Postage stamps

Austro-Hungarian Military Post · 96 stamps

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1915

1915 Bosnia and Herzegovina Postage Stamps Overprinted "K. U. K. FELDPOST"

Issued: March
Watermark: None
Perforation: 12½

The K. u. K. (Imperial and Royal) field post issued stamps from 1915 to 1918 for the territories occupied by the Austro-Hungarian army. The first were Bosnian stamps overprinted 'K. U. K. FELDPOST'.

Sources

Sources: WorthPoint: Austro-Hungarian Military Post 1915–1918

SW	Type	Value	Colour
1	A	1 H	olive
2	A1	2 H	light blue
3	A2	3 H	brownish carmine
4	A3	5 H	green
5	A4	6 H	black
6	A5	10 H	light red
7	A6	12 H	greenish olive
8	A7	20 H	yellowish brown
9	A8	25 H	ultramarine
10	A9	30 H	orange red
11	A10	35 H	greenish slate
12	A11	40 H	violet
13	A12	45 H	olive brown
14	A13	50 H	blackish blue
15	A14	60 H	reddish purple
16	A15	72 H	dark blue
17	A16	1 Kr	dark purple
18	A17	2 Kr	black
19	A18	3 Kr	carmine
20	A19	5 Kr	dark violet
21	A20	10 Kr	violet blue
1‑21			Set

1915–1917 Emperor Franz Joseph - Inscription: "K u K FELDPOST"

Perforation: 12½

The Austro-Hungarian field post (Feldpost) issued its own stamps from 1915 for territory held by the army. The first, in March 1915, were Bosnian stamps of 1912 overprinted 'K.U.K. FELDPOST'; they were soon replaced by this Franz Joseph series inscribed 'K u K FELDPOST' – kaiserlich und königlich, imperial and royal.

The same stamps were later overprinted for Serbia and Montenegro.

Sources: StampWorld: Austro-Hungary Military Post 1915 – Bosnian stamps overprinted K.U.K. FELDPOST, WorthPoint: Austro-Hungarian Military Post (1915 – 1918)

SW	Type	Value	Colour
22	B	1 H	olive
23	B1	2 H	dull blue
24	B2	3 H	brownish carmine
25	B3	5 H	green
26	B4	6 H	black
27	B5	10 H	carmine
28	B6	10 H	dull blue
29	B7	12 H	olive green
30	B8	15 H	red
31	B9	20 H	brown
32	B10	20 H	olive
33	B11	25 H	ultramarine
34	B12	30 H	brick-red
35	B13	35 H	dark green
36	B14	40 H	violet
37	B15	45 H	sepia
38	B16	50 H	greenish black
39	B17	60 H	reddish purple
40	B18	72 H	blue
41	B19	80 H	reddish brown
42	B20	90 H	purple red
43	C	1 Kr	reddish purple
44	C1	2 Kr	black
45	C2	3 Kr	carmine
46	C3	4 Kr	purple
47	C4	5 Kr	violet
48	C5	10 Kr	ultramarine
22‑48			Set

1916

1916 Newspaper Stamps

Watermark: None
Perforation: 12½

The field-post newspaper stamps, with the head of Mercury, god of commerce, facing left, were designed by Koloman Moser and engraved by Ferdinand Schirnböck.

Newspaper stamps were meant for posting newspapers and were available only to publishers. Mercury had been the emblem of Austrian newspaper stamps since 1851.

Sources: Belvedere, Koloman Moser – Werkverzeichnis: Briefmarke K. u. K. Österreichische Feldpost (Merkur), Stamp Encyclopedia: Austria – back of the book issues

SW	Type	Value	Colour
49	I	2 H	blue
50	I1	6 H	orange
51	I2	10H	rose
52	I3	20H	brown
49‑50			Set
49‑52

1917

1917–1918 Emperor Karl I

Watermark: None
Perforation: 12½

Franz Joseph died on 21 November 1916 after almost 68 years on the throne and was succeeded by his great-nephew Karl I. In 1917 the field post therefore issued a new series with Karl's profile between ornamental columns.

The stamps for occupied Romania used the same design, with a blank bottom panel for the value in bani and lei.

Sources: Wikipedia: Charles I of Austria, Dead Country Stamps: Romania, Austrian Occupation – WW1, MegaMinistore: Romania – Austrian occupation stamps

SW	Type	Value	Colour
53	D	1H	greenish blue
54	D1	2H	orange
55	D2	3H	blackish olive
56	D3	5H	yellowish green
57	D4	6H	violet
58	D5	10H	reddish brown
59	D6	12H	blue
60	D7	15H	rose
61	D8	20H	purple brown
62	D9	25H	ultramarine
63	D10	30H	greenish slate
64	D11	40H	yellowish olive
65	D12	50H	dark green
66	D13	60H	purple red
67	D14	80H	slate blue
68	D15	90H	dark purple
69	E	2Kr	carmine
70	E1	3Kr	dark green
71	E2	4Kr	carmine
72	E3	10Kr	violet
53‑72

1918

1918 Emperor Karl & Empress Zita Week

Perforation: 12½

In 1918 the field post issued three charity stamps inscribed K UND K FELDPOST and KARLFONDS – 10, 20 and 45 heller, each with a 10-heller surcharge for the Karl Fund.

Bosnia received a similar trio in July 1918, with portraits of Karl I and Empress Zita by Alfred Cossmann; the proceeds went to victims of the war.

Sources: Stamp Encyclopedia: Austria – back of the book issues, Wikimedia Commons: Stamps of Bosnia and Herzegovina

SW	Type	Value
73	F	10+10 H
74	G	20+10 H
75	F1	45+10 H
73‑75

1918 Emperor Karl I - Not Issued

Perforation: 12½

In the autumn of 1918 a new field-post definitive set with Karl I was ready, similar in design to the Karlfonds charity stamps. It never reached the army post offices – the war ended first – so catalogues list it as unissued.

Sources

Sources: Stamp Encyclopedia: Austria – back of the book issues

SW	Type	Value
76	H	1H
77	H1	2H
78	H2	3H
79	H3	5H
80	H4	10H
81	H5	20H
82	H6	25H
83	H7	30H
84	H8	45H
85	H9	50H
86	H10	60H
87	H11	80H
88	H12	90H
89	J	1Kr
76‑89