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THE MAP OF THE KINGDOM IN 1850
HISTORY AND INTERESTING DATE
Postal Offices in Lombardy:
Milano 21, Bergamo 25, Brescia
25, Como 35, Cremona 10, Lodi e Crema 8, Mantova 22, Pavia 8, Sondrio 9
Postal Offices in
Venetia:
Venezia 14, Belluno 10, Padova 13, Rovigo 10, Treviso 13, Udine
23, Verona 14, Vicenza 16.
Currency
till 31/10/1858:
Lira Austriaca = 100 Centesimi = 20 kreuzer = Lire 0,865;
starting from 1/11/1858: 1 Fiorino = 100 Soldi = 2,47 Lire;
from 22/6/1859 it was introduced the Italian currency (1 Lira = Fiorini 0,405).
Total field: 46.991 square km, 6.357.800
townsman (about).
The Italian name “francobollo” comes from the words “franco” meaning free of charge and “bollo” meaning stamp. The term franco was used for letters that did not require any payment to the receiver. The term bollo indicated the mark of a stamp, which had in the course of history many different meanings.
Only after the radical change imparted to the post service by Napoleone Bonaparte the first stamps made their appearance and new concepts such as that of registered letter (“assicurata”) were introduced. This is in fact the time in which the modern postal service begun (i.e., the end of the XVIII century).
Letters could be mailed as "con porto dovuto" if the tax was paid by the receiver or as "con porto pagato" if the tax was previously paid off by the sender. Besides, some stamps indicating the origin place and the arrival place were added on the letters. Such letters are said pre-phylately (“PREFILATELICHE”).
On June 9th1815 the Wien Congress closed and the great Powers that won over Napoleon -Austria, Great Britain, Prussia e Russia - decided the political division of Italy in seven kingdoms: REGNO LOMBARDO VENETO (the Kingdom of Lombary and Venetia), REGNO DI SARDEGNA (the Kingdom of Sardinia), GRANDUCATO DI TOSCANA (the Great Ducat of Tuscany), STATO PONTIFICIO (Papal State), DUCATO DI MODENA (Ducat of Modena), DUCATO DI PARMA (Ducat of Parma), REGNO DELLE DUE SICILIE (Kingdom of the two Sicilies).
Lombary and Venetia joined through the common name of Lombardy-Venetia kingdom “Regno Lombardo Veneto” were assigned to Austria.
The first stamps of this kingdom, the first one in Italy to use them, were distributed starting from the 1st of June, 1850, during the reign of Franz Joseph the first. The postal validity of the first stamps issue within the territories of Lombardy-Venetia kingdom expired the 31st of December,1858.
After the war of France and Piemonte against Austria that ended with the Villafranca Treaty, signed on the 11th of July 1859, Austria lost Lombardy territories up to Mincio river, excluded the territory of Mantova, which was assigned to Sardinia Kingdom. The liberation process of Lombardy started on the 23rd of May,1859 with the arrival of the “Cacciatori delle Alpi” in Sesto Calende.
I report here below the list of Lombardy postal offices and the dates indicating end of Austrian administration.
The 8th of June, 1859, at the time Napoleon the III and Vittorio Emanuele the II entered Milan, the “Governo Provvisorio delle Province Lombarde” (i.e., the Provisional Government of Lombardy Provinces) was established. It ended on the 31st of July 1859. The Lombardy Governer issued adecree pm the 30th of June to order the extension of Sardinian postal laws and tariffs to the Lombardy territories. So the stamps of the Lombardy-Venetiae Kingdom continued being on legal tender only up to the 30th of June, from the 1st of july they were substituted bythe stamps issued by the Sardinian Administation.
LIBERATION DATES OF THE MAIN TERRITORIES OF LOMBARDY - 1859:
27 May: Como; 29 May: Lecco; 1 June: Luino, Chiavenna, Morbegno; 2 June: Bellaggio, Bormio, Varenna; 3 June: Cantù; 4 June: Magenta, Busto Arsizio, Legnano; 5 June: Varese; 7 June: Milano; 8 June: Bergamo; 9 June: Alzano; 10 June: Desio, Pavia, Monza; 11 June: Codogno, Lodi; 12 June: Crema, Brescia, Pizzighettone; 13 June: Cremona; 14 June: Piadena; 15 June: Iseo, Casalmaggiore; 16 June: Asola; 17 June: Lovere; 21 June: Desenzano, Lonato, Castiglione delle Stiviere; 28 June: Sondrio.
The third war for Independency started on 20 June 1866; in about one mounth the Italian army set free all the Venetia region. I report here below the list of Venetia postal offices and the date indicating end of Austrian administration.
The armistice on 12 August 1866 made in Cormons establishes the truce and the manteinance of the Austrian administration in Verona (without Cologna), Mantova, Venezia, Chioggia e Palma. These regions became to Austrian administration till the half of October 1866, when the Peace of Wien changed their property.
LIBERATION DATES OF THE MAIN TERRITORIES OF VENETIA - 1866:
11 July: Rovigo; 12 July: Battaglia, Padova; 14 July: Treviso, Castelfranco; 16 July: Conegliano; 18 July: San Donà; 20 July: Valdobbiadene, Oderzo; 21 July: Vicenza; 22 July: Udine; 25 July: Codroipo; 11 October: Mantova; 15 October: Belluno; 16 October: Cividale, Gemona, Verona, Palma; 19 October: Venezia.