Royal Household Mail

I have my doubts – and I know I'm far from being alone. That's why I'm now asking questions. It concerns the alleged letter from the young Princess Elizabeth that was in the news recently. It sold for £25,000. I'm not convinced it was written by Lilibet. And I haven't found any expert (apart from the ones of the auction house itself) who would say so. hansonsauctioneers.co.uk/childhood-lett…

Latest addition: A signed framed Royal presentation photograph of His Late Royal Highness Prince Philip The Duke of Edinburgh, husband to Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The photo, in a black 'Smythson of Bond Street' leather frame. #Theandrewbroughtonautographcollection

"BALMORAL CASTLE 1 OC 90" - This seems to be quite an irregular use of this Aberdeen meter label with the sender's details removed. Somebody from the royal household misusing official mail for his "Crossword Classic" letter?

"Although we shall never cease to mourn Queen Mary, we shall always preserve the happiest memories of her." 1953 letter of Major John Wickham, Private Secretary of the late queen. She died #OTD 73 years ago. Her funeral was held on 30 March 1953. youtube.com/watch?v=JyH4qZ…

His Majesty King Michael I, Last King of Romania. #KingMichael #Romania #Theandrewbroughtonautographcollection

@NaomiLWood @thecastleofmey Yes, but registered mail was free, too, for members of the royal family.

@RealRoyalMail @thecastleofmey It was sent ‘Registered’

"It was so very kind of you to give me such a heavily 'garden' of white flowers"- 1985 letter of #QueenElizabeth The Queen Mother from @thecastleofmey to Tory politician Lord St. John. Mailed with stamps at Wick, even though it would have qualified for free mail.

"Allerhöchste(s) Handschreiben Ihrer Majestät der Kaiserin un Königin Friedrich"- 1892 outer envelope for a handwritten letter of Dowager Empress Victoria, daughter of #QueenVictoria, mailed from her home in Homburg near Frankfurt to the court in Berlin (Wildpark post office).

"CALEDONIAN T.P.O DAY UP"- 1900 cover from @Balmoral_Castle sent by a member of the royal household (but who? I cannot decipher the initials?). This train postmark was regularly used for mail from the castle. "Up" is direction England afaik.

"Durch Eilboten zu bestellende Allerhöchste Ordre" (Highest order to be delivered by special messenger )- 1909 registered letter mailed at Berlin's cabinet post office. These covers were used for imperial documents and awards of Emperor Wilhelm II.

"Inconnu" (Unknown)- 1924 postcard addressed to Empress Maria Feodorovna in St. Petersburg (!) sent from the Amundsen Arctic Drift Expedition (1918-24) with pmk "Polhavet" (Polar Seas), returned with "Leningrad" pmk in 1926. Sender said to be her brother Valdemar. Strange item.

"Her Majesty Queen Adelaide, Witley Court, (...) Worcester"- Cover front addressed in the hand of #QueenVictoria ("The Queen") to Queen Adelaide, Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, the widow of King William IV. From 1843 to 1846 Witley Court, Worcestershire was loaned to her.

.@JaneDismore is absolutely right. There is no resemblance between the letter sold recently (dated 1936-1940) and a real Lilibet manuscript of 1937. One doesn't have to be an expert to see that these letters were written by different persons. rct.uk/collection/sea…

The Right Hon. Winston S. Churchill, 10 Downing Street, Whitehall"- Undated cover from "GRI" (Georgus Rex Imperator), i.e. #KingGeorgeVI. Despite early reservations, both developed a strong, trusted alliance, with the King assuring Churchill of his full support at any hour.

@Wozzo22 Me too.

@RealRoyalMail I prefer Margaret's handwriting!

"Those drawings are really super + will always be a reminder of working with you on the Investiture"- 1972 letter of Lord Snowden in which he refers to the investiture of Charles as #PrinceofWales in 1969. He was was the creative mastermind behind ceremony at Caernarfon Castle.

@ArchivumVatican An exciting story indeed. The letterhead of this Lennon letter says Swarg Ashram P. O. which is the name of the post office I showed earlier today in a post. Maybe it moved from the Beatles Ashram to the place where it is today? themarginalian.org/2015/10/09/joh…

@RealRoyalMail This one written by Lennon?

This is a lost #postbox in front of a lost post office of a lost place, the so-called #Beatles Ashram in Rishikesh. The place was abandoned in 1985. The Fab Four stayed here in 1968 with famous Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Anybody seen a letter mailed at this „divine“ p.o.? #postboxsaturday

@ArchivumVatican 😍😍😍

A postbox in front of Swarg Ashram P.O. in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand. Swarg Ashram, established in 1906, is one of the oldest and largest spiritual, charitable, and yoga hubs in this town (which is sometimes called Yoga Capital of the World). #postboxsaturday @IndiaPostOffice

"Thank you for...the letter that arrived at Loch na Bo by some miracle. I expect Blessed Julian saw to it and he certainly brought in it a lovely day." 1989 letter of Pss Margaret from #Balmoral to politician Lord St John. Loch na Bo is a historic estate in Moray, Scotland.