examples. Registered cover of F.P.O. 46 is the only recorded example of such Military mail from Palestine (Ex Steichele). The Turkish army used two different types of F.P.O. - 'Sahra Postasi' postmarks. A negative seal type and an all Arabic postmark with the dates of the Turkish calendar. The Field Post Offices were attached to various Military Formations and moved with them. Therefore it is important to know a Unit's location at a particular dale, in order to establish where the postmark was applied. As this information is not readily available, and some of it is still considered secret by the Turkish authorities, almost every item requires research to establish its provenance.

A C R E

20.4.1871 ACRE to JAFFA.

Letter correctly franked 1 1/2 Piasters Surface m a i l , short distance, single letter rate. Vertical str ip o f

three 20 para Postage Due stamps issue o f 1869 - SG 17. Cancel led by 3 Doub le Box A C R E (St.

01/01) Postmarks One of 6 recorded examples. Muentz Cert, at back.

ACRE 16.2.1866 & 24.9.1869 ACRE to BEYROUTH.

upper E.L. from ST. JEAN D'ACRE carries a 1 piaster postage due stamp, with Ms. notation on the right 'BEIRUT', postmarked in blue in BEYROUTH on arrival. 'Henry Mazzinghi, Acre' sender's cachet Lower Entire dated in 1869 bears postage due 20 paras and 1 piaster . cancelled in black on arrival. The Post Office in ACRE was opened on 11.6.1866, but the ACRE postmark is not known used prior to 1868. Ex, Sacher.

GAZA

Seal: GAZA POSTA SHUBESI Dated 1287 SAZA BRANCH P.O. Dated 1S71

U.P.U rate of 20 para Irrespective of destination.

U.P.U. rate 20 para. 27.1.1982 GAZA to Isle of Wight, routed through ALEXANDRIA to catch the P.O. boat.

It is possible that the date on the seal '1871' indicates the opening date of the GAZA Post Office.

F.P.O. 92 - NAZARETH

10.2,1918 F.P.O. 92 serving the Headquarters of YILDYRYM (Thunderbolt) Command in NAZARETH addressed to DERSAADET (ISTANBUL).

The YILDYRYM (Thunderbolt) ARMY Group Command was created on 20.7.1917 to take command of the combined TURKISH. GRMAN & AUSTRIAN Forces on the PALESTINE Front The writer a TURKISH officer had to use stamps as officers were not exempted from postage. Unusual use of GERMAN Stationery by the TURKISH Troops. ISTANBUL censorship cachet applied on arrival. Less than 5 examples of FP.O. 92 have been recorded.

TURKISH AIRMAIL BETWEEN THE WARS

The Turks, and before them the peoples of the Ottoman Empire, have long been interested in flight. As far back as 1632 AD, in the reign of Sultan Murad IV, Hazarfen Ahmet Celebi flew his manned glider from the top of the Galata Tower in Constantinople across the Golden Horn for a distance of nearly three kilometres. This feat was witnessed by the Sultan his court and most of the citizens of the city.

The first modern flight took place in 1909, but little mail was carried in Turkey until the outbreak of WWI, and even then only military mail.

After the war the French were the first to pick up the torch of air mail in 1919, followed by the Germans in 1924 and the Italians in 1926. The first air mail flights by a Turkish carrier were in 1934 In the early twenties European countries with empires in the East had plans to set up air links overland through Turkey and Persia. But the swift development of aircraft allowing longer range and greater dependability allowed long flights over water, and within a few years the overland route was sidelined. Istanbul faded to became the last stop of trans-European flights, and Athens became the hub of Eastern Mediterranean flights which opened up the east.

This short display shows significant flown covers carried by airlines of each of the countries involved: The French military in 1919 then CFRNA (later CIDNA and later Air France) from 1923; The German Junkers company in 1924 and later Lufthansa from 1929; the Italian Aero Espresso line from 1926; and lastly internal services by the Turkish Hava Yollari from 1934.

The first regular international air mail service from Turkey was organised by the French Army between Constantinople and Bucharest to fill in for the equivalent rail service which was not operating. Civilian mail was carried by military planes twice weekly from 10 July 1919 until 30 October the same year. Normally mail was handed in to the French Military Post Office and cancelled by the TRESOR ET POSTES • 506 * date stamp, given the rectangular ARMEES ALLIEES EN ORIENT / POSTE AERIENNE hand stamp

Mail was first carried internally by a Turkish Airline, Hava Yollari, in 1934 when a regular service was established between Istanbul, Eskisehir and Ankara. The first flight on 15.8.1934 coincided with the issue of the first set of Turkish air mail stamps

STAMPS OF THE TURKISH REPUBLIC

1923-1953

Following the evacuation of all foreign troops in 1922 and the revised determination of Turkey's frontiers by the Treaty of Lausanne in Julyl923, the Republic was established on 28* October of that year with Mustafa Kemal as its first President.

The stamp issues over the next thirty years clearly illustrate the enormous changes in all aspects of Turkish life - economic, social, military and political - which ensued from the final break-up of a vast empire ruled by Sultan and Caliph to the establishment of a modem secular state.

The role played by Kemal Attaturk in achieving such fundamental changes was immense and his portrait continues to appear on Turkish stamps to this day. His personal insistence on the use of the Latin alphabet in place of Arabic script ( sheet 19), his role in emancipating women (sheets 13-14) and his military and political achievements (sheets 9,15 and 21) laid the foundations on which the Republic has steadily developed ever since. Turkey's membership of the U.N. and N.A.T.O. and her participation in the Korean War (sheet 47) toward the end of this period of study are indicative of how much had changed in the course of a single generation.

Philatelically the period saw a conservative programme of stamp issues, with use made of printers in Switzerland, Austria, Italy and the U.K. in addition to domestic printing houses in Istanbul and Ankara. Apart from the first set (1923) there are few of the perforation varieties which characterised so many of the Ottoman issues and the stamps are generally well designed and well produced.

The Austrian post on Crete 1858-1914

Crete is perhaps best remembered today (if at all) as the scene of Britain's disastrous attempt to defend it against German invasion in 1942. Yet, from the earliest times it was a centre of trade and civilisation, even during the 'dead' centuries of Turkish occupation. By the early years of the 19th century, its three main ports - Canea, Candia and Rethymno - were host to more shipping companies than any other island in the Eastern Mediterranean.

It is hardly surprising therefore that the Austrian Lloyd should have sought to establish a toehold on the island soon after the company's formation in 1832. It was operating a postal service from Canea by 1837 and it subsequently opened offices in Candia and Rethymno in 1858.

At Canea it initially 'cancelled' mail (always prepaid) with its oval company seal, with the town name at its centre in Gothic characters. A standard straight-line Italic dated handstamp was introduced in 1845 and was used for many years, on paid and unpaid mail and subsequently as a canceller. In the meantime, the Lloyd briefly used its later seal - with the town name in Roman letters on a 'sunburst' - on prepaid mail to other ports (fig.l). In 1891 the Italic canceller was at last replaced with a ring canceller of a style peculiar to Canea, reading (in Italian) 'Imp. and Royal Postal Despatch - CANEA' plus date (fig.2). A succession of standard Levant cancellers followed from around 1900.

Candia, too, briefly used its oval sunburst-type seal as a letter handstamp (1858-1860s), but almost immediately (from 1859) began to use the standard Levant ring cancellers. The office had its moment of glory in 1897-99 when the Turks were expelled from the island by an international expeditionary force (British-French-Russian-Italian-Austrian) and Candia was assigned to the British contingent. There being no British post office, the Austrian office organised the military posts back to the UK (fig.3) and also ran a successful local post for the British army, subsequently developed by the Greeks.

The history of Rethymno mirrors that of Candia, except that its 1897 occupiers were Russian, who used their own post office but franked letters to other parts of the island with Austrian stamps.

Crete had the only Austrian Levant postal service that remained under full Lloyd control from start to finish, probably to avoid diplomatic problems when the Island voted to join Greece in 1899, the offices closing in December 1914 when the Island was fully annexed to Greece.

The A u s t r i a n p o s t on C r e t e

R e t h y m n o , 1 8 5 8 - 1 9 1 4

Ci rcu la r cance l l e r

RETTIMO/day+month

1858-1875

Posted 12.10.1868 arr. Syra (Greek P.O.) 14.10.68

20 lepta postage was applied at Syra as Austria had no arrange ment with Greece for the direct transmission of Levant mails.

The Austrian post on Crete

The British local post in Candia 1898-1899

HERAKLEION

On closure of the Turkish post offices in Crete in 1898, the British forces in Candia organized a local postal service. This was operated by the Austrian Lloyd shipping agency which used a 20pa local stamp.

Cover 1899 at the 40para double rate to St Miro, cancelled Herakleion

The Austrian post on Crete

The British local post in Candia 1898-1899

HERAKLEION

On closure of the Turkish post offices in Crete in 1898, the British forces in Candia organized a local postal service. This was operated by the Austrian Lloyd shipping agency which used a 20pa local stamp.

Cover 1899 at the 40para double rate to St Miro, cancelled Herakleion

IRAQ-OCUPATION ISSUES

After Bahgdad was occupied on 11th March 1917, all post offices were searched for any Turkish stamps that may have been left behind. In their retreat the Turks managed to take with them or destroy all the stamps from the major post offices. However, by means of a thorough search of the sub-post offices and the purchase of stamps that remained in the hands of merchants, the civil administration was finally enabled to hand over to the Deputy Director of Posts, Mesopotamia Expeditionary Force some 14580 specimens of various current and obsolete Turkish stamps.

Owing to the various types and dimensions of the stamps collected, it was not possible to make any one hand or machine stamp which would suffice for overprinting all sizes. These were therefore laboriously overprinted by hand BAGHDAD IN BRITISH OCCUPATION' in four separate operations. Some of the stamps needed a fifth operation to obliterate the crescent containing the inscription 'Tax for the relief of the children of martyrs' by the use of a rubber stamp cut locally. 25 different specimens in total were issued ranging in quantity from 59 copies to 1339 copies per specimen. Multiples of this issue are very scarce. This display contains most of the stamps issued with multiples and usage on covers.

A year later another issue was made overprinted 'IRAQ IN BRITISH OCCUPATION' Bradbury Wilkinson printed the original Turkish stamps of 1914 and as they held the original plates, they were asked to make a special printing for Iraq additionally over­printed 'IRAQ IN BRITISH OCCUPATION' and surcharged with values in Indian currencies. Shown in the display is a set of die proofs and all the major varieties.

In 1919 a special issue was made for the Vilayet of Mosul as its future was not yet decided. In order not to anger the French, the British made this a separate issue so that stamps overprinted 'IRAQ IN BRITISH OCCUPATION' would not be used in Mosul. The issue consisted of six varieties of obsolete Turkish revenue stamps locally overprinted 'POSTAGE, I.E F D' and values in Indian currency. The display shows a set handstamped SPECIMEN plus all the major varieties.

Baghdad

1st September 1917

2 annas on 1 piastre

820 copies overprinted

Registered cover from Baghdad to Zurich, Switzerland.- The front bears a Baghdad registration label and two Baghdad provisionals totalling 4 annas. The reverse bears a i anna India I.E.F. stamp and a Zurich arrival c.d.s. dated 12/11/17. The total franking of 41/2 annas paid the foreign letter rate of 21/2 annas plus 2 annas for registration.

Baghdad

1st September 1917

1 anna on 20 paras

1048 copies overprinted

Registered cover from a Sergeant in the 41st Field Ambulance to London, bearing two 1 anna stamps plus one 2 annas stamp,; each tied, by Baghdad c.d.s. with Baghdad registration label and a red circular censor handstamp on the right. The reverse of the cover bears a red London arrival c.d.s. dated 8 November 1917 and a black oval Tooting aarival postmark with the same date.

ARAB G O V E R N M E N T I N S Y R I A . 1 9 2 O I S S U E S

R o d U n w i n

CHRONOLOGY

1st Oct 1318 Turks lose Damascus. Arab Government under Emir Faisal established. Simultaneously a Military Administration known as Occupied Enemy Territory Administration (OETA) East was established under General Allenby, EEF stamps in use.

Jan 1920, 1st provisional stamp issue (unlikely to precede 1st week in Jan)

Mar 1920, 2nd provisional and 1st definitive issue.

8 Mar 1920, General Syrian Council proclaim Faisal King, 5m definitive stamp overprinted to commemorate the event.

25 Apr 19Z0, mandate awarded to France, 25 July French occupy Damascus, Faisal dethroned. Continuing use of Arab Government stamps.

1st Provisional Issue 2nd Provisional Issue 1st Definitive Issue

Handstamped Arab Govt. 25 piastre. SG KZ4. It is thought less than 30 of K24 were issued.

Typographed Arab Govt of Syria* in triangle. 3/10 pi on 5 pa, SG K84.

This first printing of the 5m stamp is finely printed, has wide margins and clear perforations. Centre design reads Arab Govt*. SG K97.

YUGOSLAVIA

The tenth anniversary of the foundation of the Oriental Association of London was also marked by a display by members to the Royal Philatelic Society London. Three of the members were distinguished philatelists - Sir William Byam FRPSL displaying Egypt, Dr F.Parsons FRPSL displaying Balkans and Major Stagg FRPSL displaying Sudan.

For this fiftieth anniversary display some of the original sheets of Yugoslavia shown by Dr Parsons are presented again.

BOSNIA - HERZEGOVINIA

A display which shows examples of Turkish covers used in this territory before the Treaty of Berlin 1878 and the occupation of same by Austria- Hungary under the terms of that Treaty.

Examples are also shown of Feldpost covers from the Austro-Hungarian army during this short war lasting a matter of weeks, but surprising them at the opposition to their occupation. The Sanjak of Novi Pazar, although occupied, remained as part of the Ottoman Empire and when Bosnia was annexed in 1908, Austrian troops were withdrawn from the Novi Pazar, but during their occupation the troops enjoyed a postage free concession as on active service outside Austro - Hungarian territory.

CYPRUS UNDER OTTOMAN RULE

Cyprus became part of the Ottoman Empire in 1571 after a prolonged siege of Famagusta, which had been a Venetian possession. The earliest letters from Cyprus after the occupation, are from the Corsini Correspondence unearthed by Robson Lowe. There were 91 letters from Cyprus. Shown are one routed by Smyrna, a Genoese forwarding agents endorsement and one from Tripoli in Syria sent via Cyprus. From 1755 there is a local letter to the Bey of Nicosia in Greek and other letters in Arabic and Armenian. A letter from the Archbishop of Nicosia reflects the Ottoman attitude of 'laisser faire'. Letters bearing Consular seals come from the Sardinian, Greek and English consuls.

The Austrian Lloyd Post Office, opened in 1845, is represented by a letter sent before the office opened, The Lloyd Agency mark, a registered letter and one to Smyrna. In 1861, the Austrians were forced out of Italy and their large stock of stamps was used in the Levant offices. Two main cancellations were used - a straight line LARNACA with the day and the month in Italian and a circular handstamp reading LARNACCA DI CIPRO - neither showing the year. Covers are rare. In 1867 the Franz Josef issue with values in soldi appeared and all values are shown with examples on cover.

The Ottomans at last opened an office at Nicosia in 1871. Its sales averaged £14 a year, so material from it is naturally rare. One outgoing cover (sadly mutilated) and two incoming covers are shown. The latter are possibly the only ones known.

L A R N A C A

L A R N A C A

CILICIA

(1919-1921)

The area of Turkey designated Cilicia, comprising the Sandjaks of Adana, Mersina, Tarsus, Djebel Bereht and Kozan, together with the Vilayet of Cas de Djihan, was, by a special clause of the Armistice with Turkey in l918, constituted the Northern Zone of the Occupied Enemy Territory Administration under the control of the French Government.

Turkish postage stamps overprinted with the name of the territory in French were first issued on March 1st 1919 in accordance with the following declaration made by the 'Administrateur en Chef - Colonel Bremond. The original document is in the Musee de la Poste, Paris.

C I L I C I A

Posted in Tarsous on 20 May 1919. noted in arable at top of envelope.

Destination - America

Franked with Type 1 - 2 0 paras and Type 2 - 1 piastre.

Unusual censor mark. Replaced by the much more commonly seen four line, unbordered, rubber stamp.

On reverse: Stamboul/Depart c.d.s. dated 26 May 1919 and machine Stamboul cancellation of same date.

- C I L I C I A

Registered letter to Cairo. Posted Mersina 25 Hay 1919-Opened and re-sealed by Censor on arrival in Egypt.

Postal Stationery envelope with 20 para embossed stamp overprinted with Type 3 together with additional stamps from Types 1, 2 & 5.

The row of four Type 5 has the following varieties :-

Y - T i l ' and d r o p p e d f u l l s t o p .

ALBANIA DURING WORLD WAR ONE

The outbreak of the first World War in the summer of 1914 had devastating consequences for Albania To counter the expansionist aims of its neighbours, victorious against the Ottoman Empire in the Balkan War of 1912, this new country had declared its independence in the November of that year. To make this effective needed the help of the Great Powers, who proceeded to settle the boundaries of the new country and its constitutional arrangements, including the nomination of its prince. The prince arrived in March 1914, but things went badly for him and his government. Unfortunately not all the Albanians approved of these arrangements, especially the imposition of a Christian prince on a country where Muslims were in a majority and had been rulers under the Turks. The south was occupied by Greek backed separatists. The international situation deteriorated. The Great Powers lost interest in Albania and denied the prince the increased support he needed. When the war broke out, the belligerents withdrew. The prince left at the beginning of September, by which time the area in which his authority was effective had shrunk to a few of the larger towns on or near the coast.

By the end of 1914 the situation had stabilised to some extent. Greece and Italy were not then belligerents and were able to take advantage of the situation. With the approval of the Great Powers, Greece occupied southern Albania under the name Northern Epirus. Italy landed an occupation force at Vlore, which was under the control of Muslims who had moved in when the prince left. At Shkoder in the north, a vestige of the constitutional arrangements survived in the form of a committee of local notables. The centre, including Durres, Tirane and Elbasan was taken over as Central Albania by Essad Pasha, at the time the "strong man" of Albania, enjoying Italian and Serbian support.

Italy entered the war in May 1915 on the same side as Montenegro and Serbia, who were under increasing pressure from Austro-Hungarian forces to their north. This led to the movement of Montenegrin and Serbian armies into Albania, where the Italian presence was extended northwards to Durres to meet them. The local administration at Shkoder was ended by the Montenegrin occupation, but Essad Pasha's regime in Central Albania was not superseded by the occupiers.

At the beginning of 1916 the situation changed. The Austro-Hungarian army advanced into Albania and caused the Montenegrins and Serbs to be evacuated by sea. Essad Pasha's regime came to an end. The Italians had to leave Durres but extended their occupation in the south by dispossessing some of the Greeks and for a time occupying an adjoining part of Greece. A front was established between the Austro-Hungarian and Italian armies which left the latter in occupation of the south-western quarter of Albania.

At Korce in the south-east, at the end of 1916, French troops from Thessaloniki took over from the Greeks. An Albanian civilian regime was established. Before long it had to be dissolved because of Italian objections.

During the last year of the war, Albania remained subject to the military occupation of Austria-Hungary in the north and centre and to the military occupations of France and Italy in the south.

This display is intended to illustrate the changing war-time situation in Albania by showing specimens of material relating to the postal services provided then by:

The local Albanian administrations at Vlore and Shkoder Essad Pasha's Central Albania regime The Italian civil and military posts The Greek administration of Northern Epirus The French inspired Albanian republic of Korce The Austro-Hungarian civil and military posts.

Albania and Epirus Shkoder 1914/15

The flag hoisting stamp issue

The only issue of stamps made by the local regime at Shkoder was to celebrate the first anniversary of the hoisting of the Albanian flag over the citadel there on 19.3.1914. All six values of the Skanderbeg series with Turkish currency values were handstamped with the date of the commemorated event and an appropriate inscription.

Overprinting in red was done for all values. The 5 paras value was also overprinted in black.

Examples of inverted overprints

Black overprints on higher values. The height of these overprints is 9 mm instead of 9.5 mm. and there are differences in the shapes of Utters. Although they bear the guarantee mark of a respected Parisian dealer, they seem to be forgeries.

Albania and Epirus The second Greek occupation of north Epirus 1914-16

Examples of the use of the overprinted stamps at various post-offices

Delvine

The caver of a registered letter sent from Delvine on 10.12.1915 to Athens where it arrived on 20.12.1915 after passing through Sarande on 17.12.1915. The stamp used on this cover, the 40 lepta value of the engraved series of 1911, is abnormal as the normally encountered overprinted 40 lepta value is the lithographed version of 1913. Accompanying it is a label sold to raise funds for the Red Cross.

THE PHILATELY OF THE SUDAN - NORTON COLLIER. The Sudan did not have its own stamps until 1897, when Sir Herbert Kitchener,

leading a force to recapture the Sudan from the Mahdi's hordes, decided to have the current issue of Egyptian stamps overprinted SOUDAN in French & Arabic, as a stop-gap measure while the Sudan's own stamps were being prepared. Designed by Capt. E..A. Stanton, who Kitchener had noticed illustrating maps with desert scenes, the 'Camel Postman' design was to last for over 50 years.

One of the earliest recorded items of Sudan postal history is a stampLess entire of 1847. Up until 1987, during the various campaigns, mail was either franked with the stamps of the country of the writer or was stamPLess 'On Active Service', often with the recipient paying the postage. After 1897, 'Camel' stamps were widely collected. Postal stationery followed; 'Camel' stamps were overprinted for 'Official' use, firstly punctured •s.G.' and then overprinted O.S.G.S: •ARMY oFFicIAL.; 'ARMY Service, finally •s.g.' There are many varieties of the puncturing and earlier overprintings.

In 1899, the Sudan became the first country to issue pictorial postage due stamps, the 'Gunboat' series. In 1931, Air Mail opened up Africa and the Sudan firstly overprinted three current 'camel' stamps AIR MAIL, then in September, t93 t issued the 'Gordon Statue' Air Mail stamps. A fiftieth Anniversary of the Death of General Gordon set followed in 1935, together with surcharges on the Air Mail set. In 1948, the fourth issue of the 'Camel' stamps took place: these were replaced in 1951 by the first permanent issue to have designs other than 'Camel Postman' apart from the 50pi. value. The Jubilee of the 'Camel Postman' was celebrated in 1948, together with the Opening of the Legislative Assembly, prior to Self Government which took place in 1954, although stamps dated 1953 were printed & later destroyed some mint stamps 'escaped' onto the philatelic market.

The country being so vast, 1,000,000 sq. miles, an important feature is the development of the Travelling Post Offices, by both rail & river, providing postal facilities to outlying regions. With few exceptions they are true TPOs, halting at intermediate stations and villages to conduct postal business.

Finally, Sudan & wreck collectors have long been baffled by the cachet 'weT THROUGH coLLisION ON THE Mir, found on covers emanating from the 1st British Brigade. 16 are known, but all attempts to identify the date 4 place of the incident have failed.

SUDAN PRE SUDAN STAMP ENTIRE.

A stampless entire from Cheroton (Khartoum), 31 March, 1846. to Stuttgart, readresssed to Swabngern. The entire bears 'franco frontieres' top left. This entire probablytravelled to Alexandria by hand on foot or by camel, where it was put in the Austrian Post Offce where it recieved the double /ine, straight line handstamp ALEXANDRIEN 12 MAI, and the 'squiggle' which means 14 Austrlan kreutzers. This took it as far as Trieste, tram there it was charged 12 kreutzers to Stuttgart, this was then crossed out and 22 German kreuzers, in red, P.O. was written on to take it to its readdressed destination, where the

addressee paid.

The entire addressed to Count Niepperg and written in German, concerns a report an an expedition up the Nile. regarding ther<M»<*« " "

Wildlife. its probable route was: Khartoum to Alexandria by hand on foot or camel or a combination of both; then by /Venoi French packet boat to Marseille (there does not seem to be any charge for this service), to Paris and on to Trieste, thence to Stuttgart

before being readdressed.