Burundi has issued
postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...
s for national use since achieving independence on 1 July 1962. The country was formerly a part of the Belgian territory of
Ruanda-Urundi and before 1962 used those postage stamps.
Independence
For the first issue after independence as the
Kingdom of Burundi
The Kingdom of Burundi (french: Royaume du Burundi) or Kingdom of Urundi (''Royaume d'Urundi'') was a Bantu kingdom in the modern-day Republic of Burundi. The Ganwa monarchs (with the title of ''mwami'') ruled over both Hutus and Tutsis. Created ...
, Burundi overprinted stamps of Ruanda-Urundi with "Royaume du Burundi". Subsequent stamps were inscribed "Royaume du Burundi".
[''Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue: North East Africa''. London: Stanley Gibbons, 2013, pp. 1-5. ] In February 1963 the government issued a series of stamps bearing assassinated prime minister
Louis Rwagasore
Louis Rwagasore ( rn, Ludoviko Rwagasore, italics=no; 10 January 1932 – 13 October 1961) was a Burundian prince and politician, who served as the second prime minister of Burundi for two weeks, from 28 September 1961 until his assassination on ...
's visage. The proceeds from the sales of these stamps were used to fund the constructed of Rwagasore's mausoleum and the
Prince Louis Rwagasore Stadium. Two more postage series featuring Rwagasore were later released; one in 1966 pairing his image with that of assassinated United States President
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
, and another in 1972 celebrating the 10th anniversary of Burundian independence.
Republic of Burundi
In 1966, following political turmoil, Burundi became a republic and from then the stamps were marked "République du Burundi".
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See also
* Postage stamps and postal history of German East Africa This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of German East Africa.
German East Africa was a German colony in East Africa, including what is now Burundi, Rwanda and Tanganyika (the mainland part of present Tanzania). It came into ...
* Postage stamps and postal history of Ruanda-Urundi The African territories of Ruanda and Urundi came under Belgian control as Ruanda-Urundi after they were seized from Germany during World War I in 1916. They had previously formed part of German East Africa.
The territory was under Belgian mili ...
* Postage stamps and postal history of Rwanda
This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of Rwanda. The ''Republic of Rwanda'' is a landlocked country located in the Great Lakes region of eastern-central Africa, bordered by Uganda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Con ...
References
Works cited
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External links
Book stamps of Burundi
Philately of Burundi
{{Burundi-stub