Epirus Stamps

[Craig]

I have two sets with the Epirus flag design, and one from the first set. Anybody else have more?

[dcstamps]

Craig - thanks for starting this.  Epirus is a VERY interesting area which actually had several Stamp Issuing Entities within the region and lots of interesting stamps were issued. 

To start with, as stamp collectors, the region we often call Epirus, is really Northern Epirus (or Albanian Epirus).  The broad area of Epirus is an area with a majority cultural Greek population which lies on both sides of the Albanian/Greek border.  The southern part of Epirus became part of Greece after the First Balkan War of 1912–1913, ratified in the Treaty of London.  The Northern part of Epirus became part of a newly formed Albania, this decision is the reason we have so many stamp issuing entities in Northern Epirus.  -- more on this later.   

In the Map below, the green shade is Northern Epirus, the orange is Southern Epirus, and the gray is the ancient historical region of Epirus.

Before 1912, Epirus was part of the Ottoman Empire, but with the outbreak of the Balkan Wars, many successive entities issued stamps  (Including Albania, which Northern Epirus is currently part of).  Not including Albania, the stamp issuing entities specifically for Epirus were: 

• Greek Occupation of Epirus during the Balkan Wars (1912-14)

• Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914)

• Greek Occupation of North Epirus in WW1 (1914-16)

• Autonomous Albanian Republic of Korçë (1916-20) - this was initiated by the local French Occupational forces

• Greek Occupation of North Epirus in WW2 (1940-41)

Plus there were several interesting local issues and propaganda stamps.

• Chimarra local issues (1914)

• Moschopolis local issued (1914)

• several unofficial sets / propaganda issues

By the way Craig, your stamps are from the Autonomous Republic of Epirus. 

While I don't have them all, I will try and show some stamps from the different entities, plus some locals and propaganda issues that I have.

In the next post, I will cover the first - the Greek Occupation of North Epirus during the Balkan Wars --

[dcstamps]

Greek Occupation of Epirus during the Balkan Wars - 1912-1914

During the First Balkan War (1912-1913), which pitted the Balkan League of Serbia, Greece, Montenegro and Bulgaria against the Ottoman Turks, the people of Chimarra (today Himarë) lead by Spyros Spyromilios revolted and expelled the Ottoman forces in order to join Greece. For the balance of the war, Epirus was under Greek administration. Afterwards, the northern part of Epirus was awarded to a newly created Albanian state, and in early 1914, Greek troops withdrew from the region.

Stamps

During the Balkan Wars as Greek forces occupied many parts of the Ottoman Empire, (e.g. Thessaly, Epirus, Thrace and various islands in the Aegean).  The first stamps used in the Occupational areas were overprinted stamps of Greece.  The overprint read - “ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΙΟΙΚΗΣΙΣ”, which means Hellenic Administration. 

As you can see, the overprints overprinted in both black and carmine, and the issues include many varieties and errors of these overprints.

Greece Scott #s N121, N126a (double overprint) and N142a (overprint reading downward)

   

In addition to overprinting Greek stamps, in 1912, the Greek government issued a special set of stamps specifically to be used in occupied territory.  There were two designs of these stamps:  the Cross of Constantine and the Eagle of Zeus.

Greece Scott #s 155a (yellowish paper) and 157 (Ioannia, Epirus postmark dated Mar, 1914)

 

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914)

When Greek forces withdrew from Northern Epirus per agreement, the local population (mostly Greeks) were quite upset.  Unwilling to be a part of a newly forming Albania, the people of Northern Epirus revolted in February, 1914, and a provisional government proclaimed the formation of the Republic of Northern Epirus.   The first stamps issued was for the newly proclaimed "government" were a series of 4 local stamps issued in Feb 10th, 1914 in the town of Chimarra (today Himarë). 

The stamps featured a double-headed eagle along with a skull and crossbones. The inscription on the stamps translates: “Greek Autonomous Epirus - Freedom or Death - Defend our Country".  The stamps were hand stamped, and issued with a blue oval control mark. Inside the control mark are the Greek letters “SP”, which stand for Spiromilios, the revolutionary commander at Chimarra. Only a small number of these stamps were actually issued and they are rare and expensive. The “Chimarra Issues” have been extensively reprinted and counterfeited, so ALL copies should be considered fake unless properly expertized.

Here are my Chimarra local stamps, which in all likelihood are forgeries.

[Deleted]

Super stamps really enjoyed seeing them, thank you.

[dcstamps]

Sept 13, 2014 10:51:58 GMT -5 @nueman said:

Super stamps really enjoyed seeing them, thank you.

More will be coming as I have time (which currently is in short supply) 

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914) - continued

The revolutionaries in Epirus waged a fierce guerrilla war against fledging Albanian forces and eventually managed to gain full autonomy under nominal Albanian sovereignty. The Protocol of Corfu was signed in May of 1914, officially recognizing the Autonomous Republic of North Epirus, which allowed for self government and recognition of the rights of the Greek population.

Including the previous Chimarra set, the Autonomous Republic issued 8 sets of official and local stamps. (and a bunch of propaganda sets)

Rifleman Stamps (Scott # 5-12)

The second set of “official” stamps of the Provisional Government of North Epirus were issued between Feb-Apr 1914. The set of 8 stamps featured an infantryman aiming his rifle, as others look on. The 10 and 25 lepta denominations (issued in February) were inscribed “ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ”, meaning EPIRUS, while the rest of the set (issued in March-April) added the word “ΑΥΤΟΝΟΜΟΣ” to read “AUTONOMOUS EPIRUS”.

Craig already showed one of these stamps, but here is an example of both printings (Scott #8 and 11)

 

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914) - continued

The third set of stamps issued by the new Revolutionary Government is known as: 

Argyrokastro Issues (Scott # 4A-4GG)

On March 2, 1913, the Revolutionaries overprinted 33 stamps from the former Ottoman Empire “AUTONOMOUS EPIRUS” with new denominations in Greek currency.  While I don't have any of these in my collection at this time, here is a picture of a few of the stamps taken from the internet.

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914)

The next two sets are known as the:

Flag of Epirus Stamps (Scott #15-22)
On 28 August, 1914, a second set of 8 stamps were issued by the government featuring the flag of Epirus. As with the set before, these stamps were issued as serrate roulette. Craig already showed a fine example of this set.  Here is close up of Scott # 20, the 1 drachma stamp. 



Koritsa Issues (Scott #23-24)
On 25 Sept, 1914, two of the values from the flag set, 25l and 40l were also overprinted “ΚΟΡΥΤΣΑ” in dark blue at the town of Koritsa. Craig also showed the two stamps of this set before, but here is a close up of Scott #26.

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914) - continued

The sixth set listed in Scott (actually the fourth chronologically) is the:

Second Chimarra Issues (Scott #34-41)

On 24 August, 1914, a series of 8 definitive Greek stamps were overprinted in Greek: "ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ 1914 ΧΕΙΜΑΡΡΑ ", which means Greek Chimarra, 1914.  This stamp is considered a local issue from Chimarra, as the locals had a strong desire to become part of Greece.  the small printed initials "ΣΣ"  stands for S. Spyromilios, the leader of the Rebels in Chimarra.

Here is my Second Chimarra Issues.  Please note that counterfeits are pleantiful, and these stamps could very well not be genuine.

 

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914) - continued

Chimarra Issues – King Constantine I Design (Scott #28-33D)

Issued in Oct, 1914, this set is also considered local issues from Chimarra.  The image is of King Constantine I, the King of Greece at the time.  The top translates Greek Chimarra. 

As these are quite expensive, I don't have any in my collection, but here is a picture of Scott #33B

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914) - continued

The last set of stamps listed in Scott (although not the last chronologically) is 

Moschopolis Issues (Scott # 46-56)

Often considered a local and unofficial set, these stamps were issued in Sept 1914 from the town of Moschopolis (today Voskopoje).  The set of 15 stamps featured two designs.  The first 9 values depicted the coat of arms of Epirus, while the 6 higher values depicted coins and metals of ancient Epirus.

Coat of Arms Design - these have been forged over the years, and according to Varro Tyler's book "Focus on Forgeries", the easiest way to tell a difference between the genuine and the forgery is to measure the design size.  The design (not border) of the forgeries are shorter and wider than the original.  Genuine is (HxW)  23.1mm x 20.0mm  vs  the forgery measurements of 22.5mm x 20.3 mm.

Here is a difference in the height:

And here is a close up of the width of the design so you can see the difference  - the forgery is on top of the genuine stamp.

Ancient Epirus Coins/Medals Design - Here are some of the larger denominations of the set (Scott 51, 52, 54 and 54)

Later I will show some of the propaganda labels from Epirus

[dcstamps]

Autonomous Republic of North Epirus (1914) - continued

Bogus Stamps - There are lots of stamps floating around "from" Epirus, which were not really stamps, rather propaganda labels or just someone printing stamps to try and make money from the philatelic trade.  Here are some of them you will see:

[dcstamps]

Greek Occupation of North Epirus in World War I (1914-1916)

World War 1 broke out in July, 1914, and in September Albania collapsed into chaos. This caused the Greeks to send forces into Northern Epirus, to re-occupy the territory and the Autonomous Republic of Epirus, ceased to exist. The Greek army occupied the region from 14 Oct 1914 – 10 Aug 1916. Greece officially annexed Northern Epirus in March 1916, but was forced to revoke the annexation. Within a few months, the Greek army was driven out of North Epirus by Italian forces, while the French occupied Koritsa (Korce).

 At the end of the war, Northern Epirus was awarded to Greece, in the Treaty of Versailles, however following the Greco-Turkish war in 1924, and at the insistence of the Italian’s, Northern Epirus again became part of Albania, where it remains today.

With the resumption of Greek control over Northern Epirus, an inital set of stamps were issued on 30 Nov, 1914. This set consisted of Greek “Occupational Issues” which were overprinted B. ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ (N. Epirus) horizontally in black. Red overprints were also prepared but never issued.

Beginning in December, 1915, a second set of stamps were issued using Greek definitive stamps of 1911-1913, overprinted B. ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ vertically, reading either up or down.

[dcstamps]

Greek Occupation of North Epirus in World War II (1940-1941)
In April of 1939, Italy invaded Albania and declared it as an Italian Protectorate. As World War 2 was beginning, Albania became a staging area for an Italian attack on Greece. After Greece rejected an ultimatum from Mussolini to occupy Greek territory, Italy launched an attack on Greece on 28 October, 1940.  Despite the stronger forces and air support, the Italians were surprised by the ferocity of the Greeks, and their ability to repel the Italian army. By mid-December, Greek forces had driven back the Italian attack and occupied the entirety of Epirus and the southern portion of Albania.

Humiliated by the defeat, Mussolini ordered a large offensive to retake the region, which was launched in March of 1941. Again the attack was repelled by the Greek army. To avoid total embarrassment of the Italians, Nazi Germany joined the battle and launched an attack on Greece on 6 April, 1941. Overwhelmed by the superior German forces, the Greek units in northern Epirus surrendered to the Germans on 20 April, 1941. The combined Italian and German Army continued onward to invade and occupy all of Greece for the duration of the war.

Stamps

During the approximately 6 months that Greece controlled north Epirus / southern Albania, Greek authorities overprinted stamps of Greece in black or carmine “ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΙΟIΚΗΣΙΣ”, which translates Hellenic Administration. This overprint was applied to various Greek issues including the Greek Heritage issues, King George issues, and the Greek National Youth issues. Additionally, air-post stamps, postage due stamps and semi-postal stamps were overprinted.

It is interesting to note, the font chosen for the Greek overprints used a stylized “C” in place of the usual Greek symbol “Σ”.

The overprinted issues were withdrawn from sale in June 1941 after the Germans stabilized the area. 

Here is Scott #s N202-N216

[dcstamps]

I just updated all of the pictures in this thread - It was fun revisiting the history.
Enjoy

[youpiao]

Nice writeups. I enjoyed this philatelic history lesson.

[mourningdoves]

Sept 14, 2014 13:17:54 GMT -5 dcstamps said:

Bogus Stamps - There are lots of stamps floating around "from" Epirus, which were not really stamps, rather propaganda labels or just someone printing stamps to try and make money from the philatelic trade.

This is probably an odd question, and even more probably an unanswerable one. But is there a clear-cut delineation between Cinderellas that were printed for nationalist or revolutionary motives and Cinderellas that were printed for financial gain? Or do their existences tend to have both concerns in mind? I could guess that the nationalist revolutionaries weren't blind to the benefits of Western currency, while there were philatelic forgers who couldn't care less about what was happening in Northern Epirus; but I really don't know.

Sept 21, 2014 14:26:10 GMT -5 dcstamps said:

It is interesting to note, the font chosen for the Greek overprints used a stylized “C” in place of the usual Greek symbol “Σ”.

I wonder why. This seems like a very odd thing to do, and something that would please nobody.

These stamps are fascinating, and thanks for posting them - with all the enlightening commentary, too. I know virtually nothing about Epirus, little about 20th-century Greece, and not all that much about Albania either. I was delighted to find a book about King Zog (who had, in my opinion, the most excellent royal name since Thutmose) at a smallish local library.

[dcstamps]

First of all, the Scott catalog is full of stamps that were issued purely to make money in the philatelic world. I always find it funny to see that San Marino issued air post stamps for decades, even though there are no airports within the country.

From my understanding, these wannabe countries issued stamps for two reasons. 1) to raise money and, 2) to promote legitimacy.

As for bogus or Cinderellas, I distinguish them as a stamps (or labels) issued privately, never intended for postal use, nor "authorized" by any postal authority (even local). At least Epirus established a quasi postal authority, although initially it was fragmented and local in nature, often controlled by the towns (such as Chimarra or Moschopolis).

Epirus had a shot at independence. After fierce guerrilla fighting, the revolutionaries eventually managed to gain full autonomy under a nominal Albanian sovereignty. The Protocol of Corfu was signed in May of 1914 (supported by the Great Powers) which officially recognized the Autonomous Republic of North Epirus, allowing for self government and recognition of the rights of the Greek population.

If it wasn't for the outbreak of WW1, we might have a country called Epirus today.