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Royals On Stamps Of Eastern Europe

What do Queen Marie of Romania, King Tutankhamen, Czar Nicholas of Russia, Saint Vladimir of Ukraine, and Princess Diana of England have in common? They are all represented on stamps of Eastern Europe. When the various countries of Eastern Europe Intersect with their far reaching monarchies, the result can be a fascinating plethora of philatelic offerings. Please join us in exploring Royals, our newest collection.

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Kings

On stamps have been issued by Eastern European countries for multiple centuries. One of the earliest postal stamps issued by Hungary was of beloved King Franz Joseph, emperor of Austria and King Of Hungary 1867-1917, which is a rare find for country philatelists, while the recent issuance from Hungary celebrating the Discovery of King Tutankhamun is a delight for topical collectors.

**Slovakia Coronation King Ferdinand II**

Czars and Sultans

Czar Nicholas ll was the last Emperor of Russia, while also having the titles of King of Congress Poland and Grand Duke of Finland. He ruled from 1894 until his abdication in 1917 and ended the Romanov dynasty.

Sultan Sulieman (Sulieman The Magnificent) is often revered as one of the greatest Ottoman rulers as the Empire reached the peak of its political and military power when he was a Sultan.

The Ottoman Empire was one of the largest and most long-lasting empires in history. At its greatest extent, the empire extended to three continents — stretching from the Balkans in southeastern Europe across Central Asia, Arabia, and North Africa, thanks in large part to the Ottoman military and its use of gunpowder.

Queens and Empresses

On stamps of Eastern Europe present impressive and enduring female rulers.

Catherine the Great was the Empress of Russia (1762 -1796) and the longest ruling female ruler of Russia. The period of her rule, The Catherinian Era is considered the Golden Age of Russia. She came to power following a coup d’etat to overthrow her husband. She was considered an “enlightened” despot. She led crushing victories over the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish wars, accessed territories along the Black and Azov seas and partitioned what is present day Poland placing it under control of Russia.

Maria Teresa was Queen of the Hungarians, Czechs, Croatians and Archduchess of Austria reigning from 1740-1780. As the wife of Francis I (Holy Roman Emperor) she held the title of Empress, becoming the only female to reign the Hapsburg Monarchy. She was regarded as an enlightened ruler, abolishing torture and witch hunting and improving the position of peasants. Her lineage may be her most significant legacy impacting many of the rulers of Europe. Of her 11 daughters and 5 sons, three became famous rulers including Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, Leopold ll (of Belgium) and King Joseph ll (Emperor of Hungary and Austria). A joint philatelic issue celebrating the 300^th Anniversary of the Birth of Maria Teresa was issued in cooperation with Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia and Ukraine.

Queen Marie was the wife of King Ferdinand l and the last Queen of Romania. Born into the British royal family, Marie of Edinburgh, was Queen Victoria’s niece. She married Crown Prince Ferdinand of Romania, in 1892. Her first years on the Romanian throne were dedicated to learning the Romanian language and culture. During the first two years of World War I, Romania was neutral. On 27 August 1916, Romania enters into World War I on the side of the Allied Powers, pitting Ferdinand against his own native land, Germany. Queen Marie knew the war was the only possibility for Romania to fulfill the dream of a grand national union. Historians are convinced that King’s Ferdinand decision to enter the war on the side of the Allied Powers was influenced by Queen Marie.

By December 1918 the dream of the Romanian nation is accomplished for Romanians but must be confirmed with the rest of the world. Queen Marie leads the delegation to the Allied Peace conference that will determine Romania’s fate on the international stage. Queen Marie’s visit to French Prime Minister Clemenceau becomes very popular. At a time when women’s involvement in politics or society is not very much appreciated, Queen Marie dares to ask the French statesman for help to recover Romania’s provinces. Although she did not have the same success with all the delegates, Queen Marie of Romania managed to tilt the balance in favor of her country at the Peace Conference in Paris. On October 15, 1922, King Ferdinand and Queen Marie are crowned king and queen of all Romanians.

Princes

On stamps of Eastern Europe include Bogdan lll The One-Eyed from Moldova, Prince Svatopluk of Moravia (modern day Slovakia), and Prince Danylo Romanovych of Ukraine. The prince stamp issuance from Bosnia (Serb) is a unique display of The Sad Prince, a children’s story.

Stamp offerings of Prince Vlads range from Kvivan Prince St. Vladimir to the Romanian Prince Vlad of Transylvania, or Count Dracula!

Princesses

On Eastern European stamps, range from the daughters of Kings Bela of Hungary depicted in the Saints and Blessed series, the character from the animated film The Stolen Princess, Ruslan and Ludmila issued by Ukraine, Hungary’s offering of the Gypsy Princess to the issuances of Princess Diana from Azerbaijan, Romania and Moldova.

Crowns & Coats of Arms

Saint Stephen’s Crown, venerated crown of Hungary, is the symbol of Hungarian nationhood. This crown is what ensured true acceptance of the sovereign by the Hungarian people. Pope Sylvester II made Stephen the gift of a crown when he became King of Hungary on Christmas Day in the year 1000. During World War II and into the Soviet Era, the Crown was entrusted to a U.S. Army unit by a Hungarian honor guard to keep it from being seized by first Nazi then Soviet troops. It remained in U.S. guardianship at Fort Knox until it was returned in 1978 by President Jimmy Carter.

Coats Of Arms

Royals on Stamps of Eastern Europe can take on many metamorphosis and be represented by Sports Royalty, Music Royalty and even Religious Royalty.

Music Royalty

Issuances of Music Royalty have depth and a wide range on the stamps of Eastern Europe, from Ukraine’s Jamala, Winner of Eurovision Song Competitions, to Hungary ‘s Composer Béla Bartók’s Opera Bluebeard’s Castle, to jazz icons Ella Fitzgerald and Elvis “The King”.

Of special interest is the haunting 2020 joint issuances of Beethoven by Ukraine, Bulgaria, Bosnia, Macedonia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Romania and Poland.

Sports Royalty

On Eastern European stamps include Olympic athletes, World Cup skiers, weight lifters, boxers, wrestlers, ice hockey, tennis, soccer and swimming champions.

Of special note is the Hungary Souvenir sheet of the 1956 Olympics. This sheet commemorates the brave Hungarian athletes who competed during the Hungarian Revolution. The water polo team in particular fought a “bloody match” against the Soviet Russian team while the brave Hungarian patriots stood their ground in the streets of Hungary against Soviet oppression. The Hungarian water polo team won their famous “Blood in the Water” match against the Soviet Union 4-0.

Religious & Social Activist Royalty

Eastern European stamp issuances include the beautiful Saints and Blessed Series from Hungary issued over several years.

Included in the series is one of the most important figures in the foundation of the Church in Hungary. Saint Astrik was a Benedictine monk, the abbot of several monasteries, ambassador, bishop and archbishop. He was summoned by King Stephen in 1000 to accomplish his most important diplomatic mission, to bring a crown and permission to establish an ecclesiastical organization in Hungary from Pope Sylvester II in Rome. In the summer of 1001 he acted as a papal nuncio in Hungary and was appointed arch bishop of Kalocsa by the he first Hungarian king, Saint Stephen. Astrik was invaluable in establishing Christianity in Hungary and he constantly strove for the salvation of souls by leading an exemplary holy life.

Modern day religious royalty on stamps of Eastern Europe include Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II.

There are some Royalty On Stamps of Eastern Europe that supersede any one category as they are really personalities that have changed the World.

**Moldova Personalities That Changed The World :**
**Mother Teresa, Raffaello Sanzio, Florence Nightingale, Ludwig van Beethoven**

From all of us here at the Hungaria Stamp Exchange we hope you have enjoyed viewing the highlights of newest collection Royals on Stamps of Eastern Europe.

With our sincere wishes for a peaceful holiday season of Easter, Passover and Ramadan.

Sincerely,

The Bauer Family

Look Into The Future : A Philatelic Tribute to the People of Ukraine

Please join us at HSE in our hope for peace and freedom for the people of Ukraine as we offer this philatelic tribute to the 44 million people of the largest country in Eastern Europe.

The people of Ukraine have endured over many centuries to recapture and maintain their freedom. Many of their stamp issuances celebrate Ukrainian independence.

View Ukraine stamps >>

Prior to the 17th Century, Ukrainian territories have been caught between competing empires and would overlap with Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Rzeczpospolita), Crimean Khanate, Hapsburg lands and Czarist Russia.

The two countries of Ukraine and Russia shared heritage goes back more than a thousand years to a time when Kyiv, now Ukraine’s capital, was at the center of the first Slavic state, Kyivan Rus. In A.D. 988 Vladimir I, the pagan prince of Novgorod and grand prince of Kyiv, accepted the Orthodox Christian faith and was baptized in the Crimean city of Chersonesus.

Several times over the past 10 centuries, Ukraine has been carved up by competing powers. Mongol warriors from the east conquered Kyivan Rus in the 13th century. In the 16th century Polish and Lithuanian armies invaded from the west. In the 17th century, war between the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Czardom of Russia brought lands to the east of the Dnieper River under Russian Imperial control. The east became known as “Left Bank” Ukraine; lands to the west of the Dnieper, or “Right Bank,” were ruled by Poland. More than a century later, in 1793, right bank (western) Ukraine was annexed by the Russian Empire.

Over the years that followed, a policy known as Russification banned the use of the Ukrainian language, and people were pressured to convert to the Russian Orthodox faith. Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia for over 34 years ordered the invasion of Crimean in 1776 and ultimately led to the loss of Ukraine autonomy.

Ukraine suffered some of its greatest traumas during the 20th century. After the communist revolution of 1917, Ukraine was one of the many countries to fight a brutal civil war before being fully absorbed into the Soviet Union in 1922.

In the early 1930s Soviet leader Joseph Stalin orchestrated a famine that resulted in the death of millions of Ukrainians to force peasants to join collective farms . Afterward, Stalin imported large numbers of Russians and other Soviet citizens—many with no ability to speak Ukrainian and with few ties to the region—to help repopulate the east.

Philatelic issuances reflect these turbulent times with the issues of overprints with forgeries being common with these issues.

Eastern Ukraine came under Russian rule much earlier than western Ukraine, people in the east having stronger ties to Russia. Western Ukraine, by contrast, spent centuries under the shifting control of European powers such as Poland and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the west tending to support more Western-leaning politicians. The eastern population tends to be more Russian-speaking and Orthodox, while parts of the west are more Ukrainian-speaking and Catholic.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine became an independent nation.

There is an ecological divide between the southern and eastern parts of Ukraine known as the steppes, with their fertile farming soil and the northern and western regions, which are more forested [Forest stamp] [401]

Crimea was occupied and annexed by Russia in 2014, followed shortly after by a separatist uprising in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas that resulted in the declaration of the Russian-backed People’s Republics of Luhansk and Donetsk. Today, Russian troops are again invading Ukraine.

Legacy of the Cossacks

Ukrainian Zaporozhian Cossacks have come to symbolize Ukraine’s ethnic image, much like the medieval knights of Western Europe. Don Cossacks are Russian.

Ukrainian Cossacks descended from a variety of nationalities and social groups. Their ancestors came from Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, and Tatar territories, and migrated to the southern steppes to hunt, fish, gather honey, and make hand crafted goods. References to Cossacks first appear at the end of the 15th century, with their fame spreading throughout Europe over the next hundred years. Their raids and robberies intimidated Turkey, and their support of Poland in campaigns against the Muscovites shook the throne of Moscow.

At the beginning of the 16th century, Christian European governors considered the Cossacks to be crucial allies in their war against the Ottoman Empire. In 1621, Lithuanian-Polish troops battled the Ottoman Empire at Khotyn. There, Cossack troops, headed by Hetman Petro Sahaidachny, joined Polish-Lithuanian forces and they stopped the Turkish army at its borders.

After that, the Zaporozhian Cossacks imposed increasingly large requirements on the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The reaction of the Poles did not satisfy the Cossacks, so they raised a rebellion under the leadership of Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky. It ended with the creation of Cossack autonomy.

Ukrainian Cossacks gained their independence in 1649. That year, as a result of the Zboriv agreements between the leaders of the Rzeczpospolita and Cossack Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky, it was formed as part of the Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Bratslav regions.

It was the Cossacks who spread and popularized the term Ukraine as the name of their territories.

Cathedrals, Churches & Monasteries

Stamp issuances include symbols of Ukrainian religion, some of which are World Heritage sites.

Landmarks, Castles, & Universities

Offerings are a tribute to Ukraine heritage and are well depicted on stamps issuances, the highlight of which are the Seven Wonders of Ukraine. [904]

Europa

Europa are special stamps issued by European postal administrations which focus on Europe as the central theme.

Ukraine as an integral part of Europe contributes beautiful Europa stamp issuances, including Europa Water, Circus, Integration, Children’s Books, Musical Instruments, Old Toys and Bridges.

Eastern Europe stamp issuances of 1995 Europa: Peace & Freedom are the hope for the future.

Culture, Religion and Music

Are reflected in many stamp issuances of Ukraine. These range from the World Heritage Site of Babyn Yar, to Princes and Monks to Traditional Ukraininan Easter Eggs and musical artists.

Taras Shevchenko, poet and painter, was the most important writer and significant figure in the development of a modern Ukrainian national consciousness. Born a serf, Shevchenko was bought out of servitude by a group of artists who recognized his talent for painting. Though considered by many to be the father of modern Ukrainian painting, Shevchenko made his unique mark as a poet.

Folktales and Children’s Books

Are favorite stamp offerings in Ukraine just as they are in the rest of Eastern Europe.

Endangered Species, Animals and Marine Life

These stamp issuances always hold a special meaning for philatelists.

As we come to the end of our newsletter philatelic tribute to the people of Ukraine, our wishes for the courageous people of Ukraine are for brighter skies and more peaceful times.

The Bauer Family

Hungaria Stamp Exchange

Please consider donating to World Central Kitchen’s relief efforts to provide fresh meals to Ukrainian families.

Summer 2021: Olympics, Sports & Music

What do Olympics, Sports and Music have in common?

Each requires practice, patience and striving for perfection and ….

They are all depicted on the stamps of Eastern Europe!

Browse Sports topicals

Browse Olympics topicals

Browse Music topicals

Dear Friends & Philatelic collectors,

As we launch into the beginning of summer, we here at Hungaria Stamp Exchange hope you are enjoying your continuing philatelic journey. We extend our appreciation for your support of the many magnificent topical and country stamps of Eastern Europe as part of your stamp collection process. With that in mind we are pleased to offer this newsletter on the Olympics, Sports and Music stamps of Eastern Europe.

Modern Era Olympics are well celebrated on the stamps of Eastern Europe and what could be more fitting than a review of these offerings in light of the most unusual circumstances for the 2020 Summer Olympics. First being scheduled during a global pandemic and now finally being played in 2021. We wish for success for each and every athlete at the Summer Games this year.

Philately and the modern day Olympics have a symbiotic relationship starting with the first modern day Games held in Athens in 1896 when Greece issued a series of stamps to mark the occasion. These stamps actually contributed to the financial success of the event which had been impacted by the financial and political crisis of the times.

Demetrios Sakorafos, the founder of the Greek philatelic association, had the idea of issuing a set of commemorative stamps with a nominal value higher than that of common postage stamps, with the proceeds going toward the fund for holding the Olympic Games. The stamps, with designs featuring ancient Greek athletic competitions, earned a considerable sum of money and the Greek Post became the first sponsor of the Modern Day Olympic Games. Initially only the Olympic host countries issued stamps to commemorate the Olympics. This tradition later ended when other countries alongside France issued stamps for the 1924 Paris Olympics. As the Olympic movement gained in popularity, interest in commemorative stamps grew among philatelic collectors. More stamps were published featuring specific athletes and sports. For more philatelic information on the Modern Day Olympics please refer to an earlier HSE Newsletter on Philately and The Modern Era Olympics.

Soviet stamps issued for the 1980 Moscow Olympics featured various sports and Olympic venues: the Krylatskoye Rowing Canal, the cycling track, and the sailing center, as well as Red Square and the 1980 Olympics mascot, Mishka the Bear. When more than 50 countries boycotted the games, these countries also cancelled their planned postage stamp issues or destroyed the issues printed. (As a trivia question, who can remember why countries including the United States boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics is Moscow?)

Eastern European Stamps of Women

Dear Friends and Philatelists,
Summertime is a traditional time for taking a family holiday or perhaps visiting another country or city. The summer of 2020 finds many of us not currently able to do this given these challenging times. It is, however, an opportune time to reconnect with our stamp collections and continue our philatelic travels, perhaps to new countries or with new topics or themes. And of course, we can continue to connect with family and friends, if even at a distance. Now is certainly time to pay tribute to our many brave front-line workers.

Monarchs, Saints, Performers, & Scientists and Social Activists

Eastern European Stamps of Women span a wide range of topics, from monarchs to saints and scientists, artists and performers, to social activists and heroines. The Hungaria Stamp Exchange hopes you enjoy reading our blog post and viewing some of the stamps in our on-line store.

Monarchs

Two of the most influential female Eastern European monarchs whose combined reigns lasted almost 75 years were Catherine the Great of Russia and Maria Teresa, ruling the Hapsburg Empire. Both of these extraordinary rulers are depicted on Eastern European stamps.

Catherine the Great (born Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; May 1729 –November 1796) was Empress of Russia from 1762 until 1796 and the country’s longest-ruling female leader. She came to power following a coup d’état that she organized, resulting in her husband, Peter III, being overthrown. During her reign Russia was revitalized; it grew larger and stronger and was recognized as one of the great powers of Europe and Asia.

In her accession to power and her rule of the empire, Catherine often relied on her noble favorites, most notably count Grigory Orlov and Grigory Potemkin. Assisted by highly successful generals such as Alexander Suvorov and admirals such as Fyodor Ushakov, she governed at a time when the Russian Empire was expanding rapidly by conquest and diplomacy. In the south, the Crimean Khanate was crushed following victories over the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish wars. Russia colonized the territories of Novorossiya along the coasts of the Black and Azov Seas. In the west, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, ruled by Catherine’s former lover, King Stanisław August Poniatowski, was eventually partitioned with the Russian Empire gaining the largest share. In the east, Russia started to colonize Alaska, establishing Russian America.

An admirer of Peter the Great, Catherine continued to modernize Russia along Western European lines. The economy and military conscription continued to depend on serfdom; increasing demands of the state and of private landowners intensified the exploitation of serf labor. This was one of the chief reasons inciting several rebellions including the large scale Pugachev Rebellion of Cossacks and peasants. Cossacks were a group of Russian military warriors who established free self-governing communities in exchange for their military service. When their privileges were threatened they revolted, with the most famous being Pugachev.