British forces in Greece 1944-1952

[Marc Parren]

I made an inventory of British forces present in Greece and would welcome scans of any covers in your possession and with new dates that can add to the table below. I plan to make a short article on this and will acknowledge any help provided. Scans can be emailed to marcparren@hotmail.com

British Fleet Mail Office 12 datestamp was used in Athens up to May 1952. No covers seen so far.

Please provide feedback on the table

Table 1. Field Post Offices in use in Greece between October 1944 and May 1952. Based on Gould & Proud (1982), Jagger (1964), Ransom (2020).

FPO No. Earliest date Latest date Unit, Location Remarks
69 05 Jun 49 09 Jan 50 APO S.433, Piraeus
137 10 Jun 45 23 Feb 47 Salonika Fig.
139 30 Oct 44 Piraeus
250 13 Dec 44 31 Aug 45 FPO T.4
264 13 Dec 44 31 Jan 46 19 BAPO
265 13 Dec 44 24 Oct 46 19 BAPO
266 22 Dec 44 08 Nov 45 4th Div., Kavala
267 22 Dec 44 25 May 45 4th Div.
285 14 Jan 45 07 Apr 45 46th Div.
286 14 Jan 45 07 Apr 45 46th Div.
287 14 Jan 45 07 Apr 45 46th Div.
288 14 Jan 45 07 Apr 45 46th Div.
375 31 Oct 45 07 Sep 46 HQ Dodecanese Rhodes
400 19 Dec 44 29 May 45 APO S.430, Patras
402 16 Oct 45 Hassani, RAF station
454 12 Aug 47 Sep 48 APO S.433, Athens
514 25 Nov 44 01 Feb 45 APO S.430, Patras
514 12 Apr 46 APO S.431, Prevesa
514 1950 13 May 52 APO S.433, Athens
567 15 Jan 46 08 Jul 49 8 L of C P.U.
654 01 Jun 45 APO S.437, Siros
654 12 Apr 46 APO S.431, Prevesa
654 July 48 05 Jan 50 APO S.433, Athens
708 04 Nov 44 19 Aug 45 23 Armoured Brigade
708 Sep 48 APO S.433, Athens
708 Jun 49 19 BAPO
709 09 Dec 44 25 Feb 45 FPO H.10
727 19 Oct 44 01 Jun 45 APO S.436, Chios
730 Sep 44 Allied Mil. Liaison Italy?
732 25 Nov 44 10 Jan 45 APO S.432, Kalamai
732 16 Apr 45 22 L of C P.U.
776 25 Nov 44 12 Aug 45 APO S.433, Athens
777 21 Nov 44 16 Jan 50 APO S.434, Salonika Fig.
778 26 Nov 44 17 Dec 44 APO S.435, Kavala
778 16 Apr 45 08 May 45 APO S.435, Volos
779 27 Dec 44 22 L of C P.U.
780 27 Dec 44 22 L of C P.U.
782 25 Nov 44 05 Dec 49 APO S.433, Athens
783 13 Nov 44 30 Jun 46 APO S.433, Athens
783 03 Apr 47 29 Sep 48 HQ Dodecanese Rhodes

BAPO = Base Army Post Office, L of C P.U. = Line of Communications Postal Unit

[Michael Dobbs]

Marc

Good luck with the article - looking forward to seeing it.  This is my covers from Greece:

Greece FPOs

264 21 Jan 45 A600 censor (No 1435)
514 8 Nov 50       WOII with British Embassy, Athens (address on back of envelope)
782 27 Sep 46
783 27 Feb 45 694 Tank Transporter Workshops REME
                                        A600 censor (No 6479)
783 25 Aug 45
783 15 Mar 46
783 16 Mar 47

Mike  :)

[Michael Dobbs]

Hi Marc

Ref: British Fleet Mail Office 12 - what is your reference for its use in Athens up to May 1952 please?

Proud in his "The Postal History of the Naval and R.A.F. Postal Services" (1992) last lists it as Palestine (6.5.48) - 10.6.48

Thanks, Mike

[Marc Parren]

Anon. (1965) stated British Fleet Mail Office 12 datestamp was used in Athens up to May 1952.
Anon. (1965). Army postmarks used in Greece. FPHS Newsletter 72: 19-20.

Kanxidis (2012) states British Fleet Mail Office 12 datestamp was used in Athens between January 1950 and end May 1950

I have found evidence that 18 June 1945 BFM 12 was in Sydney (Australia).

Proud in his "The Postal History of the Naval and R.A.F. Postal Services" (1992) last lists it as Palestine (6.5.48) - 10.6.48. It was used at Haifa at the time and the latest date I found was 27 June 1948

[Michael Dobbs]

Marc

Many thanks for the information and source references that BRITISH FLEET MAIL 12 was used in Greece

BRITISH FLEET MAIL 12 - I have two examples clearly from Australia, dated FE 16 46 and FE 27 46.

It would be interesting if anyone here can provide examples of it used in Greece.

Mike  :)

[Marc Parren]

I just discovered that in the Argyll Etkin auction #33 (2014), Lot 401 was offered - great britain and commonwealth forces mail world war two and postwar - from 1939 - naval mail

Haifa. 1948 Registered cover to Haifa with G.B 3d tied "BRITISH FLEET MAIL / 12" c.d.s (a further strike on reverse) with boxed handstamp "REGISTERED" and blue crayon "F.M.O 12 / No 028" below, backstamped by dated oval "FLEET MAIL OFFICER / HAIFA". Also a 1948 "Patka" cover with the No. 12 c.d.s, boxed "F.M.O HAIFA" and cachet of H.M.S "Phoebe". (2).

So even in 1948 BFM 12 seems to have been Haifa. Indeed any covers with BFM 12 showing it was based in Greece in 1950 or around that year would be helpful

[Richard Berry]

Marc,

From my one frame display on Greece:

FPO  Date
782  25 May 45  - I've attached a scan of this cover - it was signed by Lt-Gen Scobie
139  1 April 44 -  Honour envelope in m/s "[i]in Greek text[/i]"
137 6 Oct 46
252 22 Jan 46
266 13 Dec 46
267 7 Jun 46
286 9 Mar 46
287 23 Mar 46
288 6 Mar 45
400 30 Oct 44
777 9 Feb 46
782 25 Jul 45
782 21 Oct 49
752 8 May 46  1st Kensingtons
514 4 Mar 45
708 7 Jul 45 Parliamentary election card sent to Guy Crouch (first President of the FPHS)
708  7 No 44

Rest of the frame relates to Greek forces and their MPOs.

Hope this is useful.

[Richard Berry]

Ronald Scobie not Robert Scobie.

Nobody picked that up when I displayed this at the FPHS meeting at Stockholmia!

[Marc Parren]

Dear Richard,
Slowly but gradually I am getting information like yours from collectors around the globe who possess such covers to compile the story and the use of the different postmarks. I have contacted a good number of specialised Greek societies as well. I noticed that it will be essential to establish what army units were involved as well, and if possible to see where they were located at the time of writing. So I would kindly like to request you to send me scans of front and backside of your covers in the form of jpegs at a resolution of 300 dpi. You can send them to marcparren@hotmail.com. All covers will be acknowledged as for their source in any tables or illustrations used for publication. Thanks in advance and for the fact that you reached out to me.
Kindest regards
Marc