Postage stamps and postal history of Eastern Rumelia
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The design of the stamps of 1881 and 1884 listed the name of the province in four languages – Turkish, French, Greek, and Bulgarian – using four alphabets – Arabic, Latin, Greek, and Cyrillic
"R.O." Overprint on an already overprinted stamp of the Ottoman Empire (Duloz-Issue).
The 1878 Treaty of Berlin provided for the Ottoman Empire to issue special stamps for Eastern Rumelia. However, they were slow to do so. In 1880, in part a reaction to the local postcard, the Turkish government sent some 50,000 piasters worth of Turkish stamps overprinted with "ROUMELIE / ORIENTALE" in an oval.[4] The Eastern Rumelian government found these to be unsatisfactory in presenting the province as an autonomous region, and refused to issue them.[4] A compromise was reached, new stamps specifically printed for Eastern Rumelia were sent from Constantinople and both versions were issued on 16 January 1881.
Overprints on stamps of Turkey were made locally. First was an "R.O."[5] that was stamped both on regular Turkish stamps and the oval overprinted ones. This was done in Philippopolis.[4] In addition, a pattern of bars was sometimes used.[3] All of these overprints are uncommon and extensively counterfeited.[3]
The stamps that were specifically printed for Eastern Rumelia used design elements from the existing Ottoman postage stamps, differing from them by having the Greek inscription Ανατολική Ρωμυλία (Anatolian (i.e. Eastern) Rumelia) above the "Emp. Ottoman" and with French and Bulgarian inscriptions of the name in small letters along the left and right sides. In 1884, a 5 paras stamp and a ten paras stamp of a second issue of this design, with changed colors, were issued.[3][2] Higher denominations for the 1884 issue were prepared, but not issued.[3] Both of these sets, 1881 and 1884, were printed in Constantinople.[4][6][7] Most of these types are quite common, but perforation variations can be scare.
On September 10, 1885, the existing Rumelian issues were overprinted with two different images of the Bulgarian lion, and then with the lion in a frame and "Bulgarian Post" in Bulgarian (Cyrillic letters). As with the first overprints, these are uncommon, with prices ranging from US$6 to $200, and counterfeits are widespread.[3] From 1886 on, the province used Bulgarian stamps.
Stamp overprinted with the image of the Bulgarian lion
Stamp overprinted with the image of the Bulgarian lion
Notes
↑ According to the Scott Catalogue the first stamps were issued in 1880, but the Michel Catalog lists these overprints as not being issued until 1881. This is clarified by W.A.S. Wesoby who indicates a date of 16 January 1881, see below.
1 2 Michel (2009) "Ostrumelien (Южна България)" Michel Europa-Katalog 2009/2010 Band 4: Sudosteuropa Schwaneberger Verlag, Unterschleissheim, Germany, page 488, ISBN978-3-87858-884-9
1 2 3 4 5 6 Westoby, William Amos Scarborough (1900) "Roumelia" The adhesive postage stamps of Europe: A practical guide to their collection, identification, and classification: Volume II L. Upcott Gill, London, pages 207–210, OCLC8119141
↑ "The Beginners' Guide: A Guide to Classification (Continued)" Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News 1 March 1913, page 80
↑ "Unwelcome Turkish Labels" Boys Life October 1917, pages 46–47, page 47
↑ The Collectors Club philatelist: Volumes 38–39 (1959) page 214
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Eastern Rumelia was an autonomous province of the Ottoman Empire with a total area of 32,978 km2, which was created in 1878 by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin and de facto ceased to exist in 1885, when it was united with the Principality of Bulgaria, also under nominal Ottoman suzerainty. It continued to be an Ottoman province de jure until 1908, when Bulgaria declared independence. Ethnic Bulgarians formed a majority of the population in Eastern Rumelia, but there were significant Turkish and Greek minorities. Its capital was Plovdiv. The official languages of Eastern Rumelia were Bulgarian, Greek and Ottoman Turkish.
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Each "article" in this category is a collection of entries about several stamp issuers, presented in alphabetical order. The entries are formulated on the micro model and so provide summary information about all known issuers.
Each "article" in this category is a collection of entries about several stamp issuers, presented in alphabetical order. The entries are formulated on the micro model and so provide summary information about all known issuers.
Each "article" in this category is a collection of entries about several stamp issuers, presented in alphabetical order. The entries are formulated on the micro model and so provide summary information about all known issuers.
The Unification of Bulgaria was the act of unification of the Principality of Bulgaria and the province of Eastern Rumelia in the autumn of 1885. It was co-ordinated by the Bulgarian Secret Central Revolutionary Committee (BSCRC). Both had been parts of the Ottoman Empire, but the principality had functioned de facto independently whilst the Rumelian province was autonomous and had an Ottoman presence. The unification was accomplished after revolts in Eastern Rumelian towns, followed by a coup on 18 September [O.S. 6 September] 1885 supported by the Bulgarian Prince Alexander I. The BSCRC, formed by Zahari Stoyanov, began actively popularizing the idea of unification by means of the press and public demonstrations in the spring of 1885.
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Stamp overprinted with the image of the Bulgarian lion
Stamp overprinted with the image of the Bulgarian lion
