1947 Royal Wedding
British and Canadian Commemoration
Canada Post has announced that it will be issuing a stamp commemorating the upcoming wedding of Queen Elizabeth's grandson. In 1948, the Canada Post Office issued a commemorative stamp to celebrate Princess Elizabeth's wedding. This article was posted on my Great Britain Philately blog on January 28, 2011.
The wedding of Princess Elizabeth to Philip Mountbatten on November 20, 1947, was commemorated by both British and Canadian Post Offices. Since the wedding announcement was made on July 9, 1947, the British Post Office did not issue a commemorative stamp because there was insufficient time to prepare an issue. Instead, a slogan postmark was made for use from November 20 to the end of November. The Canadian Post Office issued a commemorative stamp for the wedding, but only after the event, in February, 1948.
British Commemoration
The British slogan postmark was designed by R.H. Higgins, draughtsman in the Power Branch office of the Engineering Department of the Post Office. The British Postal Museum and Archive website shows the drawings submitted by Mr. Higgins in August, 1947. The slogan cancellation featured wedding Bells with a lovers’ knot enclosing the letters ‘E’ and ‘P’:
Artcraft cachet
OHMS cover from Cardiff, November 20, 1947
A selection of "Lovers' Knot" covers
Canadian Commemoration
The stamp design was based on a photograph of Princess Elizabeth taken by Dorothy Wilding. The stamp was designed by Herman Schwartz, and the portrait was engraved by William Ford.
Photographic Essay
National Archives of Canada
Approved Model
Approved October 29, 1947
Royal Wedding Stamp
Date of Issue : February 16, 1948
First Day Covers
Usages
Domestic Letter
Kingston to Toronto, April 5, 1948
4 cents domestic forward letter rate
Disraeli, Quebec, to Sherbrooke, April 16, 1948
Sherbrooke & Quebec R.P.O.
Toronto Sub. 52 to Tilsonburg, March 9, 1948
4 cents domestic forward letter rate + 10 cents registration fee
Ottawa to Toronto, April 13, 1948
4 cents domestic forward letter rate + 10 cents express fee
Letter to the United States
Vernon to Buffalo, April 10, 1948
4 cents surface letter rate to the United States
UPU surface letter
The UPU surface letter rate was 5 cents.
Calgary to Berlin, May 18, 1948
5 cents UPU surface letter rate
Shortpaid 1 cent
Double deficiency (2 cents) was converted to gold centimes @ 1 cent= 3 gold centimes
Two Canadian tax handstamps
No German taxation markings
International Air Mail
Montreal to Vienna, April 4, 1948
15 cents 1/4 ounce air mail letter rate to Europe
Toronto to Bombay, March 9, 1948
25 cents 1/4 ounce air mail rate to India