Stamp History
=> Postage stamps were first introduced in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in May 1840 as part of the postal reforms promoted by Rowland Hill. With its introduction the postage fee was now to be paid by the sender and not the recipient as heretofore, though sending mail prepaid was not a requirement. The first postage stamp, the Penny Black, and two days later, the Two pence blue, with an engraving of the young Queen Victoria, were an immediate success though refinements, like perforations were instituted with later issues.



=> Other countries followed suit by introducing their own postage stamps; the Canton of Zürich in Switzerland issued the Zurich 4 and 6 rappen and Brazil issued the Bull’s Eyes stamps in the 1843. In 1845 some postmasters in the USA issued their own stamps but the first officially issued stamps came in 1847. A few other countries issued stamps in the late 1840s, but many more started in the 1850s and by the 1860s most countries of the world had issued postage stamps.