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The History of Cardenio

The History of Cardenio, often referred to as simply Cardenio, is a lost play, known to have been performed by the King's Men, a London theatre company, in 1613. The play is attributed to William Shakespeare and John Fletcher in a Stationers' Register entry of 1653. The content of the play is not known, but it was likely to have been based on an episode in Miguel de Cervantes's Don Quixote involving the character Cardenio, a young man who has been driven mad and lives in the Sierra Morena. Thomas Shelton's translation of the First Part of Don Quixote was published in 1612 and would thus have been available to the presumed authors of the play.

Two existing plays have been put forward as being related to the lost play. A song, "Woods, Rocks and Mountains", set to music by Robert Johnson, has also been linked to it.

Attribution
Although there are records of the play having been performed, there is no information about its authorship earlier than a 1653 entry in the Stationers' Register. The entry was made by Humphrey Moseley, a bookseller and publisher, who was thereby asserting his right to publish the work. Moseley is not necessarily to be trusted on the question of authorship, as he is known to have falsely used Shakespeare's name in other such entries. It may be that he was using Shakespeare's name to increase interest in the play. However, some modern scholarship accepts Moseley's attribution, placing the lost work in the same category of collaboration between Fletcher and Shakespeare as The Two Noble Kinsmen. Fletcher based several of his later plays on works by Cervantes, so his involvement is plausible.

Synopsis of "Cardenio", the episode in the novel Don Quixote
After a few adventures together, Don Quixote and Sancho Panza discover a bag full of gold coins along with some papers, which include a sonnet describing the poet's romantic troubles. Quixote and Sancho search for the person to whom the gold and the papers belong. They identify the owner as Cardenio, a madman living in the mountains.

Cardenio begins to tell his story to Quixote and Sancho: Cardenio had been deeply in love with Luscinda, but her father refused to let the two marry. Cardenio had then been called to service by Duke Ricardo, and befriended the duke's son, Don Fernando. Fernando had coerced a young woman named Dorotea into agreeing to marry him, but when he met Luscinda, he decided to steal her from Cardenio. At this point in Cardenio's narration, however, Quixote interrupts, prompting Cardenio to leave in a fit of violent madness. Quixote, inspired by Cardenio, decides to imitate the madness of various chivalric knights, and so sends Sancho away.

Coming to an inn, Sancho encounters the barber and the priest, who have been following Quixote with intentions to bring him back home. Following Sancho into the mountains, the barber and priest encounter Cardenio for themselves. Cardenio, back to his wits, relates his complete story to them: after sending Cardenio away on an errand, Fernando convinced Luscinda's father to let him marry Luscinda instead. Luscinda then wrote to Cardenio, telling him of the planned wedding, and of her intentions to commit suicide rather than marry Fernando. Cardenio arrived at the wedding and, hidden, saw Luscinda agree to the exchange of vows, then promptly faint. Feeling betrayed, Cardenio left for the mountains.

After concluding his story, Cardenio and the two other men stumble upon a woman, who is revealed as being Dorotea. Having been scorned by Fernando, she had traveled to confront him, only to learn the events of the wedding, including the discovery of a dagger on Luscinda's person after her fainting, and how she later ran away to flee Fernando and find Cardenio. Dorotea had then been driven into the mountains after her accompanying servant tried to force himself on her.

Reinvigorated by their meeting, Cardenio and Dorotea resolve to help each other regain their respective lovers. After helping the barber, the priest, and Sancho lure Quixote out of the mountains, Cardenio and Dorotea return to the inn with the others. At the inn, Cardenio and Dorotea find themselves suddenly reunited with Fernando and Luscinda. Cardenio and Luscinda redeclare their love for each other, while Fernando repents and apologizes to them all.

Lewis Theobald and Double Falsehood
In 1727, Lewis Theobald claimed to have obtained three Restoration-era manuscripts of an unnamed play by Shakespeare, which he edited, "improved", and released under the name Double Falshood, or the Distrest Lovers. Double Falshood has the plot of the "Cardenio" episode in Don Quixote.

It has been suggested that Theobald was unable to publish the original script, because of Jacob Tonson's exclusive copyright on Shakespeare's plays. But that contention has been discounted, as the Tonson copyright applied only to the plays he had already published, not to any newly discovered play by Shakespeare; and Theobald edited an edition of the complete works for Tonson, whose commercial interests would have been substantially bettered if he had been able to advertise the edition as containing a hitherto "lost" play. (A prior instance of commercially "enhancing" an edition of Shakespeare's plays by adding new ones was the second reprint of the Third Folio of 1664, which added seven plays, only one of which (Pericles) has been accepted as at least partly by Shakespeare.)

The fate of Theobald's three alleged manuscripts is unknown. The very existence of three genuine manuscripts of that age is problematical, and Theobald was said to have invited interested persons to view the alleged manuscript, but he then avoided actually displaying them. These facts have led many scholars to conclude that Theobald's play was a hoax written by himself. However, more recent stylometric analysis may lead to the conclusion that Double Falsehood was based on one or more manuscripts written in part by Fletcher and in part by another playwright. The open question is whether that second playwright was Shakespeare. The text does not appear to contain many passages that may be even tentatively attributed to Shakespeare, but it is possible that Theobald so heavily edited the text that Shakespeare's style was entirely submerged.

In the late period represented by Shakespeare's known collaborations with Fletcher in Henry VIII and The Two Noble Kinsmen, his style had become so involved that it is difficult for a listener or even a reader to catch the meanings of many passages on a quick hearing or a first read, so Theobald might have found it necessary to alter the text in a way that made Shakespeare's voice unrecognisable. However historian Michael Wood has found an "idiosyncratic" verse in the Theobald adaptation which he believes could only have been written by Shakespeare. Wood also asserts that the lyrics of at least one song by Shakespeare's regular collaborator, composer Robert Johnson, are related to Double Falsehood, indicating that Theobald had access to a genuine original text. As "Double Falsehood" is substantially shorter than any other play of Shakespeare's and is completely lacking in a subplot, which all other Shakespearean plays have, it is likely that one of Theobald's revisions was to remove a subplot from his manuscript version. The removed subplot likely would have included the characters of Don Quixote and Sancho, who are conspicuously absent from Double Falsehood.

In 2010, the Arden Shakespeare published Double Falsehood in its series of scholarly editions of Shakespeare's collected works. The editor, Professor Brean Hammond, made a case for the Shakespearean origins of Theobald's play. In 2011 the Royal Shakespeare Company presented an adaptation of Double Falsehood as "Cardenio, Shakespeare's 'lost play' re-imagined," directed by Gregory Doran. The critic Michael Billington believes that this version is more suggestive of Fletcher than Shakespeare. In 2012 Terri Bourus directed a production of Gary Taylor's "unadaptation" of Cardenio, an attempt to reverse Theobald's alterations of the original. Taylor's text, along with detailed evidence supporting the view that Theobald had used the original playscript, was published in a collection of essays the following year. This text subsequently received its UK premiere on 18 March 2017 at the Mary Wallace Theatre, Twickenham, in a production by Richmond Shakespeare Society in association with Cutpurse.

Double Falsehood, a synopsis
The stage play Double Falsehood varies its tone from that of the episode in the novel and gives the story a fast-moving comic treatment. This is noted in the preface that Theobald wrote in 1727. All of the characters are given new names for the play: Don Fernando becomes Henriquez, Cardenio becomes Julio, Luscinda becomes Leonora, Don Bernard is Leonora's father, and Dorotea becomes Violante. The play borrows from the novel's plot events leading to and including the wedding: Henriquez is in love with Leonora, who has planned to wed Julio. Julio is sent away on an errand, and Leonora is forced to the altar. She gets a letter to Julio alerting him, and he arrives as the wedding is occurring. The bride has a dagger hidden on her in order to commit suicide. Julio jumps out from behind a tapestry to stop the wedding, but he is overpowered. Earlier on, Henriquez had raped Violante, which motivates him, at the end, to marry her in order to make up for his misdeed. A significant difference between the stage play and the novel, in addition to the absence of Don Quixote and Sancho, is that the play contains a series of dramatic encounters between the principals that do not occur in the novel.

Charles Hamilton and The Second Maiden's Tragedy
In 1990, handwriting expert Charles Hamilton, after seeing a 1611 manuscript known as The Second Maiden's Tragedy (usually attributed to Thomas Middleton), identified it as a text of the missing Cardenio in which the characters' names had been changed. This attribution has not gained much support among other authorities.

Several theatre companies have capitalised on Hamilton's attribution by performing The Second Maiden's Tragedy under the name of Shakespeare's Cardenio. For instance, a production at Oxford's Burton Taylor Theatre in March 2004, claimed to have been the first performance of the play in England since its putative recovery (although a successful amateur production had premiered at Essex University's Lakeside Theatre on 15 October 1998).

A full production of the play, which noted the contested authorship, was mounted at the Next Theatre in Evanston, Illinois in 1998. Another production of the play, billed as William Shakespeare's Cardenio, was staged by the Lone Star Ensemble in 2002 in Los Angeles, directed by James Kerwin.

In 2010 the Aporia Theatre began work on a new edit from translator and director Luis del Aguila and director Jonathan Busby. It was presented under Busby's direction at the Warehouse Theatre, Croydon, in November 2010. Critic Michael Billington believes the play is more suggestive of Middleton than Shakespeare.

The Second Maiden’s Tragedy, a synopsis
The main plot of The Second Maiden’s Tragedy begins with "the Tyrant" overthrowing the previous king, Giovanus, and attempting to seduce Giovanus' wife, "the Lady". When the Lady rejects the Tyrant's advances, she and Giovanus are placed under house arrest. After another failed attempt at wooing the Lady, using her father as a middleman, the Tyrant sends soldiers to bring her to his bed by force. Learning of this, the Lady opts to commit suicide. Giovanus buries the Lady's body, but the Tyrant, driven by lust, digs the corpse back up. The ghost of the Lady appears to Giovanus, telling him of what the Tyrant has done. Meanwhile, the Tyrant, seeing how pale the corpse of the Lady is, sends for a painter to paint it. Giovanus, disguised as a painter, paints the corpse with poison. After the Tyrant kisses the corpse, he succumbs to the poison and dies, allowing Giovanus to return to the throne.

Hamilton argued that The Second Maiden’s Tragedy borrows for its plot the events of Cervantes' novel, leading up to the wedding ceremony of Luscinda and Don Fernando. According to him, Giovanus is Cardenio, the Tyrant is Don Fernando, and the Lady is Luscinda.

Legacy and References
The History of Cardenio is the MacGuffin in the graphic novel La pièce manquante ("The Missing Play", 2023) by. 18th-century actress Peg Woffington is on a quest to find the play so that she can be the first person to play Dorotea. She counts with the help of her manager and friend Ignatius Sancho, with the story highlighting the coincidence of Sancho's surname with Don Quixote's squire, and is opposed by several interests. In the end of the story, the main characters believe the last copy of Cardenio was accidentally destroyed, yet a few secondary characters have instead smuggled it and perform it, with few resources and an amateur troupe, in Libertalia.

title: The History of Cardenio


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Postage stamps and postal history of India

Indian postal systems for efficient military and governmental communications had developed long before the arrival of Europeans. When the Portuguese, Dutch, French, Danish and British conquered the Marathas who had already defeated the Mughals, their postal systems existed alongside those of many somewhat independent states. The British East India Company gradually annexed the other powers on the sub-continent and brought into existence a British administrative system over most of modern-day India, with a need to establish and maintain both official and commercial mail systems.

Although the Indian Post Office was established in 1837, Asia's first adhesive stamp, the Scinde Dawk, was introduced in 1852 by Sir Bartle Frere, the East India Company's administrator of the province of Sind. The Indian postal system developed into an extensive, dependable and robust network providing connectivity to almost all parts of India, Burma, the Straits Settlements and other areas controlled by the East India Company (EIC). Based on the model postal system introduced in England by the reformer, Rowland Hill, efficient postal services were provided at a low cost and enabled the smooth commercial, military and administrative functioning of the EIC and its successor, the British Raj. The Imperial Posts co-existed with the several postal systems maintained by various Indian states, some of which produced stamps for use within their respective dominions, while British Indian postage stamps were required for sending mail beyond the boundaries of these states. Telegraphy and telephony made their appearance as part of the Posts before becoming separate departments. After the independence of India in 1947, the Indian postal service continues to function on a countrywide basis and provides many valuable, low cost services to the public of India.

The Post in ancient and medieval India
The history of India's postal system begins long before the introduction of postage stamps. The antecedents have been traced to the systems of the Persian Empire instituted by Cyrus the Great and Darius I for communicating important military and political information. The Atharvaveda (or Arthveda) which is one of the oldest books in the world, records a messenger service in ancient India millenniums ago. Systems for collecting information and revenue data from the provinces are mentioned in Chanakya's Arthashastra (meaning military strategy and skill)(c. 3rd century BCE).

"In ancient times the kings (or Raja), emperors (or Maharaja), rulers, zamindars (or the feudal lords) protected their land through the intelligence services of specially trained police or military agencies and courier services to convey and obtain information through runners, messengers and even through pigeons in most parts of India. The chief of the secret service, known as the Daakpaal (postmaster), maintained the lines of communication ... The people used to send letters to [their] distant relatives through their friends or neighbors."

The first Sultan of Delhi, before the Mughals colonised India, Qutb-ud-din Aybak was Sultan for only four years, 1206–1210, but he founded the Mamluk Dynasty and created a messenger post system. This was expanded into the dak chowkis, a horse and foot runner service, by Alauddin Khalji in 1296. Sher Shah Suri (1541–1545) replaced runners with horses for conveyance of messages along the northern Indian high road, today known as the Grand Trunk Road, which he constructed between Bengal and Sindh over an ancient trade route at the base of the Himalayas, the Uttarapatha. He also built 1700 'serais' where two horses were always kept for the despatch of the Royal Mail. Akbar introduced camels in addition to the horses and runners.

In the South of India, in 1672 Raja Chuk Deo of Mysore began an efficient postal service which was further improved upon by Haider Ali.

Posts and the East India Company
The East India Company took constructive steps to improve the existing postal systems in India when, in 1688, they opened a post office in Bombay followed by similar ones in Calcutta and Madras. Lord Clive further expanded the services in 1766 and in 1774 Warren Hastings made the services available to the general public. The fee charged was two annas per 100 miles. The postmarks applied on these letters are very rare and are named 'Indian Bishop Marks' after Colonel Henry Bishop, the Postmaster General of the United Kingdom who introduced this practice in Britain. The Post Office Department of the East India Company was first established on 31 March 1774 at Calcutta, followed in 1778 at Madras and in 1792 at Bombay. After 1793, when Cornwallis introduced the Regulation of the Permanent Settlement, the financial responsibility for maintaining the official posts rested with the zamindars. Alongside these, private dawk mail systems sprang up for the commercial conveyance of messages using hired runners. Also, the East India Company created its own infrastructure for the expansion and administration of military and commercial power. The runners were paid according to the distance they travelled and the weight of their letters.

Carrying the mail was dangerous work:

 * With the exception of such parts as may be infested by tigers, the post seldom or never fails of arriving within an hour of its appointed time, except, as has been observed, when the waters are out. In this case, many circuitous roads must be followed, whereby the way is considerably lengthened. Taking the average, a hundred miles per day may be run over by the dawk, or post, in fair weather. Each mail-bag is conveyed by an hurkaru (or runner) who is attended by one or two doogy-wallahs, or drummers, who keep up a kind of long-roll, as they pass any suspicious place.

The Post Office Act XVII of 1837 provided that the Governor-General of India in Council had the exclusive right of conveying letters by post for hire within the territories of the East India Company. Section XX required all private vessels to carry letters at prescribed rates for postage. A handstamp was applied to preadhesive ship letters. The mails were available to certain officials without charge, which became a controversial privilege as the years passed. On this basis the Indian Post Office was established on 1 October 1837.

The urgent European mails were carried overland via Egypt at the isthmus of Suez. This route, pioneered by Thomas Waghorn, linked the Red Sea with the Mediterranean, and thence by steamer via Marseille, Brindisi or Trieste to European destinations. The Suez Canal did not open until much later (17 November 1869). The time in transit for letters using the Overland Mail route was dramatically reduced. Waghorn's route reduced the journey from 16,000 miles via the Cape of Good Hope to 6,000 miles; and reduced the time in transit from three months to between 35 and 45 days.

The Scinde District Dawk
The use of the Scinde Dawk adhesive stamps to signify the prepayment of postage began on 1 July 1852 in the Scinde/Sindh district, as part of a comprehensive reform of the district's postal system. A year earlier Sir Bartle Frere had replaced the postal runners with a network of horses and camels, improving communications in the Indus river valley to serve the military and commercial needs of the British East India Company.

The new stamps were embossed individually onto paper or a wax wafer. The shape was circular, with "SCINDE DISTRICT DAWK" around the rim and the British East India Company's Merchant's Mark as the central emblem. The paper was either white or greyish white. The blue stamp was printed onto the paper by the die during the embossing, while the wax version was embossed on a red sealing wax wafer on paper; but all had the same value of 1/2 anna. They were used until October 1854, and then officially suppressed. These are quite scarce today, with valuations from US$700 to $10,000 for postally used examples. The unused red stamp was previously valued at £65,000.00 by Stanley Gibbons (basis 2006); however, it now appears that no unused examples have survived.

The Reforms of 1854 and the First Issues
The first stamps valid for postage throughout India were placed on sale in October 1854 with four values: 1/2 anna, 1 anna, 2 annas, and 4 annas. Featuring a youthful profile of Queen Victoria aet. 15 years, all four values were designed and printed in Calcutta, and issued without perforations or gum. All were lithographed except for the 2 annas green, which was produced by typography from copper clichés or from electrotyped plates. The 4 annas value (illustrated) was one of the world's first bicolored stamps, preceded only by the Basel Dove, a beautiful local issue.

These stamps were issued following a Commission of Inquiry which had carefully studied the postal systems of Europe and America. In the opinion of Geoffrey Clarke, the reformed system was to be maintained "for the benefit of the people of India and not for the purpose of swelling the revenue." The Commissioners voted to abolish the earlier practice of conveying official letters free of postage ("franking"). The new system was recommended by the Governor-General, Lord Dalhousie, and adopted by the East India Company's Court of Directors. It introduced "low and uniform" rates for sending mail efficiently throughout the country within the jurisdiction of the East India Company. The basic rate was 1/2 anna on letters not more than 1/4 tola in weight. The stamps were needed to show the postage was prepaid, a basic principle of the new system, like the fundamental changes of the British system advocated by Rowland Hill and the Scinde reforms of Bartle Frere. These reforms transformed mail services within India.

The East India Company already had attempted a 1/2 anna vermilion stamp in April 1854, known as the "9½ arches essay". This could not be produced in quantity because it required an expensive vermilion pigment not readily available from England, and the substituted Indian pigment destroyed the printing stones.

A new design for stamps, with Queen Victoria in an oval vignette inside a rectangular frame, was inscribed "EAST INDIA POSTAGE". These stamps were recess printed by De La Rue in England (who produced all the subsequent issues of British India until 1925). The first of these became available in 1855. They continued in use well after the British government took over the administration of India in 1858, following the 1857 Rebellion against the East India Company's rule. From 1865 the Indian stamps were printed on paper watermarked with an elephant's head.

The Reforms of 1866 and the Provisionals
The volume of mail moved by the postal system increased relentlessly, doubling between 1854 and 1866, then doubling again by 1871. The Post Office Act XIV introduced reforms by 1 May 1866 to correct some of the more apparent postal system deficiencies and abuses. Postal service efficiencies also were introduced. In 1863 new lower rates were set for "steamer" mail to Europe at 6 annas 8 pies for a 1/2 ounce letter. Lower rates were introduced for inland mail, as well.

New regulations removed the special postal privileges which had been enjoyed by officials of the East India Company. Stamps for official use were prepared and carefully accounted for to combat the abuse of privileges by officials. In 1854 Spain had printed special stamps for official communications, but in 1866 India was the first country to adopt the simple expedient of overprinting 'Service' on postage stamps and 'Service Postage' on revenue stamps. This innovation became widely adopted by other countries in later years.

Shortages developed, so these stamps also had to be improvised. Some of the "Service Postage" overprinted rarities of this year resulted from the sudden changes in postal regulations. New designs for the 4 annas and "6 annas 8 pies" stamps were issued in 1866. Nevertheless, there was a shortage of stamps to meet the new rates. Provisional six annas stamps were improvised by cutting the tops and bottoms from a current Foreign Bill revenue stamp, and overprinting "POSTAGE".

Another four new designs appeared, one at a time, between 1874 and 1876.

A complete new set of stamps was issued in 1882 for the Empire of India that had been proclaimed five years earlier, in 1877. The designs consisted of the usual Victoria profile, in a variety of frames, inscribed "INDIA POSTAGE". The watermark also changed to a star shape. These stamps were heavily used and are still quite common today.

Three stamps, featuring a detail from Heinrich von Angeli's 1885 portrait of Queen Victoria, in 2, 3 and 5 rupee denominations, were introduced in 1895. Other existing designs were reprinted in new colours in 1900.

Postal history of Indian states
British India had hundreds of Princely States, some 652 in all, but most of them did not issue postage stamps. The stamp-issuing States were of two kinds: the Convention States and the Feudatory States. The postage stamps and postal histories of these States provide great challenges and many rewards to the patient philatelist. Many rarities are to be found here. Although handbooks are available, much remains to be discovered.

The Convention States are those which had postal conventions (or agreements) with the Post Office of India to provide postal services within their territories. The adhesive stamps and postal stationery of British India were overprinted for use within each Convention State. The first Convention State was Patiala, in 1884, followed by others (Chamba, Farikdot, Gwalior, Jind and Nabha) between 1885 and 1887. The stamps of the Convention States all became invalid on 1 January 1951 when they were replaced with stamps of the Republic of India valid from 1 January 1950.

The Feudatory States maintained their own postal services within their territories and issued stamps with their own designs. Many of the stamps were imperforate and without gum, as issued. Many varieties of type, paper, inks and dies are not listed in the standard catalogues. The stamps of each Feudatory State were valid only within that State, so letters sent outside that State needed additional British India postage.

 * Below is a list of the Convention states and Feudatory Indian states:

Both Faridkot and Jind, as feudatory states, issued their own stamps before they joined the Postal Convention. Faridkot joined on 1 January 1887. Jind joined in July 1885; its stamps from the feudatory period became invalid for postage, but they continued to be used for revenue purposes.

The early 20th century
In 1902 a new series depicting King Edward VII generally reused the frames of the Victoria stamps, with some color changes, and included values up to 25 rupees. The higher values were often used for the payment of telegraph and parcel fees. Generally, such usage will lower a collector's estimation of a stamp's value; except those from remote or "used abroad" offices.

The 1911 stamps of King George V were more florid in their design. It is reported that George V, a philatelist, personally approved these designs. In 1919 a 1½ anna stamp was introduced, inscribed "ONE AND HALF ANNA", but in 1921 this changed to "ONE AND A HALF ANNAS". In 1926 the watermark changed to a pattern of multiple stars.

The first pictorial stamps appeared in 1931. The set of six, showing the fortress of Purana Qila, Delhi and government edifices, was issued to mark the government's move from Calcutta to New Delhi. Another pictorial set of seven stamps, also showing buildings, commemorated George V's Silver Jubilee in 1935.

The stamps issued in 1937 depicted various forms of mail transports, with King George VI's effigy appearing on the higher values. A new issue in 1941, constrained by the austerity of World War II, consisted of rather plain designs using minimal amounts of ink and paper. As Indian Post Offices annually required some billions of stamps for postage, as a measure of economy the large pictorial stamps were immediately withdrawn and smaller stamps were issued. Even this did not ease the paper situation and it was thought desirable to reduce the size even more.

A victory issue in January 1946 was followed in November 1947 by a first Dominion issue, whose three stamps were the first to depict the Ashoka Pillar and the new flag of India (the third showed an aeroplane).

Postage stamps were generally issued separately from the revenue stamps. However, in 1906, the set of King Edward VII stamps were issued in two values, half anna and one anna with the caption "INDIA POSTAGE & REVENUE". The George V Series (1911 to 1933) added two more values, two annas and four annas to the Postage & Revenue stamps. These dual-purpose issues were an exception and generally the two types were issued separately.

India Security Press
From 1 January 1926 all printing and overprinting of India' postage stamps was conducted at India Security Press, Nasik. The possibility of printing postage stamps and other security items in India had been enquired into before the First World War but could not be pursued at that time. In 1922, the feasibility of this issue was explored in England by Lt Col C.H. Willis, C.I.E., then master of the Bombay Mint, and Mr F.D. Ascoti, I.C.S., Controller of Printing, Stationery and Stamps. Their favourable report, followed by a successful demonstration of production techniques in Delhi in 1923, led to the decision of the Government to establish a security press at Nashik. The responsibility of setting up the Press was entrusted to none other than the London firm of Thomas De La Rue which already had a six-decade long association with Indian stamps. The construction began in 1924 at an original estimate of Rs 27½ lakhs and was completed in 1925 with additional costs of Rs 67 and 1/400,000.

The printing of stamps at Nasik began in 1925. The first stamps produced were the definitive series of George V, printed using typography from the same plates used earlier in England by De La Rue, which were now transferred to India. The watermark was changed by the Press to multiple stars. Lithography was now re-introduced and the first stamps printed with this technique were the first Air Mail series of 1929. The Security Press continued to use typography for most stamps, reserving the lithographic process for the most important commemorative issues, the next being the 1931 series commemorating the inauguration of New Delhi as the seat of government in 1931. The one rupee stamp shows the Secretariat and Dominion Columns. This practice continued after independence. The first definitive series to be issued was the misnamed "Archaeological" series of 16 values; the top four values were produced by lithography and the remaining values by typography.

The new technique of photogravure printing was installed in 1952. The October 1952 series of six values on the theme of Saints and Poets was the first to be so produced. However, these were not the first photogravure stamps of India, having been preceded by the first Gandhi series of 1948, which were printed by Courvoisier of Geneva using the photogravure technique. Since then, photogravure has been used to produce all Indian stamps; typography and lithography being reserved for service labels only.

Independent India
The First Stamp of Independent India was issued on 21 November 1947. It depicts the Indian Flag with the patriots' slogan, Jai Hind (Long Live India), on the top right hand corner. It was valued at three and one-half annas.

A memorial to Mahatma Gandhi was issued 15 August 1948 on the first anniversary of Independence. Exactly one year later a definitive series appeared, depicting India's broad cultural heritage, mostly Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Sikh and Jain temples, sculptures, monuments and fortresses. A subsequent issue commemorated the inauguration of the Republic of India on 26 January 1950.

Definitives included a technology and development theme in 1955, a series all showing the map of India in 1957, denominated in naye paisa (decimal currency), and a series with a broad variety of images in 1965.

The old inscription of "INDIA POSTAGE" was replaced in 1962 with "भारत INDIA", though three stamps issued between December 1962/January 1963 carried the earlier inscription.

India has printed stamps and postal stationery for other countries, mostly neighbours. Countries which have had stamps printed in India include Burma (before independence), Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Portugal, and Ethiopia.

The Indian Postal Service today
The Department of Posts, operating as India Post, is a government-operated postal system, simply referred to within India as "the post office". With its far-flung reach and its presence in remote areas, the Indian postal service provides many services such as small savings banking and financial services. As of 31 March 2011, the Indian Postal Service has 154,866 post offices, of which 139,040 (89.78%) are in rural areas and 15,826 (10.22%) are in urban areas. It has 25,464 departmental POs and 129,402 ED BPOs. At the time of independence, there were 23,344 post offices, which were primarily in urban areas. Thus, the network has registered a sevenfold growth since Independence, with the expansion primarily in rural areas. On an average, a post office serves an area of 21.23 sq;km and a population of 7,114 people. India is believed to have the most widely distributed system in the world (China has 57,000, Russia 41,000 and the United States 38,000 offices). This proliferation of offices results from India's history of having many disparate postal systems, eventually unified in the Indian Union after Independence.

India has been divided into 22 postal circles, each circle headed by a Chief Postmaster General. Each Circle is further divided into Regions comprising field units, called Divisions, headed by a Postmaster General, and further divided into units headed by SSPOs & SPOs and Sub Divisions headed by ASPs and IPS. Other functional units like Circle Stamp Depots, Postal Stores Depots and Mail Motor Service exist in various Circles and Regions. Besides the 22 circles, there is a special Base Circle to provide the postal services for the Armed Forces of India. The Base Circle is headed by an Additional Director General, Army Postal Service holding the rank of a Major General.

Gandhi, Nehru and other historic personalities continued to appear on the postal issues coming from the country since Independence, with almost half a century seeing the Gandhi definitives of denominations most frequently used in the era concerned, becoming synonymous with a postage stamp to the Indian people of that respective time period. New themes are now finding their place on Indian postage stamps, with some stamps issued jointly with postal agencies of other countries, renewable energy sources, the local flora and fauna and even the special annual issues wishing season's greetings. On 9 March 2011 India Post launched an online e-post office. The portal provides electronic money orders, instant money orders, stamps for collectors, postal information, tracking of express and international shipments, PIN code search and registration of feedback and complaints online.

National Philatelic Museum
The National Philatelic Museum of India was inaugurated on 6 July 1968 in New Delhi. It had its beginning at a meeting of the Philatelic Advisory Committee on 18 September 1962. Besides the large collection of India Postage stamps designed, printed and issued, it has a large collection of Indian states, both confederate and feudatory, early essays, proofs and colour trials, a collection of Indian stamps "used abroad" and as well as early Indian postcards, postal stationery and thematic collections.

The museum was extensively renovated in 2009. It now includes more exhibits, a philatelic bureau and other postal objects such as beautiful Victorian post boxes.

An international philatelic exhibition was held from 12 to 18 February 2011, on the centenary of India's first official air mail. For the occasion of INDIPEX 2011 India Post brought out a special stamp on Mahatma Gandhi to commemorate the event. It is printed on khadi, the handspun cotton material that Gandhi held out as the symbol of self-determination and self-reliance. The Presentation Pack was released by Pratibha Patil, the President of India on Saturday 12 February 2011 at INDIPEX 2011, the World Philatelic Exhibition held in New Delhi, the capital of India.

References and sources

 * References

 * Sources
 * (1905) The Adhesive Fiscal and Telegraph Stamps of British India. Calcutta: Thacker, Spink & Co.
 * . (1907) The Postage and Telegraph Stamps of British India. London: Stanley Gibbons for the Philatelic Society of India.
 * (2008). Rare stamps of the world. Army Philatelic Society, Mumbai.
 * (1948) The One Anna and Two Annas Postage Stamps of India, 1854–55. Philatelic Society of India, H. Garratt-Adams & Co. and Stanley Gibbons, Ltd., London
 * (1985). "The Sind District Dawk," The Collectors Club Philatelist v. 44 no. 2 (March 1965) pp. 79–85.
 * . (1951) Encyclopedia of British Empire Postage Stamps v.III, pp. 131–6. "The Sind District Dawk," pp. 149–152.
 * . (1930). The Four Annas Lithographed Stamps of India, 1854–55. Philatelic Society of India and Stanley Gibbons Ltd., London.
 * (1928). The Half Anna Lithographed Stamps of India. Published for the Philatelic Society of India, Lahore, 1928.
 * (1995) Early History and Growth of Postal System in India. Calcutta, RDDHI-India. ISBN 81-85292-07-8 [The postal history through 1858]
 * (1990) The Imperial Post Offices of British India. Calcutta, Phila Publications.
 * (1989) Notes for the Indian Stamp Collector. Army Postal Service Historic & Philatelic Society. Pratibha Printing Press, New Delhi.
 * (1986) The Stamp Atlas. London: Macdonald. ISBN 0-356-10862-7
 * : various catalogues.
 * . (1904). British Indian Adhesive Stamps (Queen's Head) Surcharged for Native States, rev. ed. with B.G. Jones.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
Wikipedia talk:Deletion policy/Archive 1

Old talk
I do not want to see this list of "deleters" expanded. I do not wish to see a hierarchy develop at the Wikipedia and certainly having a select group of people with this authority will create one. Additionally the decision to bestow this right on a given person could fuel dissent from those who feel "entitled" for whatever reason but have been "overlooked".

The three people with deleting authority (at present) are all Bomis Inc employees. The rule that "Bomis employee = deleting privileges" is simple and non-controversial. Three people should be more than adequate to handle the responsibilities. Anyone else can use the Page titles to be deleted to direct admin people to these pages. - MMGB

 * I agree wholeheartedly, Manning. I would tell 'em to earn their keep, except that we're not paying them. -MichaelTinkler

 * I completely agree as well. Having some volunteers with deleting powers and others without would be disasterous, IMO. Leave such powers with the official administrators. --Stephen Gilbert

What you say makes a lot of sense. Right now, the deleting workload is minimal. By the time it's too much for Bomis employees, we'll be able to pay more people to work on the project, I imagine. (Right now the project doesn't even pay for me. :-) ) --LMS

Is it okay if we have Wikipedia policy/Pages which have been permanently deleted (or maybe Wikipedia/Page titles which have been permanently deleted)? It would be useful (and interesting) to know what's been permanently deleted; note that Magnus's software will give us this log automagically, if we want. --TheCunctator

 * I'd rather such a log was kept off-site, and where miscreants couldn't easily find it and simply ressurrect the deleted pages. - MMGB

I tend to agree, MMGB. I don't feel very strongly about this, but the risk of abuse by admins in deleting pages is far smaller than the risk of abuse by vandals of the information of what pages were deleted. The only reason to have the "deleted pages" list displayed is to let people know that everything is above-board, which is a really excellent reason. I don't really care if sober adults see what pages I've deleted, and indeed it might help the sense of openness the community naturally has, some small amount, if they can see what pages I've deleted. But, again, I'm not sure that is more important than removing the incentives to vandalism, which such a list might be. --LMS

 * Why don't we try it, and if it becomes an incentive to vandalism, we can take it down or change the situation? I'm glad you can see the merits of the proposal. --TheCunctator

 * I actually don't think the proposal has much merit. I really don't see what purpose the list would have.  I also don't think that your personal page on Meta-Wikipedia is the place for such a list, Cunctator.  Eh? --LMS

 * I do. Eh? --TheCunctator

 * I'm sorry you feel that way, C. I'm going to have to insist that you not use it for that purpose.  --LMS

What about other Wikipedias? Who´s going to perform a "good practices code" on our pages? As we're quite "forgotten sons", who will take care of us? I mean, the Spanish one on which I´m working now, for instance, had suffered from vandalism on Basque Country pages, obviously related to the political status, and the evidence is still there. Are you going to look after our pages?.--Edgar

The problem with the other Wikipedias is that we don't speak those languages well enough to help; I think the best we can do, until we raise enough money to hire people to lead those projects, is to lead by example. I wish it could be different. --LMS
 * For each non-English Wikipedia, you could assign a Wikipedian or two who speaks that language fluently and who you can trust to delete pages there. -- SJK

 * If someone trustworthy wants to volunteer, sounds good. Could someone make appropriate changes to the non-English Wikipedias page and other relevant pages? --LMS

- My admittedly newbie opinion is that misspelt names should not be allowed in. This is, after all, a reference work. Inaccuracies should be purged. Wayne Gretszky is what sent me searching for a page talking about deleting pages. ATM Gretszky redirects to Wayne Gretzky, but is it really beneficial? Eventually search engines will update and dead links will phase out. --Colin dellow

I have seen that it is very desirable not to delete pages, but only do #REDIRECTs, will be keep doing that, even when a page is some mispelling (especially mistyping, like Wofgang Amadeus Mozart)?

If there is a consensus that some pages should be deleted every now and then, I'd put the previous one on the list.

I think the suggestion to keep all pages came as a means of avoiding dead links in search engines. I've encountered similar mispellings (Martin Scorcese); I would like to do away with them also but I'm not sure it would be a good advertisement for Wikipedia to leave dead links. I guess whatever action is taken depends on how common the misspelling is? It seems that wikipedia does not fuzzy-match search results; is that the case? - I think there are two things discussed here. One is deletion of data. I don't like that. The other is moving data from an unsuitable location (a misspelling) to a correct one. I don't think this is a problem.

If someone creates a new page with a misspelled name and you spot it the day after, I think it's a good idea to move the data and remove the misspelled entry. Of course you should also use search to make sure that any other links to the page are changed. If the misspelling is on an old page so that it can be suspected of being in search engines like [|Google], then I guess a redirect is better. --Pinkunicorn

Hi Pink, a redirect in that case is definitely better. Since ordinary users can't delete pages but only the data they contain, you might as well make the page with the misspelled title point to the one with the correctly spelled title. We do this all the time, and search engines like it (why not give poor spellers a positive result for their trouble? So Wikipedia catches the poor speller traffic--grand!). Colin, it would have been a little better to have asked this question in the FAQ or on Wikipedia chat rather than making an entire new page for it. By this time we have thought through most of the basic issues, so it's not a matter of debate, it's a matter of us informing you what the consensus is. --User:LMS

Ah, my mistake. For some reason I thought the proper system here would be to put freshest comments at the top of the page, hence the misleading positioning of my comment. I didn't create this page, it just appeared to be the most proper forum when I ran a search. Anyway, question answered, lessons learned, one step closer to being better informed. :) --User:Colin dellow

Oh, I thought this page looked familiar! I think it's a really old one. Sorry, Colin. As you can see, I was indeed confused by the position of your comment. Isn't interesting how the place where your comment is put conveys semantic information... --User:LMS

Just to add one more thought, the cost of having a misspelling with a REDIRECT is probably pretty low, and it's not like some is going to have a page on someone else name of Wayne Gretszky. The only disadvantage I see is that it makes search results somewhat noisier; ideally having a way to tag a page as not being searchable, only reachable directly might be nice to have. Though first I want search results to put the best result -- pages with the request name in them -- at the top of the search list. --User:Belltower

I think I want to strike rule number three:
 * Do not delete anything that might in the future become an encyclopedia topic. Hence, just because someone has written a completely worthless article about John Doe, that doesn't mean we should permanently delete the topic, John Doe, from the database.

Someone (I think Jimbo, at least) has made the point that, if we do not permanently delete blank articles from the database, others, working on topics that link to the blank article, might think that an article exists. Moreover, there really isn't any particularly good reason to save many archives for presently blank articles. Perhaps we could make a rule to the effect that if, in our opinion, the archive is for some reason valuable, we won't delete the blank article; otherwise (which means in most cases), we should.

What do you all think? Shall we strike it? I think we should. --LMS
 * I agree Larry. If the page is blank, I say delete it. However, I'd make an exception for blank pages which can sensibly be redirected to another page which has content. -- SJK

Hm, I just posted to wikipedia-l about that asking for a clarification. Koyaanis Qatsi, Saturday, April 6, 2002

- Wouldn't Policy on permanent deletion of pages be a better page title? I really don't care for the double wikipedia. This will be changed over by me if nobody objects. --maveric149

 * Well, I object -- this is a discussion of policy, not the policy itself... JHK 08:27 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

The main page certainly has the appearance of more or less settled policy — it's even protected. I agree with maveric149.

— Toby 11:08 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

Hi, may I ask why we're deleting subpages that have been around for a long time, instead of leaving them as redirects? I just teased Ed Poor for wanting to delete a bunch of subpages of Middle Earth, since these have all been archived by search engines. I guess I was wrong; they're being deleted by the truckload! I remember people being chastised on Votes for deletion for voting for these pages. Now anybody that does a Google search for the words "Middle-earth" and <fill in the blank with most anything> (look at Article deletion log and try it for yourself!) will quickly come to the conclusion that following Wikipedia links is a waste of time. Are we really having space issues that these redirect orphans can't continue to bring in traffic from search engines? — Toby 03:19 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

 * Toby, at first I removed all the text from (and requested deletion of) the "subpage" articles. Then, after discussion with LDC and Maveric and Brion, I started just replacing the text of subpage articles with REDIRECTs to the new articles. This has left several dozen blank pages, I'm afraid. But soon Google and other search engines will have re-indexed Middle-earth and every part of it (even Rivendell) will be instantly available. Ed Poor 08:47 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

But why are we going out of our way to create broken links in search engines, even temporarily? As mentioned, this seems reasonable is space is an issue, but not otherwise. I've seen this come up several times before, and I never noticed a consensus that we should delete instead of redirect — OTC, popular opinion seemed to go the other way. Did I miss a (public) discussion somewhere? — Toby 11:08 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

I forgot, there's another reason not to delete these: We no longer know what their history is (unless we look in ). Thanks to Julie's talk page for reminding me. — Toby 11:17 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

 * I should also point out that the "Move page" feature of the wiki software (is this still restricted to sysops?) automatically creates a redirect from the old title to the new title. ---Brion VIBBER

 * Yes, it's still resticted to sysops — see next item. — Toby 11:38 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

I just want to say that I am in 100% agreement with Brion and Toby about not deleting old page titles when their content has been moved to a new page title. My reasoning is in many other places so (See Talk:Middle-earth). I will, however, recreate any deleted page title as a redirect if it is deleted solely because it is no longer the article's title. --mav 19:32 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

Good for you! Too bad that that doesn't restore the history (unless it was moved by secrect sysop superpowers). — Toby 13:27 Jul 25, 2002 (PDT)

(I'm separating the two distinct issues for clarity of presentation.)

Yes, the "Move page" feature's still resticted to sysops. — Toby 11:38 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

 * Should it be? Some of these massive renaming projects would go a lot smoother using it; for one thing, edit histories wouldn't be divided over two pages. --Brion VIBBER 11:59 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

I think the main reason it was originally restricted is that it was buggy and dangerous. If it proves to be more safe and reliable, I think unrestricting it would be fine. I'll ask the list, though. --Lee Daniel Crocker

 * It's certainly had some exciting bugs in the past, but seems to be safe now. Any additional bugs are only going to turn up if it gets used, so... --Brion VIBBER

Well, I just reported a bug with it. Not one that would have caused much harm if even an anonymous user had been involved, but we may want to gamma test (if that's the correct word) more first. In theory, however, I see no objection to Brion's implicit suggestion to open things up. — Toby 12:28 Jul 24, 2002 (PDT)

 * Noted; I've submitted a fix for the bug, as yet untested. I dunno about anonymous users, but we might 'gamma test' it by opening it up to all logged-in users (just like image uploads). Keep banging on it and yell when it breaks... --Brion VIBBER

Suggestion for non-existing pages
I have a suggestion for deleted pages. After all, most other sites feel free to rearrange their content and have Googlers occasionally land on 404 pages. However, other sites usually give helpful links, whereas Wikipedia gives a cryptic "Describe the new page here".

With that in mind, I suggest that we alter the behaviour of the software when pages that don't exist are browsed. This would be just for pages accessed with a regular URL, "ghost" links and "edit new" pages are not affected. This would allow us to keep our database clean of redirects from old page names.

Text of requested page would read:

 * The page you have requested from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia does not appear to exist on the system.
 * It may have been moved to:
 * < insert results of a page title search on the URL text here, if the load on the server allows it >
 * You can try a search :
 * If the page does not exist, you can write it yourself ( suitable quick intro to the wiki concept & link to "welcome newcomers" )
 * If the page does not exist, you can write it yourself ( suitable quick intro to the wiki concept & link to "welcome newcomers" )

 * Tarquin, please submit this to the Feature Requests tracker; it's a good idea and less likely to get forgotten there. --Brion VIBBER

 * Will do. -- Tarquin 09:10 Jul 25, 2002 (PDT)

Bullet 6
This policy is vague, especially bullet 6. I think the policy should be the inverse: "Do not delete pages that can become an encyclopedia article in the future." Jeronimo

 * Second that opinion. There has been some movement to delete stubs, but I tend to expand more stubs than I create new articles, so it'll be hard to convince me of their redundance... -Ato

 * I think there must be some useful content to even consider a page an stub. If i go to the most wanted list, follow the first 100 titles and create pages that say "This is a most wanted article" i will eliminate them from the most wanted list, and create hundreds of links with no information. Those should be permanently deleted immediately, without even listing them in the votes for deletion page. However we should make sure that in the whole history of the page there is no information either. Newly created nonsensical pages would qualify to summary deletion. If this is discussed somewhere else,please point me there. AstroNomer

 * I agree. Delete no content entries on sight. --mav

Copyright violations
How long should we wait after someone has noticed a copyright violation before deleting it? -phma

 * You should try to rewrite it so it no longer is in violation. Lir 10:24 Oct 23, 2002 (UTC)

 * I say a week so long as the content is replaced by our copyright violation boilerplate. --mav

Mimos Berhard was deleted. It is not listed as being deleted on the deletion log but it is gone. (?)

 * I believe you mean Mimos Berhad, which is alive and well. --Brion 10:31 Oct 23, 2002 (UTC)

QUOTE: Do not delete anything that might be a common misspelling of a title. Redirect those pages to the correct spelling. (This can actually result in higher traffic to the website. E.g., if philisophy is created, we might as well just redirect it to philosophy, since "philisophy" is one of the common misspellings of "philosophy.")

No wonder this sight has problems. With this golly, gosh, fellas, if we keep misspellings we will get more hits, I would bet that not one single person who was involved in coming to this brillant conclusion has ever run a SUCCESSFUL business. You don't gain viewers (clients) by offering garbage, you get them by quality and that is particularly true of something purporting to be an Encyclopedia. Note GOOGLE says: Did you mean???? - If the powers that be think this nonsense should continue then at least insert the words: MISSPELLED - REDIRECTED TO: XYZ ....DW

 * There's certainly a case for an alternate redirect syntax. I've been pondering for a while the idea of having #MISSPELLING foo for these. -- Tarquin 23:59 Dec 18, 2002 (UTC)

Delete the page - PERIOD! This is a learning site, not one to confuse and delay people in their searches. The redirect setup now causes confusion. It is time to get professional. I have no objection to crappy, incomplete articles, (although the laziness tees me off) but they can and will be fixed eventually as part of the building process. Get rid of the redirects: It turns people away when three variations, of which 2 are misspelled, show up as your Encyclopedia's choice? PREPOSTEROUS & AMATEURISH.....DW

 * Surely deleting these redirects will "confuse and delay people". Somebody searches for "philisophy" now, they find the article they want, and because "philosophy" is spelled correctly within that article, they learn how to spell the word to boot. Delete the redirect and the searcher finds nothing. I don't see how that would be an improvement. --Camembert

 * I agree. There is no reason to delete common mispellings. BTW DW, it is "site" not "sight". --mav

 * I agree as well. BTW mav, it is "misspellings", not "mispelling". :) Chas zzz brown 00:48 Dec 19, 2002 (UTC)

 * BTW, Mav misspelled the plural, not the singular :-) At least correct the correct tense, if you are going to correct it... -- RTC 00:53 Dec 19, 2002 (UTC)

 * Insert foot here -> O: Exactly why we should support common misspellings. --mav

What a bunch of nonsense! Stop with the little "club" patting each other's back (I've seen it before from you guys), and use your brains, limited though they obviously are. This site (and I always call it "SITE" unless my limited little brain is running faster than my fingers), has 'not been successful because of its lack of direction from someone with SUCCESSFUL business experience. Morons want to maintain the status quo because of their lack of business acumen combined with tunnel vision and the need to control. Get real! Encyclopedias, none, nowhere, no how, zip, rien, offer spelling variations. It's this lunacy that is sinking Wikipedia and one day soon all the hard work of people with a PROFESSIONAL attitude who make REAL contributions, will evaporate. Rarely does one encounter such blatant stupidity. It is obvious that you have no business training or experience so GROW UP....DW

 * Very drôle. --Camembert


text:
User:Lord Kenneth

I'm back.

title: User:Lord Kenneth


text:
Diamond jubilee

A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th anniversaries,  although the human lifespan makes this usage more common for institutions.

Western monarchies
George III of the United Kingdom died a few months before his diamond jubilee was due in 1820. The Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria celebrated her 60-year reign on 22 June 1897. The Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II, was celebrated across the Commonwealth of Nations throughout 2012.

Asian monarchies
In East Asia, the diamond jubilee coincides with the traditional 60-year sexagenary cycle, which is held in special importance despite not generally being called a "diamond jubilee." Monarchs such as the Kangxi and Qianlong emperors of China and Emperor Hirohito of Japan held celebrations for their 60th year of reign, as did King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand on 10 June 2006.

National governments also mark their 60th anniversary as diamond jubilees, as did the Republic of Korea in 2005 and the People's Republic of China in 2009. In South Asia, the term is also used for certain 100-day anniversaries. In the Indian and Pakistani film industries, a "diamond jubilee" film is a title that has been featured in cinemas for 100 days, and beyond.

African monarchies
The longest reigning monarch in history, Sobhuza II of Swaziland, celebrated his (60 year) diamond jubilee in 1981, dating from when he gained direct rule. There does not appear to have been any (75 year) diamond jubilee celebration.

List of diamond jubilees
In 1984, the phrase "Diamond Jubilee" was used by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in its logo for the sixtieth anniversary of the studio. In 2015 it marked Disneyland Park's Diamond Jubilee to celebrate 60 years.
 * [[File:Emperor Franz Joseph on the balcony of Schönbrunn Palace on the occasion of his 60th Jubilee.jpg|thumb|Emperor Franz Joseph on the balcony of [[Schönbrunn Palace]] on the occasion of his 60th jubilee]]

title: Diamond jubilee


text:
Talk:Charles Perrault

Where did Perrault get his ideas?
This article seems rather misleading as it suggest he invented the stories. --Imran 13:54 20 Jul 2003 (UTC)

 * Nah, The Grimm Brothers gathered the German folklore versions, basically the same, about 120 years later. --Lalli 08:30, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

The Wikipedia articles on Little Red Riding Hood, Folklaw and Fairy Tales all credibly agree with Imran/Imran -- Perrault was, like most of the other "writers" of fairy tales, primarily a collector of traditional tales, and like most of them he rewrote and/or blended different versions. 60.230.180.102 (talk) 03:31, 10 July 2010 (UTC)

Neither of these comments mitigates Imran's initial observation. The article's first sentence is misleading in its use of "as if" and should be modified. Sterlingjones (talk) 19:17, 14 July 2010 (UTC)

Wow, Charles Perrault is Great! Grimm Brothers stole many Storys from him. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.246.196.113 (talk) 13:20, 30 April 2014 (UTC) His elbow — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.76.32.94 (talk) 02:27, 29 September 2015 (UTC)

About "Paris France"
"Charles Perrault was born in Paris, France to a wealthy bourgeois family." In some circles "Paris" just does mean "Paris-France." Paris, Kentucky is widely referred to as "Paris, Kentucky" if it is discussed at all. In my family, some of whom live in Louisville actually, anyone using the expression "Paris-France" hears a murmer of "not Paris, Kentucky" interpolated among his attentive listeners. Thus: "Charles Perrault was born in Paris France not Paris Kentucky to a wealthy bourgeois family."

I hope every reader will make the same mental interoplation whenever they read the words "Paris, France." Thus, though one dare not correct the usage, one may still derive some entertainment. Wetman 00:19, 7 Jul 2004 (UTC)

Perrault's Personal Life?
What about Perrault's personal life? It says he had a son but there is no mention of a mother or significant other. When interpreting Perrault's stories it is extremely important to be aware of his everyday interactions, his personal relationships, the political and social discourse, etc... Context is ESPECIALLY important throughout the Revolutionary Period in France; take J.J. Rousseau's childhood experiences and relationships into account, for example, to more accurately interpret and analyze his patriarchal/mysogynistic ideologies. -MMMM 12/3/05

 * You may be right but, as you know, Perrault’s time is almost a century before Revolution. And data about writers’ spouses in that time is usually scarce. --בוב • تآثر   12:10, 2 December 2011 (UTC)

Confusing Text
This paragraph needs to be clarified:

"In 1682, Colbert gave his son, Jules-Armand, marquis d'Ormoy, the same tasks as Perrault and forced him into retirement at the age of fifty-six. Colbert would die the next year, and he stopped receiving the pension given to him as a writer. Colbert's successor, François-Michel Le Tellier, marquis de Louvoi, who was jealous of Colbert, quickly removed from the Little Academy."

I could assume all the pronouns refer to Perrault, but I know nothing about him. I think they need to be assigned. Also, the last sentence is missing a word or something. Maybe a pronoun. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mdaedalus (talk • contribs) 20:24, 3 January 2011 (UTC)

Mdaedalus highlights the worst of the difficult passages, but there are others. I will try to clean up what I can, but it really needs the attention of someone with more attention than me to go to the sources and figure out what the original author was trying to say. Tdimhcs (talk) 20:16, 31 July 2011 (UTC)

 * I've cleaned up the paragraph to make sense:
 * In 1682, Colbert forced Perrault into retirement at the age of fifty-six, assigning his tasks to his own son, Jules-Armand, marquis d'Ormoy. Colbert would die the next year, and Perrault stopped receiving the pension given to him as a writer. Colbert's successor, François-Michel Le Tellier, marquis de Louvoi, who was jealous of Colbert, quickly removed Perrault from his other appointments.
 * --Thnidu (talk) 05:34, 12 January 2016 (UTC)

This statement doesn't make sense: 'In 1695, when he was 67, Perrault lost his post as secretary. He decided to dedicate himself to his children.' His children were born during his brief marriage (1672 - 1678) to Marie Guichon. In 1695, his youngest child would have been 17, his oldest 21/22. A bit late to be focusing on them. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Keridwen666 (talk • contribs) 18:28, 6 April 2015 (UTC)

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title: Talk:Charles Perrault


text:
Demographics of Wales

Demographics of Wales include population, place of birth, age, ethnicity, religion, and number of marriages in Wales.

Historical population

The population of Wales doubled from 587,000 in 1801 to 1,163,000 in 1851 and had reached 2,421,000 by 1911. Most of the increase came in the coal mining districts, especially Glamorganshire, which grew from 71,000 in 1801 to 232,000 in 1851, and to 1,122,000 in 1911. Part of this increase can be attributed to the demographic transition seen in most industrialising countries during the Industrial Revolution, as death-rates dropped and birth-rates remained steady. However, there was also a large-scale migration of people into Wales during the Industrial Revolution.

Current population
The 2021 census showed Wales' population to be 3,107,500, the highest in its history. In 2011, 27 per cent (837,000) of the total population of Wales were not born in Wales, including 636,000 people (21 per cent of the total population of Wales) who were born in England. The main population and industrial areas are in South Wales, including the cities of Cardiff, Swansea and Newport and the nearby valleys, with another significant population in the north-east around Wrexham and Flintshire.According to the 2001 census, 96 per cent of the population was White British, and 2.1 per cent non-white (mainly of British Asian origin). Most non-white groups were concentrated in Cardiff, Newport and Swansea. Welsh Asian and African communities developed mainly through immigration after the Second World War. In the early 21st century, parts of Wales saw an increased number of immigrants settle from recent EU accession countries such as Poland, though a 2007 study showed a relatively low number of employed immigrant workers from the former Eastern Bloc countries in Wales compared to other regions of the United Kingdom. The 2001 UK census was criticised in Wales for not offering Welsh as an option to describe respondents' national identity. Partly to address this concern, the 2011 census asked the question "How would you describe your national identity?". Respondents were instructed to "tick all that apply" from a list of options that included Welsh. The outcome was that 57.5 per cent of Wales' population indicated their sole national identity to be Welsh; a further 7.1 per cent indicated it to be both Welsh and British. No Welsh national identity was indicated by 34.1 per cent. The proportion giving their sole national identity as British was 16.9 per cent, and another 9.4 per cent included British with another national identity. No British national identity was indicated by 73.7 per cent. 11.2 per cent indicated their sole national identity as English and another 2.6 per cent included English with another national identity.

The 2011 census showed Wales to be less ethnically diverse than any region of 'England and Wales': 93.2 per cent classed themselves as White British (including Welsh, English, Scottish or Northern Irish), 2.4 per cent as Other White (including Irish), 2.2 per cent as Asian (including Asian British), 1 per cent as Mixed, and 0.6 per cent as Black (African, Caribbean, or Black British). The lowest proportion of White British (80.3 per cent) was in Cardiff.

In 2001, a quarter of the Welsh population were born outside Wales, mainly in England; about 3 per cent were born outside the UK. The proportion born in Wales varies across the country, with the highest percentages in the South Wales valleys and the lowest in Mid Wales and parts of the north-east. In both Blaenau Gwent and Merthyr Tydfil, 92 per cent were Welsh-born, compared with only 51 per cent and 56 per cent in the border counties of Flintshire and Powys. Just over 1.75 million Americans report themselves to have Welsh ancestry, as did 440,965 Canadians in Canada's 2006 census.

The total fertility rate (TFR) in Wales was 1.90 in 2011, which is below the replacement rate of 2.1. The majority of births are to unmarried women (58 per cent of births in 2011 were outside marriage). About one in 10 births (10.7 per cent) in 2011 were to foreign-born mothers, compared to 5.2 per cent in 2001.

Vital statistics
(c) = Census results.

Place of birth
According to the 2011 census 2.2 million (73%) of the usual residents were born in Wales, a reduction of two percent since 2001. In 2001, 590,000 (20%) of the population of Wales was born in England. By 2011, the proportion of English-born citizens of Wales had increased by one percent to 21%. In 2011, 27% (837,000) of the total population of Wales were born outside Wales, and of these immigrants 636,000 (76%) were born in England.

Below are the 5 largest foreign-born groups in Wales according to 2014 ONS estimates.

Age
According to the 2011 census, some 563,000 of the population were aged 65 and over, an increase of 56,700 or one percent since 2001. As in 2001, six per cent (178,000) of the population in Wales were children under five, an increase of 11,300.

 * Source: 2011 Census: Usual resident population by five-year age group and sex, local authorities in the United Kingdom, Accessed 23 December 2012

2011
A question on national identity was asked in the 2011 census: "What do you feel is your national identity?" Respondents could identify themselves as having one or more national identity.

An analysis of the 2011 data by Manchester University's Centre on Dynamics of Ethnicity revealed that:
 * 58% identified as "Welsh only"
 * 16% identified as "British only"
 * 12% identified as "English only"
 * 7% identified as "Welsh and British"

The remainder chose other national identities. The Welsh-Caribbean population were the most likely to respond as "Welsh Only", at 59% of 11,099 citizens.

2018
A 2018 poll, commissioned by the BBC and carried out by YouGov, found that almost eight in 10 (79%) people in Wales identified strongly as British; while six in 10 (62%) identified strongly as Welsh.

2020
A 2020 YouGov poll asking a sample of 1110 people "Which, if any, of the following best describes the way you think of yourself?" found the following responses:

 * 21% "Welsh not British"
 * 17% "More Welsh than British"
 * 22% "Equally Welsh and British"
 * 9% "More British than Welsh"
 * 17% "British not Welsh"
 * 11% "Other"
 * 3% "Don't know"

Summary
Total Welsh at all: 69%

Total at least more Welsh than British: 38%

Total at least more British than Welsh: 26%

Ethnicity
According to the 2011 census, 2.2 million (73%) of usual residents of Wales were born there, two percent less than in 2001. The change can be attributed to both international and internal migration. In 2001, 590,000 (20%) of the population of Wales was born in England. In 2011, this had increased by one percent. Nearly 418,000 people identified themselves as Welsh in 2001. The 1991, 2001 and 2011 census estimated the following ethnic groups:

Notes for table above

 * Source: Census 2001 Key Statistics - Urban area summary results for local authorities KS06 Ethnic group, Retrieved 18 June 2013
 * Source: Census 2011: Ethnic group, unitary authorities in Wales, Accessed 23 December 2012

Religion

 * There are no solid statistics covering Christian denominations in Wales. Its still clear that the Presbyterian Church of Wales, a Nonconformist denomination, and the Church in Wales that split from the Anglican Church have historically been the largest. Important to Wales are Nonconformist denominations becoming a staple of Wales in the 18th century and until the 16th century Roman Catholicism. The translation of the Bible into Welsh by William Morgan in 1588 not only helped the survival of the Welsh language (after the Laws in Wales Acts effectively outlawed it in public life) but also enabled a faster uptake of Protestantism.
 * A Jewish community has existed in Wales since the 13th Century or earlier, but there are now only ~2,000 Jews left (since peaking at around 5,000 in 1913)—and most live in the Cardiff area. There used to be enough Jews to sustain synagogues in valleys communities like Merthyr Tydfil and Tredegar, but there are now only three active synagogues in the whole country.
 * Wales before Christianity had a Celtic religion. Wales retained Celtic aspects in the church during the Middle Ages.

Language
The 2011 census collected information about English and Welsh language proficiency. In 2011, 2.9 million (97%) of residents age three and over spoke English or Welsh. In a further 18,000 households, at least one adult spoke English or Welsh. In 22,000 households, no resident spoke either language. There were 562,000 (19%) residents over age three proficient in at least speaking the Welsh language. This was a reduction of approximately two per cent compared to 2001, though the method of analysis differed between the two censuses. There was also a two per cent increase in those over three years of age who had no Welsh language skills.

 * Source: 2011 Census: KS207WA Welsh language skills, unitary authorities in Wales, Accessed 23 December 2012

The most common main languages spoken in Wales according to the 2011 census are shown below.

Marriage and civil partnership
In 2011, those who were married were still the largest marriage or civil partnership status group in Wales for residents aged 16 and over, though since 2001 this group has decreased by 37,000 (over 5%). In contrast, single people (i.e. those who have never married or been part of a same sex partnership), have increased by 190,000 (6%) in the ten-year period. Civil partnerships, which were given legal status in 2005, appear for the first time in the census results. The number of widows, widowers and surviving partners is 20,000 lower than in 2001. The final groups, relating to separation and divorce or legal dissolution of civil partnerships, have both seen an increase in both numerical and relative terms since 2001.

Table key
 * Single = Single never married or registered a same-sex civil partnership)
 * Divorced or legally dissolved = divorced or formerly in a same-sex civil partnership which is now legally dissolved
 * Widowed or surviving partner = Widowed or surviving partner from a same-sex civil partnership
 * Separated = Separated (but still legally married or still legally in a same-sex civil partnership)
 * Civil partnership = In a registered same-sex civil partnership

 * Source: 2011 Census: KS103EW Marital and civil partnership status, unitary authorities in Wales, Accessed 23 December 2012

Military staff and veterans
Out of all the armed services, the Army has the largest presence in Wales, with over 1,400 personnel based there. As of 2019, there were 3,230 military and civilian personnel based in Wales.

In the 2021 census, around 115,000 people in Wales reported that they had previously served in the armed forces, around 4.5% of usual residents in Wales aged 16 years or older.

Miscellaneous data

 * Population density (2006): 143 people per square kilometre
 * Fertility rate: 1.90 (2007)
 * In 2010, 58% of births were outside marriage in Wales. Currently, Wales and Scotland are the only countries of the United Kingdom where the majority of births are outside of marriage (51.3% of births in Scotland in 2012 were outside of marriage). Wales (along with Scotland) also had the highest death rate (10.9 per thousand) in 2005.

title: Demographics of Wales


text:
Channel 4 News

Channel 4 News is the main news programme on British television broadcaster Channel 4. It is produced by ITN, and has been in operation since Channel 4's launch in November 1982.

Channel 4 News
Channel 4 News is the name of Channel 4's main evening news programme.

The editor is Esme Wren, appointed in 2022. The programme is presented by Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Cathy Newman, Matt Frei, Jackie Long and Fatima Manji and is on the air Monday to Thursday from 7:00 to 7:55 pm, Friday from 7:00 to 7:30 pm, and at variable times at weekends. Alex Thomson is the chief correspondent.

Channel 4 News is among the highest-rated television programmes in the United Kingdom, winning a record five Royal Television Society Television Awards in February 2006. These included TV Journalist of the Year for Jon Snow, Home News Award for the Attorney-General leak, and the International News Award for Congo's Tin Soldiers.

It won the News Coverage British Academy Television Award in 2004 and the 2004 International Emmy for the best news programme produced and aired outside the United States. Jon Snow won the Richard Dimbleby British Academy Television Award in 2005 for outstanding contribution to the world of news and current affairs.

In November 2011, Liam Dutton became Channel 4's first ever weather presenter, joining from BBC Weather. The exposé of Cambridge Analytica in conjunction with The Guardian and The New York Times which aired in 2018 was awarded a Peabody Award.

In April 2021, Channel 4 and ITN announced that Snow would leave the programme after 32 years. His last show was on 23 December 2021.

Channel 4 News Summary
A replacement for the Channel 4 News at Noon in the 12.00 pm slot, it first aired on 21 December 2009, giving a five-minute summary of the news.

Channel Four News at Noon
Channel Four News at Noon was first introduced in 2003 for the duration of the Iraq War, and due to its instant success, it was kept on in Channel 4's daytime schedule (except when live Horse Racing was being broadcast). It was presented by Krishnan Guru-Murthy. Prior to this bulletin, the programme in the slot was Powerhouse, a political news programme, also produced for Channel 4 by ITN. As a consequence of the advertising slowdown during the 2009 recession, the programme was cancelled, along with More4 News and replaced with the five minute Channel 4 News Summary, the last broadcast airing on 18 December 2009.

More4 News
Aired Monday to Friday on sister channel More4, More4 News was anchored by Sarah Smith then later Kylie Morris, it ran for 30 minutes, aiming to go in-depth into a certain issue. As a consequence of the advertising slowdown during the 2009 recession, the programme was cancelled, along with the Channel Four News at Noon, the last broadcast airing on 18 December 2009.

Current newscasters

 * Krishnan Guru-Murthy (1998–present, Lead presenter 2022–present)
 * Matt Frei (2011–present)
 * Cathy Newman (2011–present)
 * Ciaran Jenkins (2012–present)
 * Jackie Long (2015–present)
 * Fatima Manji (2016–present)

Former newscasters

 * Sarah Hogg (1982–85)
 * Trevor McDonald (1982–89)
 * Gavin Scott (1982–86)
 * Peter Sissons (Lead presenter 1982–89)
 * John Suchet (1982–1988)
 * Sandy Gall (1983–84)
 * Alastair Stewart (1983–87)
 * Sue Turton (1983–2010)
 * Carol Barnes (1984–92)
 * Sonia Ruseler (1984–92)
 * Nicholas Owen (1985–91)
 * Sue Carpenter (1988–90)
 * Zeinab Badawi (1989–98)
 * Jon Snow (Lead presenter 1989–2021)
 * Fiona Armstrong (1990–91)
 * Dermot Murnaghan (1992–95)
 * Alex Thomson (1999–2004)
 * Samira Ahmed (2000–11)
 * Katie Razzall (2005–2015)
 * Sheena McDonald

Correspondents/editors

 * General
 * Alex Thomson (Chief Correspondent)
 * Fatima Manji (Special Correspondent)
 * Ayshah Tull (News Correspondent)
 * Symeon Brown (News Correspondent)
 * Kiran Moodley (Reporter)
 * Anja Popp (Reporter)

 * Political
 * Gary Gibbon (Political Editor)
 * Paul McNamara (Senior Political Correspondent)

 * Specialist
 * Jackie Long (Social Affairs Editor)
 * Victoria Macdonald (Health and Social Care Editor)
 * Darshna Soni (Communities Editor)
 * Andy Davies (Home Affairs Correspondent)
 * Helia Ebrahimi (Economics Correspondent)
 * Ciaran Jenkins (Data Correspondent)
 * Minnie Stephenson (Culture Correspondent)
 * Ruben Reuter (Disability Correspondent)
 * Jordan Jarrett-Bryan (Sports Reporter)

 * National
 * Clare Fallon (North of England Correspondent)
 * Kathryn Samson (Scotland Correspondent)

 * International
 * Lindsey Hilsum (International Editor)
 * Matt Frei (Europe Editor)
 * Secunder Kermani (Foreign Affairs Correspondent)
 * Paraic O'Brien (Foreign Affairs Correspondent)
 * Jamal Osman (Africa Correspondent)
 * Siobhan Kennedy (Washington Correspondent)
 * Guillermo Galdos (Latin America Correspondent)

Source:

Non-broadcast media
Channel 4 News also produces a variety of non-broadcast media, including a range of journalist authored blogs to deliver insight and analysis of the news from the news team. Channel 4 News also produces Snowmail, a free daily email from the news reporter team, giving their personal take on the day's news agenda and behind-the-scenes newsroom goings-on.

Historical roles
In 2003, Channel 4 News broke the story of the Dodgy Dossier which led to a political crisis in Britain.

The story of the Conservative Party's election expenses scandal was first broken, and then pursued for over a year, by Michael Crick.

In March 2018, an undercover investigation by Channel 4 News explored the campaign activities of Cambridge Analytica.

Retractions
On the evening of the 2017 Westminster attack, Channel 4 News claimed they were able to name the dead attacker as Abu Izzadeen, also known as Trevor Brooks. The claim was repeated by The Independent and the Daily Mirror. However, Channel 4 News was forced to issue an on-air retraction during the same bulletin after Izzadeen's solicitor stated that he was alive and serving time in prison.

Theme music
The music in the Channel 4 News titles is an orchestration of "Best Endeavours" by Alan Hawkshaw. It was introduced a few months after the channel's launch, and has remained in use since its inception.

title: Channel 4 News


text:
Postal history

Postal history is the study of postal systems and how they operate and, or, the study of the use of postage stamps and covers and associated postal artifacts illustrating historical episodes in the development of postal systems. The term is attributed to Robson Lowe, a professional philatelist, stamp dealer and stamp auctioneer, who made the first organised study of the subject in the 1930s and described philatelists as "students of science", but postal historians as "students of humanity". More precisely, philatelists describe postal history as the study of rates, routes, markings, and means (of transport).

A collecting speciality
Postal history has become a philatelic collecting speciality in its own right. Whereas traditional philately is concerned with the study of the stamps per se, including the technical aspects of stamp production and distribution, philatelic postal history refers to stamps as historical documents; similarly re postmarks, postcards, envelopes and the letters they contain. Postal history can include the study of postal rates, postal policy, postal administration, political effects on postal systems, postal surveillance and the consequences of politics, business, and culture on postal systems; basically anything to do with the function of the collection, transportation and delivery of mail. The specialized area of philatelic history defines postal history as the study of rates charged for postal services provided, routes followed and special handling of letters. Areas of special interest include disrupted or transitional periods, such as wars and military occupations, and mail to remote areas.

The philatelic-based definition of the term developed as the discipline developed. Philatelic students discovered that understanding and authentication of stamps depended on knowing why postal authorities issued particular stamps, where they were used and how. For instance, a stamp apparently used before any other stamp of its type could be proved a forgery if it was postmarked at a location known not to have received any stamps until a later date.

Much information is still not known about the workings of postal systems, and millions of old covers have survived, constituting a rich field of "artifacts" for analysis.

Possible areas of study
In studying or collecting any postal history subject some overlap is inevitable because it is impossible to separate the different areas that affect the mail from one another; transportation, rates, geography and subject are all intertwined, but the emphasis remains different depending on the chosen topic. The postal history topics described below are some of the better known and popular topics.

Geographically based studies

 * Regional studies are typically based on a geographical area, such as countries of origin, native districts, cities, towns or villages, places associated with family roots, or workplaces. In the past collectors usually based their studies on "mail from," but "mail to" and "mail through" a place expand the postal service story because outgoing mail mainly shows marking associated with the areas of study while incoming mail tells a much broader story and are now more likely to be included. It is best to select a topic to study that is broad enough because narrow geographical boundaries will likely bring frustration due to the lack of material available. Examples are: Postal History of Brünn 1638-1875, and Private and Foreign Post Offices in St. Thomas.
 * Postal routes are alternate geographical based study areas that provide great variety due to the many places and services available along a route. For instance; a study of the Thurn und Taxis route from Antwerp to Florence via Mantua would include much of the early postal history of Western Europe and the Postal History of the First Transcontinental Railroad can show a good range of stamps, stationery, and associated marking across 3,000 miles that started in 1869.

The era for a geographical based study can add dimension depending on the services available or the changes that took place. The period should seek to tell a complete story and not limit the chosen topic.

Transportation based studies

 * Aerophilately specialises in the study of airmail. Philatelists observe the development of mail transport by air from its beginning, and most aspects of airmail service have been extensively studied and documented by specialists, some of which are individually listed. Crash covers, Imperial Airways Empire route mail to Australia and South Africa, CAM (Contract Air Mail) or FAM (Foreign Air Mail) routes to and from the United States are a few topics.
 * Balloon mail was employed during the Siege of Paris to get mail out of the city during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870. Balloons can be both manned and unmanned but balloon mail is not a common form of mail transport.
 * Maritime mail is a theme that offers a wide variety of possibilities. Study of a particular shipping line like, Cunard, P & O, Danube steamers, South American packets or American steamboat mail are a few options as are; Ship Letter marks, mail between a mother country and its colonies or mail between two countries separated by seas or oceans. Many ships applied their own endorsements so collecting examples of all ships of a particular shipping line can be aspired to. Maiden voyages and wreck covers are very desirable. Maritime mail rates changed frequently and occasionally varied for different shipping lines over the same route that could be due to treaty changes or arguments between countries that involved retaliatory rates. Naval mail can also fall in the Military mail category and are also known to apply identifying endorsements or postmarks.
 * Railway mail refers to mail carried partly, or fully, by rail transport from its inception in 1830 between Liverpool and Manchester in the UK until its decline in the late 20th century that include Railway letter stamped mail, TPO and RPO handstamps, instructional handstamps or manuscript notations, or even the First transcontinental railroad (also mentioned as a geographic study above).
 * Rocket mail is the delivery of mail by rocket or missile and is a specialised collecting area of aerophilately called Astrophilately. One of the early famous rocketeers was Stephen Smith, a Secretary of the Indian Airmail Society, who launched 270 rockets between 1934 and 1944 of which 80 contained mail. Other topics for consideration are: USPS rocket mail from 1936 or 1959 launches, Russian submarine-launched rocket mail, or reusable launch vehicle mail.
 * Zeppelin mail is a popular topic for the mail carried on the German Zeppelin airships between 1908 and 1939. Much mail exists because up to 12 tons was carried on each flight. Mail from within Germany and from the several trans-Atlantic flights are extant however mail from the famous Hindenburg disaster are very scarce.

Subject based studies

 * Express mail is an accelerated delivery service for which the customer pays a surcharge and receives faster delivery. Haste Poste Haste letters of the 17th century can be considered precursors of modern Express mail as was the Pony Express mail. The service for domestic mail is governed by a country's own postal administration but since 1998 the international accelerated delivery services are governed by the EMS Cooperative of the Universal Postal Union (UPU). Studies of domestic, or international express mail are possible as are studies of the Express mail rates.
 * Marcophily is the study of postmarks, cancellation and postal markings applied by hand or machine. Though not strictly speaking a postal history topic can be collected as such. It offers vast areas to select a topic for study or collection as the marcopholist is more interested in the details, style and design of the markings than the reason why and where a letter was sent. Large cities that have many post offices offer great study opportunities due to the vast range of handstamps or machine cancellations in use over any time period.
 * Military mail is mail associated with any of the armed services or peacekeeping forces, or formed around any particular military campaign, like the First and Second Opium Wars, Spanish Civil War, World War I and II, or even the recent conflicts in Afghanistan or Iraq. Covers mailed from navy vessels are also widely sought, the cover usually having a distinctive postmark bearing the ship's name and date of mailing, the date often being of particular historical significance and interest. Many older letters from these sources, when available, provide insight into the conditions of the people involved.
 * Parcel post is perhaps the least collected, or studied, area of postal history due to the size of potential material much of which is never saved. From 1883 Special labels were applied to parcels in Great Britain. International parcels handling tend to gather Customs evidence making for attractive material.
 * Postal censorship, both overt and covert, has been performed on mail long before the World Wars of the 20th century and can include both civil and military censorship. It has mainly taken place during times of conflict though has also been performed during other times like; periods of civil disorder or a state of emergency. An example of covert postal censorship is the Cabinet noir.
 * Postal rates are an extensive area of study that can be made by country, time period, or even currency. Postal rates were often set bilaterally, by postal conventions between nations, such as the 1817 and 1837 postal treaties between France and Prussia, and the 1847 and 1853 conventions between the United States and Bremen (a city-state at the time). Stamp collectors may study the rates in effect during the time of issue of the postage stamps they collect thereby augmenting their collections.
 * Postal stationery are mailable products, issued by postal authorities, such as envelopes, letter sheets, postcards, lettercards, aerograms or wrappers, on which the amount of postage has usually been pre-printed with an imprinted stamp or indicium, at the rate required for a particular postal service. Postal stationery is generally sold at post offices. Each stationery type can be an area of study in its own right but can also be studied by country or by time period. Studies of mint (unused) postal stationery are considered to be traditional philately, while studies of how postal stationery was used are considered to be postal history.
 * Pre-adhesive mail also called pre-stamp mail is mail used before the issuance of the Penny Black and Two pence Blue stamps on 6 May 1840 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and in other countries, mail used prior to the postal authority adopting their own adhesive labels. The material can range from court and government letters before official public mail services to distinctive town-marks worldwide.
 * Prisoner-of-war mail can be a subcategory of either, or both, Military mail or Postal censorship.
 * Registered mail are often used to mail items, or documents, considered valuable and need a chain of custody that provides more control than regular mail. The letters have their details recorded in a register to enable their location to be tracked and offer many distinctive handstamps. Many countries have issued special postal stationery for Registered mail expanding the possible areas being studied beyond regular registered letters. Earlier similar services were known as Money Letters

title: Postal history