Austrian Post in Turkish Empire year 1900 10p/1g Mi 30 B MH/ perf 12½: 12½
The Austrian Post in the Turkish Empire (also known as Austrian Levant Post) was a fascinating postal system that operated from 1748 to 1914 in various parts of the Ottoman Empire. It was one of several foreign postal services allowed to operate within Ottoman territory.
Key aspects:
- Origins and Development
- Established in 1748 with the first post office in Constantinople
- Expanded significantly during the 19th century
- Part of Austria’s broader economic interests in the Levant
- Operations
- Used Austrian stamps overprinted with values in Turkish currency
- Maintained post offices in major Ottoman cities including:
- Constantinople (Istanbul)
- Smyrna (İzmir)
- Beirut
- Alexandria (until 1889)
- Jerusalem
- Thessaloniki
- Historical Context
- The Ottoman Empire allowed foreign postal systems due to the limitations of its own postal service
- Reflected the “capitulations” system where European powers had special privileges in Ottoman territory
- Served both diplomatic and commercial correspondence needs
- Philatelic Significance
- The stamps and postal history are highly valued by collectors
- Used distinctive cancellations that help identify the office of origin
- Produced various overprinted stamps specifically for use in the Levant
The service ended with the outbreak of World War I in 1914, when diplomatic relations between Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were severed. The system represents an interesting example of how postal services reflected the complex political and economic relationships between European powers and the Ottoman Empire during the 19th century.
