THE POSTMARKS OF THE NETHERLANDS 1676 – 1915 BY O.M. VELLINGA REFERENDARY AT THE GOVERNMENT SAVINGS BANK WITH A PREFACE BY MR. P.W. WALLER PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE DUTCH POSTAL MUSEUM TRANSLATION BY C.M. SIMPSON AND LES JOBBINS OF THE NETHERLANDS PHILATELIC CIRCLE CONVERTED TO DIGITAL FORMAT BY THE MEMBERS OF THE NETHERLANDS PHILATELISTS OF CALIFORNIA AND THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR NETHERLANDS PHILATELY PUBLISHED WITH PERMISSION FROM THE KONINKLIJKE NEDERLANDSE BOND VAN FILATELISTENVERENIGINGEN Contents Preface……………………………………………………………………… Introduction………………………………………………………………… List of abbreviations……………………………………………………….. Chapter One Domestic (till 1850) 1 Republic of the United Netherlands (till 1795) 1 Mail Transported by Carriers and Skippers 1 Postmasters 2 States Mail (for Holland and Westvriesland). 1752-1795 4 Batavian Republic 1795 – 1806 7 Kingdom Holland 1806 -1810 7 Annexation by the French Empire 1810 - 1813/4 9 Period 1813/4 – 1850 12 Postoffices 13 Distribution offices 26 Rural Mail in Limburg 28 Chapter Two Domestic. 1850 – 1893 Postal Reform 29 Main Postoffices 30 Handcancels. 1850 – 1893 30 Machine cancels. 1870 -1890 63 Sub Postoffices 63 Receiving and Forwarding Offices (Bestelhuizen) 102 Trains, Boats, Trams 104 Branch offices 121 Train Stations 127 Chapter Three Domestic. 1893 – 1915 129 Chapter Four Domestic. Machine cancels 1893 – 1915 186 Chapter Five Domestic. Administrative cancels. Till 1916 195 Chapter Six Foreign Separate Regulations. Till 1875 United Dutch Republic (to 1795) 210 1795 - 1813/4 213 1813/4 – 1875 215 English mail 1813 - 1875 216 Northern Correspondence 1814 - 1875 220 German mail 1814 – 1875 224 French mail 1814 -1876 229 Belgian mail 1830 -1875 234 Luxembourg mail 1842 - 1875 237 Mails with the Colonies and Lands Overseas 237 Shipping Arrangements for mail landed at Dutch ports 238 Mails to and from the West Indies by W.I Packetboats 240 Mails to and from Java per Overland 241 Mails for the West Indies per West Indies mailbags via England and France 243 Chapter Seven Foreign countries. World Postal Union 1875-1915 247 Chapter Eight Field post (until 1914) 256 Chapter Nine Exempt from paying postage 262 Index of Type and Page Number Relation Scans of all Types Preface When years ago I started a collection of the cancels of the Netherlands from 1652 till 1900 and described the history of the Postal System in the Netherlands, I never would have thought that somebody else would have the courage to do this as well. That’s why it is a great pleasure to say a few words of praise to Mr. O.M. Vellinga. He set himself a time consuming, complicated and tough task to describe all information relating to the postmarks of the Netherlands from the beginning and also including examples. I highly recommend this important work, for which there is a high need, to anybody who collects postmarks. They can find everything they are looking for. It is put together with great care and accuracy and can rightfully be called a standard publication. I wish that this result of years of a work would contribute to the collecting of postmarks. P.W. Waller Overveen, 10 October 1931. INTRODUCTION . The following pages are devoted to a description of the history of Dutch postmarks. After dealing with the postal systems in operation, so far as is necessary to the purpose of this volume, the book indicates when, for what reason, for what purpose and on what documents the various cancellations were used. Much data has been derived from Mr. Waller's extensive and scientifically arranged collection, and my thanks are due to Mr. Waller and also to Mr. J. Tresling, curator of the Dutch Postal Museum, for their help and cooperation in my task. The method of classification of the material and arrangement of the book calls for some explanation. The inland postal service and the postal connections with foreign postal systems are dealt with separately, as for the latter special regulations - and therefore special cancellations were operative. In order to allow of their more detailed survey a separate section is devoted to administrative marks, whilst those used in international mail and those by fieldpost are given separate parts. The inland postal service is treated in periods, as each period has its distinctive character. the first covers the years leading up to the reform of the postal system in 1850J the second to 1893 - in which year cancellations were standardized and the third to 1916. The period leading up to 1850, in which postal arrangements became a national institution with a monopoly for the transport of letters and in which year a postal law was introduced, besides its cancellations important for nature and variation - shows in lesser degree the development of postal history, and produced (even at this early date) the introduction of “daymarks" and "marks of arrival". The national history of Holland exercised a great influence on world affairs at this time, which in turn, yielded not only postmarks of' foreign origin, but also specimens from places which, even before this end of the period, had been ceded from Holland to other countries. The period 1850-1893 begins with the reform of the post and is significant for the introduction of uniform rates of postage according to distance, for the important increase in the number of post offices (especially in the country), for the more rapid conveyance of mails, and also for the introduction of postage stamps for special purposes, as well as postcards, stamped wrappers, and letter cards. Also, despite difficulties, a form of parcel post was being evolved. During this period we find a wealth of orders and instructions regarding the cancellations and types of marks to be used, as some confusion existed owing to the differences existing between various groups of offices. Numbers of dispatches were constantly being increased and this in turn led to an added variety in the cancellations used. Machines printing a date stamp were introduced at the most important offices during this period In the last period uniform types of cancellations were in general use by the different groups of' offices, so that each group need no longer be treated separately. A new type of machine cancellation was later introduced and this is dealt with in a separate chapter . This work does not carry its subject beyond 1915 as it is hoped to make the volume as complete as possible; towards the end of 1915 a new model cancellation stamp was introduced, with which all offices have not even now (November 1932) been supplied. For this reason the "rolling-mark" taken into use in 1912 is only brief1y mentioned and fieldpost is dealt with only up to the date of the mobilization. In the first three parts, lists are made up of the known "name marks" of the various offices, as well as all dated postmarks according to the spelling in the cancellation. Some lists in the first and second parts are not complete (Further articles, published later, are incorporated in this translation); in such cases, where I have not seen the actual cancellations, a list is appended with the names of the offices. No doubt more frontier marks were used than are known up to now. For this reason all possible date from official documents is quoted, as it may assist others in discovering further particulars of others, etc. Particulars are given of different sizes of many of the cancellation marks used, but it has not been possible to do this in every case, so in some instances the mention of the smallest and largest sizes has had to suffice. In such measurements parts of mm. have been reckoned to full mm. There are many differences in size and model, and also in the shape of the-letters, and their spacing (which was not always influenced by the size of the mark). Many similar differences exist in the loose (separate) letters and ciphers. For most of the models of marks used, however, it is impossible to make complete sub-divisions of letter and cipher types used. Many models remained in use at some offices long after newer models were introduced and sometimes both were in use at the same time. When an earlier model was not destroyed, the old one was first used up before the new one was taken into service. Reproductions of cancellations are from the years in. which the models were taken into use, so far as has been possible. A continuous numbering in the sequence of' the description is preferred to the system followed in Schreuders. It was not possible to follow this plan throughout, however, the addition of a letter has often meant that no further reproductions have been added to those originally given. List of used Abbreviations. Generale Instructie. Algemeene Instructie voor den dienst der brieven posterijen, te Parijs ter Keizerlijke drukkerij, 1810. Circ. Circulaires of algemeene aanschrijvingen, van November 1813 tot en met 1880. Voortgezet onder de benamingen: Verzameling. Verzameling van voorschriften enz. 1881 tot en met 1893. D. O. en Med. Dienstorders en Mededeelingen. Sedert 1894. Jaarboekje. Nederlandsch jaarboekje der posterijen, door S. Gille Heringa, jaren 1849 tot en met 1864, 1871/2. Overvoorde. Mr. Dr. J. C. Overvoorde, Geschiedenis van het postwezen in Nederland vóór 1795; Leiden, A. W. Sijthoff, 1902. le Jeune. Mr. J. C. W. le Jeune, Het brieven-postwezen in de Republiek der Vereenigde Nederlanden; Utrecht, Kemink en Zoon, 1851. Lettink. H. J. Lettink, De ontwikkelings-geschiedenis der Nederlandsche posterijen; Breda, Broese & Comp., 1888. Ringnalda. W. Ringnalda, Hoofdtrekken van de geschiedenis van het Nederlandsche postwezen; 's Gravenhage, Martinus Nijhoff, 1895. Schreuders. De afstempelingen op de postzegels van Nederland, uitgegeven door Schreuders & Co., 's Gravenhage, 1897. Korteweg. P. C.