Southern Rhodesia 1937 3 Shilling Revenue Stamp

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

, now divided between

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

and

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

, first issued

revenue stamp A revenue stamp, tax stamp, duty stamp or fiscal stamp is a (usually) adhesive label used to designate collected taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, ...

s in 1890, and Zimbabwe continues to do so to this day.

British South Africa Company

The

British South Africa Company The British South Africa Company (BSAC or BSACo) was chartered in 1889 following the amalgamation of Cecil Rhodes' Central Search Association and the London-based Exploring Company Ltd, which had originally competed to capitalize on the expecte ...

issued revenue stamps for use in all of

from 1890 to 1909. The first issue had four values from £1 to £10 and they bore the company's coat of arms. These were issued in the form of postage stamps but due to their high values they never required for postal use so they are regarded by many as purely revenue stamps. In 1896, some of these were surcharged with values between £50 and £200. These are exceedingly rare as few were printed. Later in 1896, a new square design still featuring the coat of arms but with a more ornate frame was issued. This was replaced in 1898 with a design similar to the original 1890 issue but with some differences in the stamp's border. This set included a £100 cherry red value, which is very rare and only six copies of the stamp are known to exist. Around 1907, some of these stamps were overprinted REVENUE to disqualify them from postal use, and in 1909 the £1 to £5 values were overprinted RHODESIA when the company approved this usage on its stamps. These continued to be used until the 1920s. Around 1905, a set of cigarette

excise stamp An excise stamp is a type of revenue stamp affixed to some exciseable goods to indicate that the required excise tax has been paid by the manufacturer. They are securities printed by the finance ministry of the relevant country. Security measure ...

s were issued, and these are rare as they were usually torn upon use.

Southern Rhodesia

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kn ...

became a separate colony in 1923, and in 1924 its first revenue issues portraying

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

in a military uniform were issued. These were replaced by a new issue portraying an elderly King George in 1930. Following his death, in 1937 a set showing the new monarch

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

was issued. This had nine values from 3/- to £50. The rarest value is the 7/6 black as it was withdrawn soon after issue, and genuinely used stamps can now fetch over £3000. In 1954, a large set showing the coat of arms was issued with values ranging from 1d to £50. In the 1930s, banderole

s were used to pay cigarette taxes. From around 1937 to the 1940s, various postage stamps were handstamped EXCISE or E for the same purpose. Between 1961 and 1964 various stamps were issued for Personal Tax. These exist with various roulettes, perforations and combinations of both. Southern Rhodesia joined the

Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation or CAF, was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the Self-governing colony, self-governing British colony of Southe ...

and used its

revenue stamps A revenue stamp, tax stamp, duty stamp or fiscal stamp is a (usually) adhesive label used to designate collected taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, ...

from 1953 to 1963.

Rhodesia

Following

Unilateral Declaration of Independence A unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) is a formal process leading to the establishment of a new state by a subnational entity which declares itself independent and sovereign without a formal agreement with the state which it is secedi ...

in November 1965, the country assumed independence and issued its first revenues a year later. They used the 1954 Southern Rhodesia design but with altered inscriptions. One of the values - the 6d red and black - is very rare despite it being one of the most commonly used rates as it was the stamp duty tax on cheques. Its rarity is probably because old stocks of Southern Rhodesian revenues continued to be used instead of it. In 1970 the set was reissued denominated in

Rhodesian dollar The Rhodesian dollar (''R$ or Rh$'', ) was the currency of Rhodesia between 1970 and 1980. It was subdivided into 100 cents. History The dollar was introduced on 17 February 1970, less than a month before the declaration of a republic on 2 Mar ...

s. There were some provisional surcharges made in 1980 just before the country was renamed Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe

In 1980, Rhodesia was renamed Zimbabwe following the end of the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. Initially it used Rhodesian revenues with the name obliterated by hand in ink, but in 1981 a new design showing the

Zimbabwe Bird The stone-carved Zimbabwe Bird is the national emblem of Zimbabwe, appearing on the national flags and coats of arms of both Zimbabwe and Rhodesia, as well as on banknotes and coins (first on the Rhodesian pound and then on the Rhodesian dollar). ...

was issued. Since around 2000 perforated stamps were withdrawn and replaced by rouletted issues on coloured paper. Due to inflation, these have values up to $200,000.

Northern Rhodesia

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in southern Africa, south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by Amalgamation (politics), amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-West ...

became a separate protectorate in 1924, and it issued its first revenue stamps a year later with values from £2 to £50. These portrayed

and showed a local scene with giraffes, elephants and other wildlife. These continued to be used until the 1950s. Postage stamps were used for revenue transactions of lower values. In 1953,

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

postage stamps were overprinted with a large R indicating revenue use. About two years later, the 1925 King George V design was reissued with the portrait of the Queen, this time with values ranging from 1d to £50. In the 1930s, various cigarette

s were also issued, and an employment stamp featuring the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

was issued around 1962. Northern Rhodesia joined the

and used its

from 1953 to 1963.

Zambia

Following the dissolution of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in 1963, Northern Rhodesia became independent as Zambia in 1964. Its first revenues were issued in 1964 and depicted the

. The design was reissued in 1968 denominated in the

Zambian kwacha The Kwacha (ISO 4217 code: ZMW) is the currency of Zambia. It is subdivided into 100 ''Ngwee''. Etymology The name ''kwacha'' derives from the Nyanja, Bemba, and Tonga language word for "dawn", alluding to the Zambian nationalist slogan of a ...

References

External links

Rhodesian Study CircleTax Stamps Collection
{{Revenue Stamps Economy of Zambia Economy of Zimbabwe

Philately of Zimbabwe