The British Royal Family is known worldwide for their unusual way of life. It is expected that their lives differ from ours, as they are royalty and have certain expectations and traditions to uphold. However, behind closed doors, they are regular people, with regular hobbies. The Queen’s hobby is actually one that many people have. She loves to collect stamps.
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The historic stamp collection
Over the years, the Queen has been growing her collection of stamps. Surprisingly, she wasn’t the one who started collecting, it has become a sort of family tradition that’s been passed on generation by generation.
Indeed, it was Queen Victoria’s son, Prince Alfred, who began the collection in 1864. Prince Alfred later sold his collection to his brother, Edward VII, who later became King. King Edward VII then passed the collection to his son King George V. The stamp collection was then passed down to George VI, who then passed it onto Queen Elizabeth II, making her the fifth owner of the stamp collection.
Out of all the royal owners, it was King George V who was the most dedicated to maintaining and growing the collection. Indeed, when he was still known as Prince George, he was made honorary Vice President of what is now known as the Royal Philatelic Society of London in 1893. His fellow members gifted King George a book containing 1,500 stamps for his wedding to Princess Mary of Teck.
King George V’s dedication to his collection was unbelievable. He set the record for the highest ever price paid for a stamp at a massive £1,450.
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The Queen’s contribution
When the time came, Queen Elizabeth II inherited the 328 albums full of stamps. The Queen adores her collection and always enjoys showing it to visitors.
Royal expert Phil Dampier told Fabulous Digital:
The Queen loves showing her stamp collection to visitors, say heads of state who stay at Buckingham Palace.
It is one of her pride and joys, not only because she owns some of the world’s most valuable stamps, but also because she has built on a family treasure and feels she has done her father and previous monarchs who owned it proud.
The Queen has also added to the collection herself! She added the rarest and most expensive addition: a Mauritian stamp. This stamp is valued at an incredible £2 million! The stamp was shown during a travelling exhibition to mark the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002. It is one of the most precious stamps in the world and was issued by the colonial Post Office of Mauritius in 1847.
The Queen’s stamp collection is currently valued at £10 million! Will Prince Charles carry on this Legacy? Or maybe it’ll be passed down to Prince William. Hopefully, one member of the Royal Family will want to continue this incredible and historic collection.
