Hello, I hope this finders readers well and safe in these difficult times. I am housebound, so here is the start of a series of pieces on Gibraltar. I hope you enjoy this and future piece which I shall add every few days.

Part I

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory, also known as a Crown Colony. It is a narrow peninsula near the Southern extremity of Spain located at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar. From Stanley Gibbons we can read that Spanish stamps could be used in Gibraltar from 1850.

From July 1856 until December 1875 all mail to Spain required postage to be prepaid by Spanish stamps and these issues were supplied by the Gibraltar postal authorities acting as a Spanish Postal Agent.

Stamps of Great Britain were issued for use in Gibraltar from September 1857 and used until the end of 1885. These Great Britain Victoria stamps can be identified by the cancels which containing the numeral A26 or the letter G in oval bars.