It was in 1856, some nine years before King George V was born, that the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) and brother Prince Alfred, later the Duke of Edinburgh, were given examples of new 6d stamps. Enthused by the gift, Alfred soon became a dedicated collector and began working on his own collection. But it would be King George V, Alfred’s nephew, who would turn the assorted albums into a world-renowned collection.
Born in 1865, some 25 years after the beginnings of the postage stamp, George quickly became an enthusiastic stamp collector, after inheriting the collection from his father, who had bought it from Alfred before his death in 1900. The Duke of York, as he was known before he came to the throne, soon became Honorary Life Vice-President of the Royal Philatelic Society, and later received an album of some 1,500 stamps as a wedding present from fellow members.
Following the sad loss of his father, Edward VII, who had succumbed to bronchitis in 1910, George took to the throne. His royal obligations and duties would take up a great deal of his time, at a difficult period in Britain’s history. Philately became a welcome distraction. Throughout his time on the
