Lombardy 1859: the end of the Second Italian War of Independence. The Austrians have retreated, a provisional government is announced. But often, postal traces remained those of the past…
The postal service bears witness to the transition
On June 8th 1859, in Lombardy, the Austrian administration and army having been evacuated, a Provisional Government was set up that remained in power until July 31st, when Turin took over. The Provisional Lombard Government did not have its own stamps, as for example was the case in the Romagnas.
As early as June 30th, the old imperial stamps were declared out of circulation, albeit with a margin of tolerance until July 3rd, and were replaced by Sardinian stamps. As in all emergency situations, there were plenty of special cases, which are highly sought after nowadays. In Treviglio, which was liberated on June 12th, a yellow 2 soldi from the second Lombardy-Venetia issue was used to pay the postage for an item of correspondence addressed to the priest of Pagazzano, a small town not too far off. The envelope was accepted without any trouble at the post office and, despite the fraught situation, it got to its destination. The second piece offers some additional points of interest. It left Milan on July 18th 1859 for Ferrara, and is correctly franked with two 40 centesimi stamps from the 4th issue of Sardinia. This is an early form of registered letter: one stamp is stuck onto the address side, while the other, which escaped cancellation, is on the back, as was the custom for registered mail. Despite the “new” 40 centesimi stamps, there’s still a reference to the past: firstly in terms of the tariff, as expert Giacomo Bottacchi has certified. The amount was the equivalent of the 15 soldi needed for mail sent to the third interval of countries in the Austro-Italian league. Moreover, the cancellations are still those of the previous regime. They would only be replaced by the Italian Sardinian ones later on. This item is available for sale as part of our online stock, lot number 20118-632.
On June 8th 1859, in Lombardy, the Austrian administration and army having been evacuated, a Provisional Government was set up that remained in power until July 31st, when Turin took over. The Provisional Lombard Government did not have its own stamps, as for example was the case in the Romagnas.
As early as June 30th, the old imperial stamps were declared out of circulation, albeit with a margin of tolerance until July 3rd, and were replaced by Sardinian stamps. As in all emergency situations, there were plenty of special cases, which are highly sought after nowadays. In Treviglio, which was liberated on June 12th, a yellow 2 soldi from the second Lombardy-Venetia issue was used to pay the postage for an item of correspondence addressed to the priest of Pagazzano, a small town not too far off. The envelope was accepted without any trouble at the post office and, despite the fraught situation, it got to its destination. The second piece offers some additional points of interest. It left Milan on July 18th 1859 for Ferrara, and is correctly franked with two 40 centesimi stamps from the 4th issue of Sardinia. This is an early form of registered letter: one stamp is stuck onto the address side, while the other, which escaped cancellation, is on the back, as was the custom for registered mail. Despite the “new” 40 centesimi stamps, there’s still a reference to the past: firstly in terms of the tariff, as expert Giacomo Bottacchi has certified. The amount was the equivalent of the 15 soldi needed for mail sent to the third interval of countries in the Austro-Italian league. Moreover, the cancellations are still those of the previous regime. They would only be replaced by the Italian Sardinian ones later on. This item is available for sale as part of our online stock, lot number 20118-632.