£360
** PLYMOUTH (DEVON) - MILL PRISON HOSPITAL - EARLIEST RECORDED STRIKE OF THE OVAL "TRANSPORT OFFICE..." MARK; 15 Apr. 1798 EL from "St. Malo" (from the addressee's father ref. his joy at having had a letter to prove that his son was alive, etc.) to "Joseph Cor, Prisoner of War, employe [Assistant?] in Mill Prison Hospital, Near Plymouth, Devonshire" with a fine "ST. MALO" on the front and a partly fine London double oval "TRANSPORT OFFICE/[Crown]/G.R./PRISONERS OF WAR" mark (the earliest recorded example) nicely placed on the side-flap, but unusually without any postal rate or London cds. The contents show that Cor was captured on the privateer 'Le Triton' (on 17 July 1798 by the British frigate Melpomene in the English Channel). One of the earliest known of all Revolutionary Wars POW covers. [See MFPWE, p.79.] Cross Reference: LONDON POSTAL HISTORY, MILITARY - P.O.W. MAIL, DEVON, MEDICAL
Fees apply to the hammer price:
Free Registration
24% inc VAT*
