|
|
This page - Royal Events : Philatelic Events
Headlines - 2 year Siege of Leningrad lifted.... Battle of Monte Cassino.... GB Education Act.... Germans occupy Hungary.... Rome falls to Allies.... Operation Overlord - D-Day.... Germany launches V1 attack on England.... US invades Saipan, Guam.... Allies liberate Paris, Brussels.... London hit by V2 rocket.... Operation Market Garden.... Belgrade liberated by Partisans and Red Army.... Battle of the Bulge begins.... Albania liberated....
10 : 13 May - George visits the fleet at Scapa Flow 15 May - George attends the conference in London giving the final details of Operation Overlord, he has been kept aware of plans from their start. May : June - George visits troops in south England. Both the King and the Prime Minister wished to be part of D-Day, both had to be told this was not possible for the sake of the future of the country if anything should happen to them.
April - 5/- (series 8) booklet issued
Airmail - Trans-Atlantic wartime airmail is provided by American Export Air Lines, BOAC, Pan American Airways, Trans-Canada Air Lines, and the 'Mailcan' service by RCAF. February - the 'Mailcan' route is altered to go from Rockcliffe via the Azores and Gibraltar to Prestwick. The direct service to the UK is halted in November though further routes by 168 squadron are provided to Canadian troops in many theatres of war. 26 March - announcement that for operational reasons overseas airmail services were being suspended to - Gibraltar, Portugal, Azores, Cape Verde Islands, Switzerland, Morocco, Tangier, Algeria, Tunisia and Corsica. Service to POWs and internees in Europe (except Sweden) also suspended. Mail for Forces overseas continued, (except Gibraltar). 24 May - Scottish Airways start new airmail service between Inverness and Stornoway. Services limited to Monday, Wednesday and Fridays with plans to operate daily services later. 24 August - 6d air-letter service extended to Empire and British mandated territories in Africa, Asia and Pacific regions. 24 August - first mails carried eastwards on Qantas Indian Ocean route. Arriving Sydney 4 September. 31 August - temporary suspension of airmail service from UK to Switzerland due to suspension of German Berlin-Lisbon service. 11 September - Special air letter issued to celebrate Australia / UK airmail route from Perth, Australia via Ceylon (started 10 July 1943). Red imprint - 'RE-OPENING FLIGHT AUSTRALIA ENGLAND AIR MAIL SERVICE BY QANTAS EMPIRE AIRWAYS AND B.O.A.C. INVOLVING WORLD'S LONGEST REGULAR AIR HOP ACROSS THE INDIAN OCEAN'. [Old Australia - England route re-opens 9 April 1946]. 23 October - regular air service between London and Madrid starts. November - Railway Air Services starts London (Croydon) - Liverpool (Speke) service.
Other - 27 March - postcards to prisoners of war in the Far East introduced. Imprinted with a 3d stamp, (rate halved to 1½d in April, 1945).
Postmarks - All entries, except *, are taken from Special Event Postmarks of the United Kingdom by George R. Pearson. Published by the British Postmark Society, 1991 who give kind permission for reproduction.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
