Back Issue May 2021 Updated

THE POSTAL HISTORY OF BASUTOLAND

David MacDonald is a Scot with an affinity for collecting the colonial stamps of Basutoland, a mountainous kingdom surrounded by South Africa and known today as Lesotho. This is an enjoyable display covering a fascinating and difficult period in the development of the heartland of SA in the years following the Zulu Mfecane (“the crushing” of their enemies) and the Boers trek into the interior to find farmland and a secure homeland of their own. Land and security were things the Basutos wanted equally for themselves. The ensuing conflict with the OFS and Basutoland’s long association with the Cape colonial postal system is well-covered.

Any idea what the above were used for?

We think we might know. These particular examples were used to pay a ZAR transport tax on goods that were exempt from customs duties. Read how we came by this in the FORUM DISCUSSION

NOW SHOWING ON A SCREEN NEAR YOU
UPDATED 3rd May 2021

COMING VERY SOON:
The Postal History of German South West Africa, SWA & Namibia.
I began putting this display together about two months ago. As I wrote it up I became very angry about the great crime against humanity that was perpetrated in Namibia while under German colonial rule. I worried that I might offend many with my conclusions. I am greatly pleased that the German government has now recognised what happened and has called it what it was, a genocide. I am now free to write my display as honestly as I feel it must be done, in large part as a tribute to the murdered, some of whose faces we can see above.

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE
REVENUE STAMPS.

Part 1: VOC 1711 – 1791, Britain to 1825

John Fletcher has written three books on Cape of Good Hope Revenue stamps. He now feels that “it is appropriate to allow access on-line to interested collectors and researchers”. We greatly appreciate his generous gesture which helps the South African Philately Club grow as free and unrestricted on-line resource open to all. John’s display is entertaining and educating. I was soon absorbed in it! I recommend his work to all who have an interest in the history of the Cape.

THE DARMSTADT TRIALS

This display is for the philatelic purist passionate about paper, inks and printing processes. The ‘Darmstadt Trials’ were made to determine the best method of printing new Union of South Africa stamps. Supplied by Tony Howgrave-Graham, Chairman of the South African Collectors’ Society, this definitive collection is unrivalled. His coverage of the Shuck Maclean ink trials are unique. Our thanks to him for adding yet another Top Class display to the SAPC’s growing on-line archive!.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
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CONCENTRATION CAMP MAIL OF THE ANGLO-BOER WAR: 1899 – 1902

The arguably well-intended British ‘Refugee Camps’ of the South African War ultimately had a devastating effect on the Boers and the Black people unfortunate enough to find themselves trapped in these deadly ‘Concentration Camps’ for displaced people. This excellent display does not make easy reading. British indifference saw the Children’s Death Rate in the Camps reach a staggering 433 per 1000! I had to stop reading this the first time I tried. My thanks to David Mordant who has again generously made a previously paid-for article free to view here.

Sadly, I missed the Pretoria Philatelic Society (PPS) Zoom Meeting which was at 8.30 am. It is with early-bird enthusiasm like that that the PPS is re-inventing itself. Like most societies the PPS is using Zoom to spread its wings and attract international visitors.

I had prepared a ‘K is for….’ display which was that meeting’s theme. If you wish to see it as a PDF file, CLICK HERE.