| History | | | | Royal Mail is the Department for Business, Enterprise |
| See also: General Post Office (United Kingdom) | | | | and Regulatory Reform, however the public financial |
| The main post office in Oxford, England, in St Aldate's. | | | | interest is managed by the Shareholder executive. |
| The Royal Mail traces its history back to 1516, when | | | | Although now a private company, the Royal Mail |
| Henry VIII established a "Master of the Posts", a post | | | | enjoys special protection under Government legislation |
| which eventually evolved into the office of the | | | | which severely limits consumer rights. Under the Postal |
| Postmaster General. The Royal Mail service was first | | | | Services Act 2000, the Royal Mail is under no |
| made available to the public by Charles I on 31 July, | | | | contractual obligation to deliver most mail, including |
| 1635, with postage being paid by the recipient, and the | | | | special delivery items. In addition, no court action can be |
| General Post Office (GPO) was officially established | | | | taken against the Royal Mail more than 12 months |
| by Charles II in 1660. | | | | after an item is posted. |
| Between 1719 and 1763, Ralph Allen, Postmaster at | | | | Royal Mail has, in some quarters, a poor reputation for |
| Bath, signed a series of contracts with the post office | | | | losing mail despite more than 99.93% of mail arriving |
| to develop and expand Britain's postal network. He | | | | safely and in 2006 was fined 11.7 million due to the |
| organised mail coaches which were provided by both | | | | amount of mail lost, stolen or damaged. According to |
| Wilson & Company of London and Williams | | | | Home Office figures from 2002 up to a million letters a |
| & Company of Bath. The early Royal Mail | | | | week were lost or delivered to the wrong address. |
| Coaches were similar to ordinary family coaches but | | | | The Chief Executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier has |
| with Post Office livery. | | | | been quoted on various occasions as saying that |
| Uniform penny postage | | | | "every single letter is important." |
| Main article: Uniform Penny Post | | | | Industrial relations |
| A post box in front of Mansfield College, Oxford. The | | | | See also: 2007 Royal Mail industrial disputes |
| cypher of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, ER | | | | See also: Communication Workers Union (UK) |
| VII for Eduardus Rex septimus is cast into its door. | | | | Royal Mail has been at the centre of a number of |
| In December 1839 the first substantial reform started | | | | industrial disputes during its history - notably the national |
| when postage rates were revised by the short-lived | | | | wildcat strikes in 2003 and a seven-week strike in 1971. |
| Uniform Fourpenny Post. Greater changes took place | | | | By Autumn 2007, disputes began to escalate into |
| when the Uniform Penny Post was introduced on 10 | | | | industrial action. In mid October unions and |
| January, 1840 whereby a single rate for delivery | | | | management agreed a resolution to the dispute. |
| anywhere in Great Britain and Ireland was pre-paid by | | | | In December 2008, workers at Mail Centres affected |
| the sender. A few months later, to certify that postage | | | | by proposals to rationalise the number of Mail Centres |
| had been paid on a letter, the sender could affix the | | | | (particularly in North West England) again voted for |
| first adhesive postage stamp, the Penny Black that | | | | strike action on Friday 19 December, potentially |
| was available for use from May 6 of the same year. | | | | affecting Christmas deliveries. The action was |
| Other innovations were the introduction of pre-paid | | | | postponed less than 24 hours before staff were due |
| William Mulready designed postal stationery letter | | | | to walk out. |
| sheets and envelopes. | | | | Localised strikes have taken place across the UK |
| As the United Kingdom was the first country to issue | | | | from June 2009 and these have grown in frequency |
| prepaid postage stamps, British stamps are the only | | | | throughout the summer. There is currently a ballot on |
| stamps that do not bear the name of the country of | | | | national industrial action, over Royal Mail's failure to |
| issue on them. | | | | reach a national agreement covering protection of |
| By the late 19th century, there were between six and | | | | jobs, pay, terms and conditions and the cessation of |
| twelve mail deliveries per day in London, permitting | | | | managerial executive action. The result will be known |
| correspondents to exchange multiple letters within a | | | | by 9 October 2009 . |
| single day. | | | | Fleet |
| Pillar boxes | | | | Royal Mail Ford Transit van |
| Main article: Pillar box | | | | Royal Mail is famous for its custom load carrying |
| A Victorian hexagonal red post box outside King's | | | | bicycles (rack and basket built into the frame), made |
| College, Cambridge. | | | | by Pashley Cycles for the past 10+ years. Since 2000, |
| Traditionally UK post boxes carry the Latin initials of | | | | their old bikes have been shipped to Africa by |
| the reigning monarch at the time of their installation: in | | | | Re~Cycle (10,000 as of 2008) . |
| this case VR for Victoria Regina. Pillar boxes and | | | | In addition to running a large number of road vehicles, |
| other RMG Street Furniture are maintained by Romec | | | | Royal Mail uses trains, a ship and some aircraft, with |
| Ltd. | | | | an air hub at East Midlands Airport. |
| 1960 to present | | | | The following aircraft are included in the dedicated |
| In 1969 the GPO was changed from a government | | | | fleet: |
| department to a public corporation, and the position of | | | | 1x Boeing 737-3Y0 G-ZAPV operated by Titan |
| Postmaster General was abolished. | | | | Airways. |
| In 2000, The Post Office renamed itself onsignia. | | | | British Airways aircraft are also used for airmail |
| However, the change proved to be highly unpopular | | | | deliveries and bear a small Royal Mail logo towards the |
| with both the public and even the organisation's own | | | | rear of the fuselage. |
| employees, with the Communication Workers' Union | | | | The RMS St Helena is a cargo and passenger ship |
| boycotting the name. In 2002, the organisation adopted | | | | that serves the British overseas territory of Saint |
| the name of the letters delivery business, becoming | | | | Helena. It sails between Cape Town and Saint Helena, |
| "Royal Mail Group plc" with the following operating | | | | occasionally visiting the dependencies of Ascension |
| divisions: | | | | Island and Tristan da Cunha. It also visits the Isle of |
| Royal Mail, delivering letters | | | | Portland, England twice per year. It is one of the last |
| Parcelforce, delivering parcels | | | | remaining ocean-going ships to carry the designation |
| Post Office Limited, managing the nationwide network | | | | Royal Mail Ship. |
| of post office branches as retail outlets. | | | | The London Post Office Railway was axed by Royal |
| Contrary to urban myth, Royal Mail does not own the | | | | Mail in 2003 - this had been a network of driverless |
| trademark on the colour red, but a specific shade of | | | | trains running along a private underground track since |
| the colour red: "Royal Mail, the Royal Mail Cruciform, | | | | 1927. |
| the colour red (as part of the Royal Mail logotype) and | | | | Business services |
| SmartStamp are all registered trademarks of Royal | | | | The Royal Mail runs, alongside its stamped mail |
| Mail Group plc." | | | | services, another sector of post called business mail. |
| In 2001 the government set up a postal regulator, | | | | The large majority of Royal Mail's business mail |
| Postcomm, and offered licences to private companies | | | | service is for PPI or franked mail, where the sender |
| to deliver mail. In 2001, the Consumer Council for Postal | | | | prints their own 'stamp'. For PPI mail this involves either |
| Services, more commonly known as Postwatch, was | | | | a simple rubber stamp and an ink pad, or a printed |
| created for consumers to express any concerns they | | | | label. For franked mail, a dedicated franking machine is |
| may have with the postal service in the UK. | | | | used. |
| From 1 January, 2006, the Royal Mail lost its 350-year | | | | Bulk business mail attracts reduced prices if the sender |
| monopoly and the UK postal market became fully | | | | prints an RM4SCC barcode, or prints the address in a |
| open to competition.[citation needed] | | | | specified position on the envelope using a font |
| Timeline | | | | readable by optical character recognition (OCR) |
| London's largest sorting office, Mount Pleasant | | | | equipment. There are no facilities to read addresses in |
| 1516: Royal Mail established by Henry VIII under Master | | | | these formats from general mail. |
| of the Posts. | | | | In the Media |
| 1635: Royal Mail service first made available to the | | | | In 2009, BBC show Top Gear (2002 TV series) |
| public by Charles I. | | | | presenters, James May and Richard Hammond in a |
| 1654: Oliver Cromwell grants monopoly over service in | | | | Porsche Panamera raced aganist the Royal Mail to |
| England to "Office of Postage". | | | | deliver a letter. The raced started in the Isles of Scilly |
| 1657: Fixed postal rates introduced. | | | | and finished in the Orkney Islands. The letter reached |
| 1660: General Post Office (GPO) officially established | | | | the mainland first, but the car overtook the letter while |
| by Charles II. | | | | it was in the sorting office in Truro. The letter did finally |
| 1661: First use of date stamp. First Postmaster General | | | | overtake the car shortly after leaving East Midlands |
| appointed. | | | | airport. The letter opened up a lead of 115 miles when it |
| 1784: First Mail coach (between Bristol and London). | | | | reached RAF Kinloss. However after going on a lorry |
| 1793: First uniformed delivery staff. Post Office | | | | to Inverness Sorting Office, the car took the lead again. |
| Investigation Branch formed, the oldest recognised | | | | But the letter took the lead while on a plane to the |
| criminal investigations authority in the world. | | | | Orkneys. The letter won the race by less than 10 |
| 1830: First mail train (on Liverpool and Manchester | | | | minutes. |
| Railway). | | | | See also |
| 1839: Uniform Fourpenny Post introduced. | | | | Australia Post |
| 1840: Uniform Penny Post introduced. | | | | Canada Post |
| 1840: First adhesive stamp (the Penny Black). | | | | General Post Office (United Kingdom) |
| 1852: First Post Office pillar box erected (in Jersey). | | | | Guernsey Post |
| 1853: First post boxes erected in mainland Britain. | | | | Isle of Man Post |
| 1857: First wall boxes installed Shrewsbury and Market | | | | Jersey Post |
| Drayton | | | | London Post Office Railway |
| 1870: Post Office begins telegraph service. | | | | Postage stamps and postal history of Great Britain |
| 1870: Post Office Act banned sending of `indecent or | | | | Royal Mail rubber band |
| obscene` literature; introduced the d rate for postcards; | | | | Royal Mail Ship |
| banned the use of cut-outs from postal stationery; | | | | United States Postal Service |
| introduced the d rate for newspapers; provided for the | | | | References and sources |
| issue of newspaper wrappers. | | | | Notes |
| 1880: First use of bicycles to deliver mail. | | | | ^ "Royal Mail". Shareholder Executive. Retrieved |
| 1881: Postal order introduced. | | | | 2008-10-27. |
| 1883: Parcel post begins. | | | | ^ "Post Office Act 1969 (c. 48) - Statute Law |
| 1894: First picture postcards. | | | | Database". Ministry of Justice. 1969. Retrieved |
| 1912: Post Office opens national telephone service. | | | | 2008-10-27. |
| 1919: First international airmail service. | | | | ^ a b "The Dissolution of the Post Office Order 2007 |
| 1968: Two-class postal system introduced. National | | | | (No. 1180) - Statute Law Database". UK Ministry of |
| Giro bank opens. | | | | Justice. 2007. Retrieved 2008-10-27. |
| 1969: General Post Office changes from government | | | | ^ WebCheck entry for "Royal Mail Holdings plc" |
| department to nationalised industry. | | | | ^ Sparrow, Andrew (5 May 2009), Brown will back |
| 1971: Postal services in Great Britain were suspended | | | | down over Royal Mail privatisation, predicts Labour |
| for two months between January and March as the | | | | rebel, The Guardian, |
| result of a national postal strike over a pay claim. | | | | ^ |
| 1974: Postcodes extended over all UK. | | | | ^ "Report and Accounts Year Ended 26 March 2006". |
| 1981: Telecommunications services split out as British | | | | Royal Mail Holdings plc. 2006. p. pps. 2 & 11. |
| Telecom. Remainder renamed as "Post Office". | | | | Retrieved 2009-02-28. |
| 1986: Separated businesses of delivering letters, | | | | ^ "Mail boss gets 3m in pay packet". Business. BBC |
| delivering parcels and operating post offices. | | | | News. 2008-05-23. Retrieved 2008-12-14. |
| 1988: Postal workers hold their first national strike for 17 | | | | ^ "Royal Mail Group increases profit in the face of |
| years after walking out over bonuses being paid to | | | | tough market and economic conditions but challenges |
| recruit new workers in London and the South East. | | | | remain". Royal Mail Group. 2009-05-14. Retrieved |
| 1989: Royal Mail establishes RoMec (Royal Mail | | | | 2009-05-14. |
| Engineering & Construction) to deliver Facilities | | | | ^ |
| Maintenance services to its business. RoMec becomes | | | | ^ Marshall, Allan. Intelligence and Espionage in the Reign |
| owned 51% Royal Mail and 49% Haden BML in a joint | | | | of Charles II, 1660-1685, p79 (Cambridge University |
| venture. | | | | Press, 2003). |
| 1990: Girobank sold to the Alliance & Leicester | | | | ^ [dead link] |
| Building Society. | | | | ^ "Murray's Handbook to London As It Is". Victorian |
| 1990: Royal Mail Parcels re-branded as Parcelforce. | | | | London - Communications - Post - Delivery Times and |
| 1999: A new business: Royal Mail ViaCode - or | | | | Postal Regulations. 1879. Retrieved 2008-12-03. |
| ViaCode Limited - was launched. This wholly-owned | | | | ^ "SmartStamp". Royal Mail. 2008. Retrieved |
| subsidiary of the Post Office offered online encryption | | | | 2008-12-14. |
| services to businesses, using "digital certificate" | | | | ^ a b 1971: "Post strike ends with pay deal" (bbc.co.uk) |
| technology. The short-lived venture was wound up in | | | | ^ Richardson, Tim (1999-03-17). "Royal E-Mail backs |
| 2002. | | | | security service with 100K bond". Business News. The |
| 2004: Reduction of deliveries to once daily. Travelling | | | | Register. Retrieved 2008-12-14. |
| post office ("Mail Trains") end. SmartStamp is | | | | ^ "End of line for mail trains". BBC News. 2004-01-10. |
| introduced. | | | | Retrieved 2009-05-13. |
| 2005: Mail Trains re-introduced on some lines. | | | | ^ "Royal Mail loses postal monopoly". BBC News. |
| 2006: Royal Mail loses its monopoly when the | | | | 2005-02-18. Retrieved 2009-05-13. |
| regulator, PostComm, opens up the Postal Market 3 | | | | ^ "International Postal Update - Competition, |
| years ahead of the rest of Europe. Competitors can | | | | Privatization Move Ahead in Europe" (pdf). Consumer |
| carry mail, and pass it to Royal Mail for delivery, a | | | | Postal Council. 2006-07-01. Retrieved 2008-12-14. |
| service known as Downstream access. Also | | | | ^ "Sunday postal collections ended". BBC News. |
| introduces Pricing in Proportion (PiP) for first and | | | | 2007-10-27. Retrieved 2009-05-13. |
| second class inland mail. | | | | ^ Collinson, Patrick (2003-07-07). "Girobank brand laid |
| 2006: Online postage allows Royal Mail customers to | | | | to rest after 25 years". The Guardian. Retrieved |
| pay for postage on the web, without the need to buy | | | | 2009-10-21. |
| traditional stamps. | | | | ^ Jones, Alan (2006-02-10). "Royal Mail fined 11.7m over |
| 2007: Royal Mail Group PLC becomes Royal Mail | | | | missing post". The Independent. Retrieved |
| Group Ltd in a slight change of legal status. | | | | 2009-10-23. |
| 2007: Official Industrial Action takes place over pay, | | | | ^ "Royal Mail's Lost Mail" (pdf). Press release. |
| conditions and pensions. | | | | Postwatch. 2002-08-12. Archived from the original on |
| 2007: Sunday collections from pillar boxes end. | | | | 2008-06-18. Retrieved 2008-12-14. |
| 2009: (September) CWU opens national ballot for | | | | ^ Barrow, Becky (2003-07-18). "First class: only 14.5m |
| industrial action.[citation needed] | | | | letters lost". UK News. The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved |
| Non-postal services | | | | 2009-01-28. |
| The General Post Office introduced telegraph services | | | | ^ "Royal Mail increases security of letters operaration". |
| in 1870 and telephone services in 1912. It took over | | | | Brief & KEP. Bundesverband Deutscher |
| nearly all of the UK's municipal telephone companies | | | | Postdienstleister e.V.. 2004-07-20. Retrieved |
| (the sole exception being Kingston Communications in | | | | 2009-01-28. |
| Hull) and was responsible for the resultant telephone | | | | ^ "Wildcats return with a roar - postal wildcat strike, |
| network until British Telecommunications was | | | | 2003" (libcom.org) |
| demerged by the British Telecommunications Act 1981. | | | | ^ Mark Tran and agencies (2007-10-09). "Crozier hits |
| BT was later privatised. | | | | out at striking postal workers". The Guardian. Retrieved |
| The National Girobank was introduced in 1968 and sold | | | | 2007-11-11. |
| to Alliance & Leicester in 1990. The government | | | | ^ "Mail deliveries 'still delayed'". London News. BBC |
| run National Savings and Investments (founded in 1861 | | | | News. 2007-11-09. Retrieved 2008-12-14. |
| as the Post Office Savings Bank) is also operated | | | | ^ "Christmas post fears over strike". BBC News. |
| through Post Office branches. | | | | 2008-12-15. Retrieved 2008-12-15. |
| Historically, many government benefits and state | | | | ^ "Postal workers vote on strike" (bbc.co.uk) |
| retirement pensions were paid in cash through the post | | | | ^ "National post strike ballot" (cwu.org) |
| office network. However, in recent years, an increasing | | | | ^ Re~Cycle web site |
| proportion of benefit and pension payments have been | | | | ^ BBC 30 December, 2004 |
| made directly by bank transfer, leading to a loss of | | | | ^ Airliners.net. "G-ZAPV". Retrieved 2007-04-25. |
| revenue for Post Office branches and many closures. | | | | ^ "Final delivery for Mail Rail". This Is Local London. |
| Public interest | | | | 2003-05-30. Retrieved 2009-08-19. |
| Postman of Royal mail in Ilminster, UK | | | | ^ |
| The Royal Mail is regulated by Postcomm, while | | | | ^ |
| consumer interests are represented by Postwatch. | | | | ^ Porsche Panamera vs letter: part 1 |
| The relationship between the two has not always | | | | ^ Porsche Panamera vs letter: part 4 |
| been good and in 2005 Postwatch took Postcomm to | | | | Sources |
| Judicial Review over its decision regarding rebates to | | | | Browne, Christopher (1993). Getting the Message - The |
| late-paying customers. | | | | Story of the British Post Office. Alan Sutton. ISBN |
| The Government department responsible for the | | | | 0750903511. |