A POSTAL HISTORY OF ZWOLLE

Postal rates for domestic mail

Letters

In the Dutch Republic the postal rates were mostly set locally by the council of the city concerned. The postage was marked on the cover with red chalk.

In 1752, the year in which the Hollandse Statenpost was founded, a publication appeared with the rates charged by the postmasters in 1749, the Generale port-lyst van de Posteryen van de provincie van Holland en Westvriesland (GPL 1749). The list below includes the rates for letters from Zwolle, derived from various postal rate tables (PRT), including the Lijst der Brief-Porten met de Zeeuwse Land-Post (PZL) published on 30 July 1763.

The rates for letters from Zwolle were as follows:

Sometimes the town name was noted on reverse of the cover, so-called burineren, so that the postmaster could determine the correct rate at the place of arrival.

Letter from Zwolle to Leiden, 16 August 1777. Written on reverse in red chalk "Zwol". Postage to be paid by the addressee: 5 stuivers.

If the postage of a letter was partly prepaid, Franco and the relevant place name were noted on the cover. For letters to the southwest, Zwolle often had to go to the Entrepost Office Utrecht. This was an interchange office for mail to different directions. The Entreposte Office was located outside of the Wittevrouwenpoort of Utrecht.

Letter from Zwolle to Aardenburg in Zeeland, 5 July 1797 with handstamp ZWOLL. Indicated at bottom left: Franco Utrecht. The red diagonal line means prepaid. Postage to be paid by the addressee: rate Utrecht - Middelburg: 6 stuivers + Middelburg - Aardenhout: 2 stuivers, total 8 stuivers. To the left of the 6 there seems to be a handstamp, possibly from Middelburg.

Letter from Zwolle to Breda, 25 February 1806. At bottom left is written: F(ranc)o Utrecht. The postage is thus prepaid up to Utrecht. Postage from Utrecht to Breda: 4 stuivers, to be paid by the addressee. With EP in red, Entreposte Office Utrecht is indicated.

In 1806, the brother of the French Emperor, Lodewijk Napoleon, became King of the Kingdom of Holland. During his reign, on 1 July 1807, the first uniform postal rates by distance and weight were introduced by law (Law on the Postage of Letters of 17 april 1807; decision of the Director-General of 26 mei 1807 on postponement of introduction from 1 May to 1 July):

*) "One hour's walk, calculated at about 1.474 2/3 Rijnland Roeden, which a healthy, fresh and well-washed pedestrian can cover in an hour, without being fatigued, amounts to 5555,555 meters" (Koninklijke Almanak voor den Jare 1809, see also De Postzak 184, 1996).

Postal rate table of Zwolle in stuivers, in effect from 1 July 1807.

According to the Law on the Postage of Letters of 17 april 1807, Article 5, letters and parcels from certain institutions to Councils of Municipalities or Magistrates were only charged for the first weight class. This had to be indicated with a wax seal or cachet.

Letter from Zwolle to Hardenberg, 9 November 1811 of the Attorney Fiscal Taxation in the Department of the Mouths of the IJssel. From 1 April 1 1811, he enjoyed the free franking privilege, see below. According to the rules of 1807 he placed his wax seal on reverse of the letter, but that rule had been abolished from 1 April 1811: He should have placed his signature and function on front. However, on the front the rate "O" (nil) was indicated. Also the sender wrote on front "with ƒ 3-6-10 2/3 for the poor" (3 guilder 6 stuiver 10 2 / 3rd pennings). There were different rules for money shipments.

In 1810, King Louis Napoleon was deposed and our country was incorporated into the Empire of France. Zwolle became the capital of the 120th department "Bouches de l'Issel" (Mouths of the IJssel).

As of April 1, 1811, the French Instruction Générale sur les Services des Postes of 1810 (General Instruction for the Postal Service) comes into force. The French postal rates therefore apply, with a different distance and weight progression:

Letter from Zwolle to Breda, 4 November 1811. Rate 1st weight class, between 100-200 km: 4 décimes = 4 stuiver. Handstamp 120 / ZWOLLE.
Zwolle was then capital of the 120th department of the French Empire.

According to the Instruction Générale, on 1 April 1811, certain government employees could sent their mail free of charge. The free franking privilege was introduced in the Netherlands. In order to send his mail this way, the person concerned had to write down his position and name at the bottom left of the letter. The right to authenticate for free franking depended on the function and possibly the field of activity (resort). Higher authorities, civil servants and soldiers were allowed to use a cachet, the griffe.

Letter from Zwolle to Hasselt, 21 May 1812 with handstamp 120 / ZWOLLE. Bottom left sender handstamp SOUS PREFECTURE DE ZWOLLE / BOUCHES DE L'ISSEL with the French eagle. Postage was free for the mail from the police. Handwritten "Le sous-Prefet de l 'arrives at the Zwolle, E. de Carnini".

Letter from Zwolle to Staphorst, 2 May 1811 with handstamp 120 / ZWOLLE. The préfet enjoyed the free franking privilege. Instead of his handwritten name and function, the italic handstamp "Préfet Dépt. Des Bouches de l 'Issel" (a so-called griffe) was applied on the front.

Declaration of sick soldiers sent from Zwolle to Strasbourg, France, 1 August 1811. Handstamp 120 / ZWOLLE and oval clerk's griffe COMMISSAIRE DES GUERRES with signature. Written "Service Militaire". Certain military mail of the French army could be sent free of charge. In France, the "Franchise contraseign" was checked an a control handstamp in red was applied (the "paraphe").

After the departure of the French at the end of 1813, the French rates remained in force until 1 February 1815. However, Circular 16 stipulated that from 1 April 1814, for the taxation of letters and administrative calculations, Dutch money had to be used. Since the French décime was equal in value to the Dutch stuiver, this had no influence on the amounts we see on the letters.

On February 1, 1815, the French rates are replaced by the old Dutch tables of 1807, but the first weight class is now up to 1 lood or 15 grams (letters abroad: up to and including 15 grams); 1 to 1½ lood or 15 to 22½ grams: 1½ x the basic rate; then ½ x extra per ½ lood or 7½ grams, always rounded upwards in whole stuivers.

1 pound was 32 lood, 1 lood was 15,625 grams, but postally was calculated with 15 grams (KB 22-12-1814; Circular 42 of 9-1-1815).
Because now the distance was to be measured over the road, the postal rate could occasionally change to a certain location, namely if the postal route was moved there.

Many French postal officials had fled. New Dutch officials had some difficulty settling in. This led to errors in the initial phase, as in the letter below.

Letter from Zwolle to The Hague, 22 December 1813 with handstamp ZWOLLE, sent after the departure of the French. The department number 120 has been removed from the handstamp. The French postal rates still applied. Postage for a distance of 100 to 200 km, up to 6 grams: 4 stuivers. The postage was indicated on front but then removed again. Nothing had to be collected because the addressee enjoyed freedom of postage.

In 1818, new rate tables based on newly established distances in hours, measured over the actual distance from Post Office to Post Office, were introduced to standardize the distance measurement in the Northern and Southern Netherlands (nowadays Belgium).(Circular 117 of 18-5-1818). Each Post Office received a table of the postage to all Post Offices in the Netherlands for the first weight class.

On 1 January 1821, the French weight name "gram" is abandoned and the weight is now referred to in "wigtjes". 1 wigtje = 1 gram. In 1870 it was called "gram" again.
The weight progression becomes in 1821: up to 16 wigtjes 1 x basic rate, from 16 to 24 wigjes 1½ x, from 24 to 32 wigtjes 2 x and for every 8 wigtjes more ½ x extra (Circular 156 of 18-12-1820).

Letter from Zwolle to The Hague, 21 August 1825 with handstamp ZWOLLE. From 1 February 1815 the Dutch postal rates applied again. Postage to be paid by the addressee was now 5 stuivers, for a distance of 20 to 35 hour's walk (111 to 194 km), from 1821 is the first weight class up to a weight of 16 wigtjes.

From 1827 the postal rates are no longer in stuiver but in cents.On 1 January 1817, the cent is introduced as legal tender, but not until 1827 for the postal rates.

These rates remained valid until 1 September 1850.

Postal rate table of Zwolle in cents, 1827. Belgium then still belonged to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

On 1 September 1850, the rate for a letter of up to 15 wigtjes (grams) at a distance of up to 30 km was 5 cents, above 30 to 100 km 10 cents and above that 15 cents. The distance is now measured in the straight line (as the crow flies) from the middle of the town of the Post Office of dispatch to the middle of the town with the Post Office of arrival (Law of 12-4-1850 Stb 15).
The weight progression was: from 15 to 30 wigtjes 2 x, 30 to 50 wigtjes 3 x, 50 to 100 wigtjes 4 x basic rate.

From 1 September 1855 the distance limit of 100 km was abolished. Above 30 km the rate was then 10 cents.
The weight progression altered also: from 15 to 50 wigtjes 2 x, 50 to 100 wigtjes 3 x, 100 to 250 wigtjes 4 x the basic rate.

Postal rate table of Zwolle, 1850.

Letter from Zwolle to The Hague, 24 May 1867, franked with 5 cents 1864 issue in pair (plate II positions 64-65) cancelled with a framed FRANCO handstamp. Trial cds ZWOLLE Ø 20 mm in red. Rate for letters up to 15 wigtjes (grams), distance above 30 km: 10 cents.

The letter is addressed to the well-known Jan Rudolph Thorbecke, born in Zwolle, chairman of the Constitutional Committee in 1848 and thus the founder of Dutch parliamentary democracy.

The letter rates in scheme from 1 July 1807 to 1 January 1871:

Military concession rate

In the Instruction Générale of 1810, which came into force in our country on 1 April 1811, articles 181-186 stipulated that the rate for single, i.e. letters falling in the lowest weight class, up to 6 grams, to (i.e. not of) military personnel on active duty, "under the banners", serving on land or at sea, amounted regardless of distance 15 centimes or 1½ stuivers. According to Imperial Decree of 9 February 1810, no. 37, this only applied to non-commissioned officers and soldiers, i.e. below the rank of officer.

From 1 April 1814 this rate becameup to 6 grams, regardless of distance 2 stuivers, but only for letters to non-commissioned officers and soldiers in the Netherlands (Circular 16). In 1829 it was confirmed that the reduced rate also applied to the navy, but not to registered letters (Circular 220). As of 1 February 1815, the first weight class was increased to 15 grams, from 1 January 1821 to 16 grams or wigtjes. From 1 January 1827 the rates were expressed in cents, making the military rate 10 cents.

From 1 September 1850 up to and including 31 December 1870, the rate for letters to servicemen below the rank of officer up to 15 wigtjes (grams) was 5 cents (art. 10 Postal Act 1850). After 1870, this reduced rate still applied to letters from the Netherlands to military personnel below the rank of officer in the Dutch East Indies.

Letter from Hasselt (name handstamp of the Sub Post Office on reverse) via Post Office Zwolle (semi-circle datestamp ZWOLLE) to The Hague, 25 May 1854, franked with 5 cent 1852 issue. The normal rate for a letter was up to 15 wigtjes (grams) 15 cents, but this was sent to a non-commissioned officer, thus the rate was only 5 cents.
Approximately 16 letters franked for the military concession rate with the 1852 issue are known.

The military concession rates in scheme from 1 July 1807 to 1 January 1871:

Printed matter and newspapers

With the introduction of the Law on the Postage of Letters of 17 april 1807, proofs of printed documents, catalogs and notes of sales could be sent from 1 July 1807 according to a different weight progression: up to 6 lood: 2 stuiver, from 6 to 12 lood: 4 stuivers , from 12 to 18 lood: 6 stuivers, from 18 to 24 lood: 8 stuivers, then for every 4 lood or two ounces more: 2 stuivers.
Proofs and papers sent in this way were not allowed to be in an envelope, but only to be provided with two bands of paper crossed over each other (a cross band) and to bear the inscription: Proofs, catalogs or sales notes.
For newspapers and the like, the following rate applied: up to 16 lood: 2 stuivers, 16 lood up to 1 pound: 4 stuivers and then for every pound more: 2 stuivers.

As of 1 April 1811, the French Instruction Générale sur les Services des Postes of 1810 (General Instruction for the Postal Service) came into force. The rate for sending newspapers was from then: 4 centimes for each sheet of paper and 2 centimes for each half sheet; For bound books and prospectuses, sent under cross band: for each sheet of paper 5 centimes, for each half sheet half and for each quarter sheet ¼th of this rate. Sheet of paper is understood here to mean the still unfolded printed sheet as it comes from the printing press.
The Post Office was not allowed to send newspapers that had not been authorized by the Préfect. The documents had to be sent under cross band and presented to the Post Office. Printed matter and newspapers found in the mailbox were assessed as normal letters. All printed documents, with the exception of scientific journals which appear only once a month and contained at least two printed pages and sewn books, are subject to stamp duty. Unstamped pieces were considered undeliverable (rebut).

After the departure of the French, the rate for printed matter and newspapers became according to Circular 16 from 1 April 1814 for each sheet: 4 duit (= ½ stuiver; from 1827 expressed in cents: 2½ cent).

The rate for printed matter from 1-9-1850 to 1-1-1871 was ½ cent for each quarter sheet (a sheet not exceeding 8 square palms (8 dm²)). For paper larger than 30 palms: 2 cents plus 1 cent for every 15 palms or fraction thereof more. The minimum rate was 1 cent.

In Circular 403 of 3 October 1849, attention was drawn to the abuse of the lower rate for printed matter for mail items containing the contents of an ordinary letter. For example, by using printing letters or deliberately printing the letter or using secret, invisible writing on a printed matter that becomes visible by chance. In such cases, the normal postage for letters is due. The lower rate only applies to newspapers, notices, market letters and circulars, which are printed to be sent in a certain number simultaneously.

The rate for printed matter was from 1-9-1850 to 1-1-1871 for sheets of paper up to 8 square palms (a so-called quarter sheet or 8 dm²): ½ cent, from 8 to 15 palms: 1 cent, from 15 to 30 palms: 2 cents and for every 15 palms more: 1 cent. However, the minimum rate per item of mail was 1 cent. The rate for newspapers was 1 cent per page, regardless of size. The postage had to be paid in advance. Unfranked items were taxed at the standard letter postage (Law of 12-4-1850 Stb 15).

Printed matter sent from Zwolle to Woerden, 14 October 1865 with small type semi-circular datestamp ZWOLLE, 18 mm wide. The sender paid the postage for 1/8th sheet being the minimum rate of 1 cent.

Registration fee

Although registered letters were sent much earlier, it was not until the incorporation of our country into the French Empire, with the introduction of the Instruction Générale on 1 April 1 1811, that registration was formally arranged. For this the double postage had to be paid.

From 1846 the registration fee was fixed at 10 cents, regardless of weight or destination (Circular 357). The registration fee had to be paid by the sender and was noted on reverse of the letter. If the letter was sent fully prepaid, the registration fee and the postage were noted separately on the back, one below the other and separated by a line. By sending a letter registered, the sender received a fixed compensation, irrespective of the value of the content, if the letter was lost.

Framed handstamp AANGEETEKEND on a registered letter from Zwolle to Groningen, 10 June 1862 with circular datestamp ZWOLLE / 10/6 / 12-5 / 62, Ø 25 mm in red. Letter rate to be paid by the addressee: 10 cents, indicated on front. Registration fee from 1846: 10 cents, paid by the sender, indicated on reverse.

Last update 10.09.2024 5:58 PM

Copyright © 2019 - G.L. van Welie FRPSL
Secretary of the Nederlandse Academie voor Filatelie
Representative of the Royal Philatelic Society London for the Netherlands

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