When touring Scotland I often inform my clients that story telling is a natural talent of all Scots. Therefore, there is an unlimited number of stories, whether it is the numerous ghost stories of various castles telling about missing pipers, people playing cards until doomsday, not to forget the various grey ladies and many, many more.
The Scots are also notoriously known for disobedience against the authorities: Magaret Thatcher trialed her poll tax in Scotland and failed.
One of my favourite stories is that of the post boxes. The roadside letter boxes first appeared in 1852.
You see them all over the British Isles in various shapes, forms and colours (they are green in Nothern Ireland)
These boxes stated the contemporary monarch’s monogram, such as seen on this one:
Above you see one created during the reign of George VI, who ruled from 1936 till his death in 1952 (Here G for George VI and R for the Latin Regis/king).
Before his daughter, the late Queen Elisabeth, was coronated in 1953 Royal Mail rolled out a new version:
A number of Scots objected to these because there had never been an Elisabeth I in Scotland. During Elisabeth I’s reign, Scotland was ruled by a Scottish Queen, Mary, Queen of Scots.
Edinburgh Live tells the story in this article and the design was changed to ER with a crown between the letters but no number or no mention of the late Queen Elisabeth at all:
In 2018 (not that long ago!) a ERII post box appeared in Dunoon and yet again caused another “stushie” as described in this article of The National.
If you wish to read more on the “pillar box war” and anything else relating to any post box in the Bristish Isles I highly recommened Martin Robinson’s book, “Old Letter Boxes”
For more about the uniqueness of my fellow Scots; come and visit and let me show “my” Scotland. Please fill in this form:
A little addiotion to this post. Here is a rare ER VII post box:
