Guernsey Occupation History.
The first service during the Occupation was the local Island postal service, where mail could be sent within Guernsey or Jersey or between the two Islands. Here British stamps were still allowed for postage throughout the Occupation. However, as stocks became exhausted, new supplies from England were unobtainable. In Guernsey bisecting of 2d stamps for the 1d unsealed letter rate was permitted between 27 December 1940 and 22 February 1941.
The Guernsey ½d stamp in the same design as the 1d was issued in April 1941. This was used as a make up value for the three main postage rates – unsealed letter rate (1d), postcard rate (2d) and sealed letter rate - 2½d.
The registered letter rate during the Occupation was 5½d. Registered covers can be found from both the main and the smaller sub post offices during this period. Initially, the Head Post Office used the standard registration labels inscribed ‘GUERNSEY’, these were supplied from London prior to the Occupation. No further supplies were available from this source during this time.
A 1d stamp showing the Arms of Guernsey was printed locally by the Guernsey Press Co and issued in February 1941. This stamp remained on sale throughout the Occupation period. There were 16 different printings during this period. Examples of this stamp on plain covers are still easy to come by. However, an interesting collection can be made of this stamp on different advertising envelopes, an example of which is shown on this 1943 cover.
Note the standard Guernsey machine cancellation.
Note the standard Guernsey machine cancellation.
The main stamp that was bisected was the 2d Centenary, but examples of the George VI 2d definitive, as well as both George V 2d definitves were also bisected. Examples of other values exist, but were never authorised . Commercial examples as illustrated here are becoming difficult to come by.
In 1941, the Guernsey Post Office only had one figure ‘1’ for the year date. The other ‘1’ in 1941 was created by blocking out half of the figure ‘0’. This created the appearance of a curved ‘1’ in the second ‘1’ of 1941.
By April 1945, supplies of 1d stamps in the Island Post Offices were very short. This cover is addressed to the local Labour Office with a KGVI 1½d definitive in place of the 1d stamp.
The stamp is postmarked with a standard Guernsey datestamp, rather than the machine cancel, this is because there was a shortage of electricity in 1945 and so the cancelling machines were not used.
The stamp is postmarked with a standard Guernsey datestamp, rather than the machine cancel, this is because there was a shortage of electricity in 1945 and so the cancelling machines were not used.
People sometimes had to use the ½d stamp with 2 of the 1d stamps to make up the 2½d rate.
Covers such as illustrated here, can be found with a mixed usage of British and Guernsey stamps to make up the correct postage rate.
This cover shows use of the ½d Arms added to a King George VI ½d postal stationery envelope to make up the 1d rate. Both British stamps and British postal stationery could be used throughout the Occupation.
This cover shows an example of registered mail from October 1941, with the standard ‘GUERNSEY’ registration label, shortly before supplies were exhausted.
This second example shows a registered cover posted 7 days later on 8 October 1941. Note the use of the King George VI 5d stamp. This value was seldom seen on cover during this period. When stocks of registration labels ran out, labels from closed sub Post Offices were used. GUERNSEY 5 registration labels were used at the St Johns Post Office prior to closure. The remaining stock were used at the Head Post Office from October 1941 until January 1942.
This unusual registered cover is an uprated King George VI 1½d postal stationery envelope uprated with five Arms stamps two of which are on the scarce blue banknote paper. The GUERNSEY 4 registration label was taken from the closed Quay Branch Office. These labels were in use between January and December 1942.
Addressed to The Guernsey Emergency Hospital, this registered cover has a mixture of King George VI definitives and Arms stamps and is dated April 1944. The GUERNSEY 8 registration label was from the closed sub post Office at Ville au Roi, they were in use between January 1943 and April 1944.
Posted in December 1944, this registered cover makes use of the King Edward VIII 1d stamp to make up the correct rate. The GUERNSEY 7 registration labels were from the closed sub Post office at Vale Road. These were in use at the Head Post Office from June 1944 until Liberation in May 1945. However, examples of Occupation registered mail from 1945 is very scarce.
There was one occasion when a provisional registration handstamp was used at the Head Post Office. This was on 12 April 1944, when the 2½d Arms stamp was issued. This handstamp had a purple frame with the word ‘GUERNSEY’ inside it. The registration number was applied separately in red. A few examples are recorded where the frame is in black. This handstamp was used because the Head postmaster feared that Philatelists would post a lot of registered cover on the first day of the new Arms stamp and that all his stocks of registration labels would be exhausted.
Registered covers from sub Post Offices are more difficult to find, two examples are illustrated here. This cover was sent from Les Gravees Post Office in April 1944. Les Gravees was a town sub Post Office and had the registration labels inscribed ‘GUERNSEY 1’. Again there is a mix of stamps, this time Arms and Centenary.
The second cover shows a scarce example of an uprated registered postal stationery envelope used during the Occupation. The registered letter rate increased from 4½d to 5½d in May 1940, which explains why Post Offices still had stocks of the 4½d envelopes. The addition of the 1d Arms stamp made up the correct rate on this cover from St Peter in the Wood sub Post Office.
Shortage of paper in Guernsey often meant that envelopes were used twice. Le Lacheur’s Garage sent this cover on 10 April 1942. Note the Guernsey machine cancel and scarce use of ½d Arms on blue banknote paper. It was sent on its second journey (back to Le Lacheur’s Garage) on 13 April, with the 1d Arms stamp on the left hand side of the envelope used to pay the postage for its second journey, during which, the stamp was cancelled with a Guernsey datestamp rather than a machine cancel. The ½d stamps were also cancelled a second time for good measure!
Normally mail could be sent from Guernsey to Jersey without a problem. However, on a few occasions, the Germans censored Guernsey mail in Paris. Such a cover is shown here. It is dated May 1943. The German manuscript number 188 on the front of the cover, May be it was the address on the Jersey cover that caused the Germans to censor the letter.
The reverse of this cover is also shown because of the German censor tape which was cancelled with the German ‘Oberkommando der Wehrmacht’, with a code letter ‘X’, which was the code letter for the Paris censor office.
There were several times during the Occupation when stocks of stamps were exhausted at the Post Offices. On such occasions, the Post Office used a circular red PAID handstamp. An example is shown on the this cover, although no year date appears in the datestamp, this item was posted in August 1944 at the 1d rate.
The postcard rate was 2d during the Occupation. This card was actually posted on Liberation Day – 9 May 1945. Note the GUERNSEY 2d PAID handstamp in lieu of adhesives.
This cover was sent at the sealed letter rate in June 1942. In the absence of stamps, the GUERNSEY 2½d PAID handstamp was used.
