French Post Offices in Morocco
Bud's Big BlueBud's Observations
French foreign post offices in Morocco were much more
elaborate than those in other countries (see above; for a more imposing
example, see page 3, row 2 below). Moreover, the stamps are more interesting,
local architecture being featured in 1917 and thereafter.
BB’s editors had difficulty representing Morocco’s cluttered
postal history, given the odd political shiftings of the late 19th
and early 20th centuries. Should the page titles be “France --
Offices in Morocco” or “French Morocco”? Album editions disagree.
The
philatelic arabesque twists further because of competing extraterritorial post
offices of Germany, Spain and Britain, not to mention the 1912-13 issues authorized
by the Sultan of Morocco, four of which appear on the first supplement page.
Also,
local postal services abounded; the last two supplement pages display some examples
of their philatelic remains. Not all of them are directly connected to France, although
most are. Then come the Tangier, Cape Juby and Rio de Oro overprints.
Convoluted?
Messy? Dizzying? Like a redolent slow-cooked tagine with intense Moroccan
spices? Yes, all the above, and delicious too.
For excellent disambiguation, see Gerben's stampworldhistory.com for Morocco.
Census: 196 in BB spaces, one tip-in, 125 on supplement pages counting the header.
Jim's Observations
Located on the northwest coast of Africa, the French had Offices in Morocco from 1891, but most of Morocco became a French Protectorate under the Treaty of Fez in 1912. This Protectorate lasted until 1956, when Morocco established independence.
French Morocco consisted of the area between Fez and Rabat and Casablanca south to Marrakesh, Mogador (Essaouira) and Agadir. The north of the country was actually a Spanish protectorate. Tangier was an "international" city with a French presence.
French Morocco Blog Post and BB Checklist
Page 1 (Click and enlarge for examination)
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Page 2
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Page 3
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Page 4
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Page 5
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Page 6
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Page 7
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Supplements
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Comments appreciated!
Some very nice local posts on the last two pages there Bud. Why Scott does not list these (since they list similarly organized Local Post Offices in China) still boggles me. Thankfully both Yvert and Maury list them.
ReplyDeleteI find locals quite interesting and, whenever I find them, I usually buy if I'm reasonably sure they're not bogus. Several more of Morocco's have been added since the scan was made. Scott's policies for listing or not baffle me, both for their catalogs and albums. I need to get either Yvert or Maury.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gene, for you kind remarks.