Seapost -> Maritime Mail
Maritime Mail
By Mike Dovey
In the beginning
Cancellations are reported used at Plymouth and Portsmouth in the 1800s but these are extremely rare and sought after. It was around 1915 following the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 that Royal Mail decided to use a different cancellation method for sailors when at sea. Mail posted by seamen could be sent free of charge and so all mail posted from a vessel in the Royal Navy received a "H.M.Ships" and until around 1943 there were many different examples of these cancellations usually used at Royal Naval ports
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Dovey only 492 (Rosyth) | Dovey only 505 (Scapa Flow) |
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Robertson (Portsmouth) N3, Dovey 474, dated 1940's posted from HMS ACHERON
Maritime Mail was and still is primarily used for letters posted from Royal Naval vessels although there are some instances of Merchant vessels going through the system as well. This new system meant that the H.M. Ships cancels were dropped in favour of a new system from around 1943 onwards when new system was introduced and this was a machine cancel "Maritime Mail" mark and to date there have been a very large number of different cancels including the circular cancel showing this description.
The Machine cancel
Between 1943 and 1952 there were 3 different machine cancellations all with "Maritime Mail" in the main part of the cancel (Robertson London, N48, 48a, & 49 and Dovey 86 - 88). The vast majority of maritime marks of all shapes and sizes were used in wartime from 1914 to the present day and by their nature can be very difficult to obtain very good copies and will often appear together with added censor cancels .





Robertson N48, N48a & N49, Dovey 86 - 88. (London) 86 & 87 lasted into the 1960s while 88 lasted into the very late 1980s.
Although shown are the 3 London cancellations there were other machine cancels used at Bristol, Glasgow, Hull and Plymouth although it is strange that a machine cancel at Portsmouth was never used as a Maritime Mail item although there was a H.M. Ships machine cancel used before the outbreak of World War Two in 1939.
The Circular cancel
Alongside the three machine cancels there were a number of circular cancellations most of which were used for very short times and are therefore extremely hard to come by. The longest use of these cancels was used from 1953- 62 and they have code numbers 1-12 (Robertson London, N56, Dovey 102 - 113). Circular London cancels are known numbered Robertson N50 - N59b, Dovey 90 - 121. London was by far the most used post office centre for cancelling Maritime Mail as much of this mail was directed there for distribution and while there are other local cancels around the country this is where the bulk of the mail was cancelled.
Aside from the many cancellations used in London - and there were many - there were very few cancellations in use around the country in the 1950s and 1960s and already stated most of the mail passed through London via probably BFPO Ships.
![]() London Robertson N54, |
![]() London Robertson N56, |
![]() London Dovey only 118 Index 8, |
![]() Glasgow Robertson N2, |
![]() Londonderry Dovey only |
![]() Portsmouth Robertson N4, |
The above mark for Glasgow was probably the first near omnibus maritime mail cancel to be issued in the country with the same cancels known at Belfast, Cardiff and London.
The 1968 Omnibus Issue
On the 2nd January 1968 the Post Office (Royal Mail) proofed and sent out a new Maritime Mail cancel to offices at Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Londonderry, Newcastle, Plymouth, and Weymouth. This was the first and only ever attempt at bringing all of the naval ports together with an omnibus issue and very strange as Portsmouth again was missing from the list and asks the question as to why the biggest Naval port in the country was not included.
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Belfast Robertson N1, Dovey 211, in black known used 1968 - 1980.
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Cardiff Robertson N1, Dovey 241, in black known used only in 1986.
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Edinburgh Robertson N5, Dovey 296. In black known used 1968 - 1973. In red known used 1987.
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Glasgow Robertson N5, Dovey 307. In black known used 1968 - 1972. In red known used 1986 - 1991.
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Liverpool Robertson N3, Dovey 395. In black known used 1968 - 1972. In red known used 1972.
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London Robertson N, Dovey 123. In black known used 1968 - 1970.
![]() | It is reported that the post office in Londonderry was bombed in 1972 and all of the content was lost. No cover has ever been reported for this cancel but then, as always said by many - never say never. |
Londonderry Robertson N1, Dovey 401.
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Newcastle Robertson N5, Dovey 423. In red known used only in 1971.
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Plymouth Robertson N8, Dovey 450. In black known used 1968 - 1982.
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Weymouth Robertson N3, Dovey 543. In black known used 1968 - 1971.
This new Maritime Mail cancel in the beginning was aimed directly at Royal Naval vessels but during the late 1970s onwards the local post offices did use the cancels on Merchant shipping mail. All of the dates shown are very loose and open to other collectors to add and extend the known dates as very little is known about this Cinderella area of Seapost collecting.
Following on from this omnibus edition a number of circular cancels were issued at various post offices around the country especially in London where various index numbers were used and it is hoped they have all been reported.
Amongst the latest cancellations is a circular mark (Robertson London, N67, Dovey 129)
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Robertson and Robertson Revisited list and show only one example for the N67, in the book by Dovey there is a breakdown of sizes and indexes numbered 126 to 173 - an increase from 1 to 47.
The most upto date listing of Maritime Mail marks is Maritime Mail Cancellations of Great Britain by Mike Dovey, 2015.
Related Collecting Area - British Fleet Mail cancellations

ROYAL NAVY cover with circular cancel "BRITISH FLEET MAIL / AM / 3 MR 1955 / 9" and boxed "Fleet Mail Officer/3 Mar 1955/Hong Kong". The index number indicates the location of the naval port.
Markings used on Royal Naval Mails are discussed at some length in the London section of Robertson Revisited. References to British Fleet Mail are found in Collect British Postmarks.
References
Dovey, M: Maritime Mail Cancellations of Great Britain,2015, available from the publications page.
Tabeart, C: Robertson Revisited, 1997 edition,
James Bendon Ltd, Limassol, Cyprus, and Supplement 2016
Robertson, AW: A History of the Ship Letters of the British Isles; The Author, Ranworth, 1955
Whitney, J T: Collect British Postmarks, Fifth Edition, The Author, Benfleet, Essex, January 1990