The Kingdom of Belgium has had one of the longest postage stamp histories in the world. From its first stamp in 1849 to the newest issues every year, rare Belgium stamps are available in an endless variety for collectors. Many people concentrate solely on collecting rare Belgian stamps and even approaching completeness can take a lifetime. And it would be time well spent too; Belgium stamps are fascinating.
The Earliest Belgium Stamps
Belgium issued its first stamps in 1849 during the reign of King Leopold I. These issues didn’t actually show the name of the country, merely the word POSTES, the value, and a portrait of the king. Other early stamps also featured a coat-of-arms; several times in Belgium’s subsequent history, the coat-of-arms would appear on various postage stamps. These all make up a collectible subset of Belgium stamps.
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Collecting Tip: Local Languages on Belgian Stamps
Belgian stamps use the name of the country in both Dutch and French – BELGIË and BELGIQUE, respectively. If you collect world stamps with either of those languages then there are quite a few rare Belgium stamps to choose from.
In 1865, King Leopold II took over the country, and many stamps were issued during his reign. Leopold II ruled until 1909, and so rare Belgium stamps from his reign coincide with advanced in postage stamp technology. Working towards a complete collection of Leopold II stamps will yield a great history of stamps in general in the late 19th century.
Leopold II’s successor, King Albert I, was in power during a period of some turmoil in Belgium. World War I broke out in 1914 and Belgium was occupied by German forces from 1914 to 1918, virtually the span of the entire war. Postally, during this time Germany used German stamps in occupied Belgium with overprints reading BELGIEN. Collectors of occupation stamps in general and of German stamps will also be interested in these historically significant issues.
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Rare Belgium Stamps from the Post-WW2 Era
In 1934, King Leopold III took power and ruled until 1951. The king abdicated the throne that year after a period of unrest and controversy regarding his reign. King Baudouin took over, seeing a period of relative calm and ruling Belgium until 1993. Each monarch, of course, released several stamps during his reign. Baudouin in particular happened to be in power when postage stamp technology all over the world improved. Collectible and rare Belgium stamps from these decades became more colorful with an array of diverse designs.
During the Baudouin years the collectors’ market also grew significantly. Many, many commemorative and special stamps and philatelic items were released for buyers worldwide. A large subset of collectible Belgian stamps can be found in this area, and there are as many possibilities for building your personal hoard as you can think of.
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Rare Belgium Stamps Today
Belgium’s current king is Albert II, and modern Belgian postage stamps continue to feature a large variety of interesting subjects. In addition to certain collectibles such as the Belgium railway (chemin de fer) stamps, there are Belgian stamp maximum cards, joint issues with other issuers, stamp souvenir sheets and minisheets, airmail stamps, unofficial cinderella stamps, and many other fascinating collectibles.
Online sellers who provide quality scans of their items for sale, and who have a good reputation and offer fair guarantees, can be found easily by perusing current listings. Finding rare Belgium stamps is easy and the selection is big and changing enough that any budget and any type of collection can be accommodated. Dive into the world of Belgium stamp collecting and know that you’ll spend many a happy hour at it!
