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Stamp collecting used to be described as: ‘The king of hobbies and the hobby of Kings’, alluding to the fact that it was the favourite pastime of Carol of Romania and Farouk of Egypt. King Carol – who had relinquished the throne in favour of his son Michael in 1940 – eventually went into exile, although he managed to take his stamp collection with him. Not so lucky was the playboy monarch of Egypt, who also formed a truly amazing collection, primarily of Egyptian material. It was rumoured that special printings, imperforate and in altered colours, were produced specially for his delectation. This material only came to light after he had fled from Cairo in 1952, leaving his collections behind. They were eventually disposed of in a series of sales conducted by Harmers in the 1950s.
Alexei, the Tsarevich of Russia, was a sickly child, prone to haemophilia and he turned to stamps, and formed a beautiful collection (augmented by gifts from his parents and other Royal relatives). He and the rest of the Imperial Family were eventually put to death in 1918, but after many adventures the collection finally came into the possession of Her Majesty the Queen and is now part of the world-famous Royal Philatelic Collection at St. James’s Palace.
King Alfonso XIII of Spain was a keen philatelist whose introduction to the hobby may have come through his British relatives. His wife, Queen Victoria Eugenie (Ena), was the niece of Prince Alfred and first cousin of the future King George V. His Serene Highness, Prince Rainier III of Monaco has had a life-long interest in philately – his magnificent collection now forms the nucleus of the material preserved in the Numismatic and Philatelic Museum in Monte Carlo.
The British Royals
The British Royal Family’s interest in stamps goes back to 1864 when the Stamping Branch of the Board of Stamps and Taxes at Somerset House received a request from Buckingham Palace for specimens of the various stamps then current for the albums of certain of the Royal Princes. The stamps included a number of obsolete issues. Unfortunately there were no examples of the Penny Black available, so to fill the gap orders were given for a reprint to be made. As none of the original ‘black’ plates was still extant, plate 66, Die II, (which would have been used to print some of the early Penny Reds) was employed. Reprints were made in black ink and, lacking perforations, were a passable substitute for the original. At the same time, a quantity of reprints from the same plate were produced in carmine-rose to simulate the colour of the Penny Red. Ever since September 1865, when these official imitations were actually printed, they have been known as the Royal Reprints.
Prince Alfred had been a keen stamp collector since the early 1850s. He was a general stamp collector and during his naval career had numerous opportunities to add material which he purchased directly from the post offices in the colonies and foreign countries he visited. What became of his stamp collection is not known, but it’s possible at least some of it passed to his nephew, the Duke of York (later King George V).
Alfred’s passion for postage stamps became public in May 1890, when he performed the opening ceremony at the London Philatelic Exhibition and visited the show on several occasions, accompanied by his nephew, Prince George. Prince Alfred had been an enthusiastic member of the Philatelic Society of London since its inception, and became President in December 1890. He took a prominent part in the organisation of the exhibition, at which he also displayed the stamps of Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria, Montenegro, Cyprus, Gibraltar, Heligoland, the Ionian Islands, Malta, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Fernando Po. At the second London Philatelic Exhibition, held in Piccadilly in July-August 1897, he exhibited rarities in the Court of Honour.
Keen collector
Prince George not only followed his uncle’s footsteps in pursuing a naval career, but was a keen collector from early boyhood. Like Alfred, he made good use of his naval cruises to add to his collection, but unlike his uncle he devoted a great deal more of his time and energy to the hobby. By 1890 his collection was already far larger than his uncle’s and was reputed to be highly specialised in the postage and telegraph stamps of Great Britain.
George was far ahead of his time in also taking a serious interest in the various stages of their production. He had a predilection for essays and proofs, and quite early in his philatelic career he obtained access to the records at Somerset House and managed to secure specimens cut from the imprimatur sheets (the imperforate proof sheets of every new stamp, lodged with the Commissioners of Inland Revenue before general production commenced). Not only did he get hold of a full set of imprimaturs for but he appears to have favoured his cronies as well, for the set now in the Tapling Collection at the British Library came from the same source. At that time the Board of Inland Revenue was also responsible for the imprimaturs of Indian stamps, and in due course a full set of these found their way into the Prince’s collection. In 1897 it was he who formally opened the second London exhibition, at which he exhibited selections of Indian material, as well as rarities of the British Empire and a collection of essays and proofs of British, Indian and colonial stamps which excited considerable interest at the time.
President of the Royal
The Duke of York became Vice-President of the London Philatelic Society in March 1893 and, in January 1896, he was elected President. In May 1894 the Society celebrated its 25th anniversary and at the silver jubilee exhibition he displayed some of his great rarities.
When his father became King Edward VII in 1901, George became Prince of Wales – it was through his good offices that the world’s premier philatelic society received its Royal appellation. Long before he came to the throne King George V had close ties with the De La Rue family. They favoured him with choice preliminary material, while the Crown Agents for the Colonies were also only too happy to supply him with specimens. He also avidly pursued the great rarities which he purchased at auction, using agents to bid on his behalf.
In January 1904 he set a new world record when he paid £1,450 for the finest known copy of the Mauritius ‘Post Office’ twopence in unused condition. At the time, it was revealed that the stamp had been knocked down to a Mr. Crawford. The late Robson Lowe, one of the hobby’s greatest raconteurs, used to tell a story about Sir Arthur Bigge, then private secretary to the Prince of Wales, remarking as he read the Daily Telegraph the morning after the auction that: ‘Some silly beggar’ had paid a fortune for a postage stamp, to which the Prince dryly admitted that he was ‘that silly beggar’.
Later Royals
By the time of his death in 1936 the King’s stamp collection had grown to hundreds of volumes, housed in a special room in the Palace. Even during his last illness he derived some consolation from poring over some of his favourite albums.
Fearing that his eldest son David might try to sell the collection, King George had it entailed. Although it remains the private property of the sovereign it is now very much a national treasure. Of George V’s children, the Prince of Wales alone showed some aptitude for the hobby and had his own private collection which presumably went with him into exile in France after he abdicated in December 1936. His brother, George VI developed an interest in the Royal Collection, whilst the present Queen was a keen philatelist as a Princess.
Prince Charles apparently had some philatelic leanings while at Gordonstoun, but they didn’t survive into adulthood. Of a personal interest among the younger members of the Royal Family, or the next generation, nothing is known. Of course, presentation albums and other mementoes of royal occasions must occasionally come their way, but there is sadly no evidence of a more active interest in the hobby.
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