STELLALAND
The area was conquered and annexed by the Boers when in 1882 they established the
republic of Stellaland and then proceeded to establish the republic of Goshen further north. The Boers proclaimed Stellaland to be under Transvaal protection.
A postal service was organised and stamps were printed. These stamps however were only valid within Stellaland.
The British sent out a force which, without a shot being fired, led to Bechuanaland, including Stellaland, being formally taken under
British protection on the 30th September 1885. Two areas were established - British Bechuanaland and the Bechuanaland Protectorate
BRITISH BECHUANALAND
The area to the south of Molopo river was constituted as a crown colony and named as British Bechuanaland. Stamps were produced by overprinting Cape of Good Hope and
British stamps. The first stamps were issued in December 1885.
Postal Agencies were opened in Bank Drift, Keimoes, Kuruman, Macloustie, Palachwe, Poedomoe, Setlagloi and Vryburg Station.
Then on the 16th November 1895 it was annexed to the Cape
Colony and it ceased to have its own stamps.
BECHUANALAND PROTECTORATE
The large portion to the north of the Molopo river became the Bechuanaland Protectorate. From June 1890 to 1897 stamps of British Bechuanaland
were used in the Bechuanaland Protectorate. Seperate issues were introduced for the Bechuanaland Protectorate by overprinting Cape of Good Hope
and then British stamps. In 1932 when the first definitative stamps were printed for the protectorate.
BECHUANALAND
In 1965 the Becuanaland Protectorate was granted self-government and was renamed as Becuanaland.
BOTSWANA
On the 30th September 1966 Bechuanaland became the independent republic of Botswana.
Philatelic Societies
The Philatelic Society for Greater Southern Africa PSGSA focuses upon all philatelic areas
related to the following past and present stamp-issuing entities and
areas: Anglo-Boer War, the Bechuanalands, Botswana, British Central
Africa, Cape of Good Hope, Griqualand East/West, the Homelands, the
Interprovisional Period, Lesotho, Local Posts, Malawi, Namibia, Natal,
New Republic, the Nyasalands, Orange Free State/Colony, the
Pre-Adhesive Period, the Rhodesias, South West Africa (German &
British Periods), Stellaland, Swaziland, Transvaal, Union/Republic of
South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Zululand.
The Bechuanaland and Botswana Society (UK) The Society was formed in 1985 by and for
people with an interest in philatelic history of the region. This includes postage and revenue stamps,
postal stationery, post offices and postmarks, postal rates and mail
routes of the region known at various times as Stellaland, British
Bechuanaland, Bechuanaland Protectorate and Botswana.
GB Overprint Society (UK) The GB Overprints Society (GBOS) helps members and collectors to explore the many ways and reasons why British stamps and other
postal material have been overprinted, whether it is for use outside the UK or for special functions within the UK.
This opens up a wide variety of avenues, which will interest not only GB collectors who want to find out other uses of their favourite stamps,
but also collectors of particular countries or themes.
Postmark and Postal History Society of Southern Africa
The Philatelic Federation of South Africa
PO Box 9248, Cinda Park 1463, South Africa
Stellaland Forgeries
The Republic of Stellaland founded in January 1883 issued its one and only set of stamps in February 1884. Less than two years later, in September 1885,
a British expeditionary force under Sir Charles Warren abolished the Republic and formally annexed it to British Bechuanaland.
The Newspaper Wrappers of British Bechuanaland
by Peter Thy Story of the newspaper wrappers used in British Bechaunaland from
January 1887 and in the Bechaunaland Protectorate from 1892 until
stocks were exhausted of the 1890 issue sometime about 1910.
The Overprinted ½d British Newspaper Wrappers
by Peter Thy and John Inglefield-Watson A detailed examination of the three printings of these newspaper wrappers by De la Rue in September 1887, May 1890 and November 1891.
The authors have identified two different cancelling bars on the five-line wrapper.
(archive copy via Way Back Machine)
Forged British Bechuanaland Newspaper Wrappers
by Peter Thy and John Inglefield-Watson
"...we describe and discuss two wrappers overprinted ‘British Bechuanaland’ and believed to be
forgeries. The main point of the discussion is to present the forgeries and to illustrate the ambiguity involved in distinguishing between
essays and forgeries"
(archive copy via Way Back Machine)
Tati Concessions Limited
In 1864 gold was discovered in the Tati area, then part of the Matebele Kingdom, some 18
miles from Francistown, in the Bechuanaland Protectorate. In 1887 the Matebele chief, Lobengula,
granted a concession to S H Edwards. Mining rights were vested in Tati Concessions Limited.
Tati Concessions Limited were given permission by the British Government to produce stamps for
fiscal purposes. In 1895 six stamps were produced, a 1s deep carmine, a 2s 6d deep blue, a 5s
violet, a 10s grey green, a £1 pale blue and a £5 orange. Some of the lower values were
used for postal purposes.
Books on Bechuanaland Philately
Bechuanalands & Botswana, postal marking classification (typology)
By Brian Trotter, published by the Bechuanalands & Botswana Society, 1995
The Bechuanalands: a brief history of the countries and their postal services to 1895
By Adrian Albert Jurgens, published by the Royal Philatelic Society, London, 1946
The Early Postal History of the Griqualands and the Bechuanalands
by Ken Baker, Occasional Paper No 6, published by Postmark and Postal History Society of Southern Africa, 1983
Introduction & usage of postal orders in Bechuanaland Protectorate
By Peter Davis Thy, published by Krone Publications, 1994
The Macloustsie post office and its postmaster, Bechuanaland Protectorate 1892
By J E Symons & Peter Davis Thy, published by Krone Publications, 2002
The Postage Stamps, Postal Stationery and Postmarks of the Bechuanalands
by H R Holmes, published in 1971 by the Royal Philatelic Society
The Postal History of Basutoland & Bechuanaland Protectorate
by Edward Wilfrid Baxby Proud, published by Proud-Bailey, 1996, 382pp, ISBN 1872465110 General history, postal history, postal rates, post offices, postmarks, bibliography etc.
The postage stamps, envelopes, wrappers, post cards, and telegraph stamps of the British colonies, possession and protectorates in Africa, Part 1:
comprising British Bechuanaland, British East Africa, British South Africa (including British Central Africa
By Edward Denny Bacon, published by The Philatelic Society, London, 1895, 1900
The Postal Stationery of the Bechuanalands and Botswana
by Peter Thy and John Inglefield-Watson, published by British Philatelic Trust, 2004, 192pp, ISBN 1871777135 This book is the result of many years of research in existing collections, archives and other sources. They lists in excess of 200
different items of issued stationery, including major varieties, about 45 different ‘Specimens’ and 50 essays and proofs.
Revenues of Southern Africa, Part 1: The Bechuanalands
By Brian Trotter & Neville Midwood, 2003
The Shelley Catalogue of the Decimal Surcharges on the stamps of Basutoland, Bechuanaland and Swaziland
by P N Bullivant, published by Stamp Collecting Ltd, 1962, 24pp
BRITISH BECHUANALAND
PSGSA focuses upon all philatelic areas
related to the following past and present stamp-issuing entities and
areas: Anglo-Boer War, the Bechuanalands, Botswana, British Central
Africa, Cape of Good Hope, Griqualand East/West, the Homelands, the
Interprovisional Period, Lesotho, Local Posts, Malawi, Namibia, Natal,
New Republic, the Nyasalands, Orange Free State/Colony, the
Pre-Adhesive Period, the Rhodesias, South West Africa (German &
British Periods), Stellaland, Swaziland, Transvaal, Union/Republic of
South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Zululand.
Collect Botswana Definitives 