British Virgin Islands: Restoration of Legislative Council

The featured postage stamp is one of a set of four issued in 1951 to commemorate the restoration of the Legislative Council of the British Virgin Islands – an event that had taken place as a result of the re-introduction of democracy in 1950. The British Virgin Islands are a British Overseas Territory (self-governing with

Jamaica: Self Government

The featured image is of a stamp issued between 1945 and 1946 to commemorate the New Constitution and Self-Government of Jamaica. The issue is typical of many following World War II that introduced sweeping decolonisation. As for many British colonies in the Caribbean, this represented a step in the transition from a Crown Colony to

Thematics: UK Postmark (Cancellation) Slogans

From the earliest adoption of adhesive postage stamps, postmarks have been used as an indication that the postage costs have been paid. Once postmarked, the postage stamp was ‘cancelled’ and could not therefore be reused. The use of postmarks to convey messages and slogans was initially reserved for the use of national institutions such as

St Vincent: Island Fortifications

A few weeks ago I posted a blog about the rather bizarre commission of HMS Diamond Rock, The Unsinkable ‘Stone Frigate’, as a fortification off the coast of Martinique. However, it seems that the propensity to occupy otherwise barren and hostile rocks in the Caribbean Sea for military purposes is not unique. A set of

Pitcairn Islands: Mutiny on the Bounty

The Mutiny on the Bounty is a well know tale of insurrection on the Royal Navy vessel HMS Bounty in the South Pacific on 28th April 1789. The mutineers seized control of the ship from their captain, Lieutenant William Bligh, setting him adrift in a launch with 18 loyalists. The story of Bligh’s navigation more

St Lucia: Rising from the Ashes

Built on reclaimed land and tucked away in the north west of a tropical Caribbean island, Castries is the capital and largest city of St Lucia. It lies on a flood plain but on 19 June 1948 was devastating by a fire that destroyed more than 75% of the city and led to a reconstruction

Jamaica: Local Artist Comes to the Rescue

Jamaica’s 1932 pictorial definitives were issued to support the growth in tourism that was sweeping the Caribbean and bringing a much needed economic boost to the islands. The issue featured vignettes selected by the Government Printing Works who were unfamiliar with the stamp design process. Local artist, Stella Shaw, came to the rescue and delivered

St Lucia: A Case of Unfortunate Timing

The 1936 King George V definitive issue was to be the first St Lucia definitive set for more than 20 years, replacing the portrait illustrations that had dominated for half a century. It was an impressive pictorial set of 12 pictorial designs in values from ½d to 10/ and each featuring a portrait of the