General De Gaulle 9.11.1971

General De Gaulle.

Charles de Gaulle 9.11.1971

Charles de Gaulle, in full Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle   (born November 22, 1890, Lille, France—died November 9, 1970, Colombey-les-deux-Églises), French soldier, writer, statesman, and architect ofFrance’s Fifth Republic.

Memorial of General Charles de Gaulle 18.6.1977

Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises sits in the rolling countryside in the Champagne-Ardennes Region. It's the small, unassuming village where Charles de Gaulle, soldier, war hero, leader of the Free French, Prime Minister and President of France, lived.

He bought La Boisserie as the main family home in 1934 and never wavered in his devotion to the house and the village where he was a familiar figure. Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises is also the site of the stark Lorraine Cross, the Charles de Gaulle Memorial on a hill overlooking the rolling countryside, and the church where de Gaulle and some of his relatives are buried.

Thank you Merja.

Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965) 13.5.1965

U.S. 5¢ Churchill Memorial stamp honours the memory of Winston Churchill, who was Prime Minister of Great Britain during World War II. He was made an honorary citizen of the U.S. when John Kennedy signed a special Congressional bill. The stamp features the famous“Angry Lion” photograph by Yousuf Karsh of Canada. It was first issued on May 13, 1965  in Fulton, Missouri, where Churchill delivered his famous “iron curtain” speech in 1946.

Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965). During his long and productive life, Churchill was a noted soldier, war reporter, author, painter, speaker, and statesman. He’s best known for his stubborn – yet courageous – leadership during World War II. As a war-time Prime Minister, he helped pull England back from the brink of defeat by forming strong alliances with world leaders. Churchill’s efforts led to the coordinated military strategy that defeated Adolf Hitler.

One of Churchill’s most famous speeches was given in the United States, at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, on March 5, 1946. Titled “Sinews of Peace,” the speech contained the famous line, “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent....”

The Winston Churchill Memorial and Library in the United States is located at Westminster College, in the “reconstructed” Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury. This building dates back to the 12th century. Christopher Wren redesigned it in 1677, after it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London.

During World War II, an incendiary bomb left the beautiful and historic church in ruins. However, stone by stone, this building was moved to Fulton, Missouri, where the building was pieced back together. This process, which the London Times called “perhaps the biggest jigsaw puzzle in the history of architecture,” began in the spring of 1964. Five years later, on May 7, 1969, the building’s dedication ceremonies were held.

Churchill was very pleased with the idea that an English church, restored in America, would serve as a museum in his honor. He wrote, “It may symbolize in the eyes of English-speaking peoples the ideas of Anglo-American association in which rest, now as before, so many of our hopes for peace and the future of mankind.”

Thank you Merja.

Abraham Lincoln 30.5.1959

This final issue in the Lincoln Sesquicentennial Series shows a drawing by Fritz Busse of part of the famous statue by Daniel Chester French, which stands in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The Lincoln Memorial also forms part of the post mark on this cover. The stamp was issued on 30.5.1959.

Abraham Lincoln, President. Elected President in November 1860, Abraham Lincoln inherited a nation already on the brink of civil war.  An outspoken critic of slavery, Lincoln had won entirely on the strength of his support in the North.  Shortly after the election, seven Southern states seceded.  One month after Lincoln assumed the office, the first shots of the Civil War were fired.

The Civil War consumed much of Lincoln’s presidency.  He closely supervised his military commanders and visited key battlegrounds.  In 1862, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaves in Confederate territories.  This allowed the Union army to liberate slaves as it moved south.  Lincoln then focused on the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, which permanently abolished slavery throughout the nation.

In spite of the Union’s advantages, the Confederate Army was victorious in many critical battles, and the fighting wore on for several years.  In 1864, Lincoln won re-election in a landslide.  In his inaugural speech, with victory nearly at hand, Lincoln promised to act “with malice toward none; with charity for all.”

One month later, General Robert E. Lee surrendered the Confederate Army and the Civil War ended.  Complete victory was short lived – President Lincoln was assassinated less than a week later.

Thank you Merja.

President Sauli Niinistö's 65th birthday - the person and the position 23.8.2013

Itella Posti Oy released a stamp to mark the 65th birthday of Sauli Niinistö, President of the Republic of Finland, on August 23, 2013. The stamp was designed by Tapio Vapaasalo, professor emeritus at Aalto University.

According to Professor Vapaasalo, the aim was to design a stamp that emphasizes the value leadership of the President. "The selected style reflects Sauli Niinistö's personality and position in an identifiable way. The goal was to avoid pageantry and to emphasise his republican state of mind." 

I wonder what reader's feel about the black coloured background on the stamp? For a birthday stamp any colour other than black would probably have been more suitable. That's my view any way!

As an exception to previous presidential stamps, Niinistö's birthday stamp is based on a photo instead of a traditional portrait painting. The stylish black-and-white photo by Pertti Nisonen presents the president in profile, which, according to Vapaasalo, gives an impression of being above everyday things.

The President's slogan Kaikki työ on arvokasta - Allt arbete är värdefullt (‘All work is valuable') has been printed on the sheet of stamps as well as on the FDC.

Thank you Dear Ella for this memorable FDC.

Centenary of the birth of Ethnarch Makarios III 30.1.2013

Ethnarch Makarios III was a reformer and the first Presedent of the Republic of Cyprus and is highly regarded as one of the most important personalities in Cyprus’ modern history. He was born in Panayia in Paphos and was accepted as a novice monk at Kykko Monastery at a very young age. He attended the Pancyprian Gymnasium and the Theological School at the University of Athens and continued his studies in Religious Sociology in Boston USA. In 1948 he was elected Metropolitan of Kition and in 1950 he was elected Archbishop of Cyprus.

As Archbishop he inspired the liberation efforts of the Greeks of Cyprus to overthrow the British rule and unite Cyprus with Greece. Following the E.O.K.A. liberation struggle (1955-1959), he was elected President of the Republic of Cyprus, laid the foundations for organising the new state and guided Cyprus into the U.N. He followed a non-aligned foreign policy and succeeded on securing an identity for the Republic of Cyprus, continuously battling against internal and external enemies, always with the interests of its people as his main concern.

Unfortunately, the 1963 Turkish rebellion and the aggressive actions and manipulations of Turkey, which where always aimed at the division of Cyprus, interrupted the new Republic’s smooth course.

The treacherous coup perpetrated by the Athens junta in July 1974 provided Turkey with the pretext to invade Cyprus and take over 36% of its territory, displacing 200.000 Greek Cypriots in their own land. The tragic events broke his heart and he breathed his last on the 3rd August 1977, and is now included in the pantheon of immortals.

Thank you Merja for this historic FDC.

ARCHBISHOP MAKARIOS THE GREAT LEADER 3.8.1978

Archbishop Makarios isfeatured on  many Cyprus stamps. This issue of 3.8.1978 proclaims Makarios as the "Great Leader", as he was often refered to and depicted figure throughout his life. Thank you Merja for this fabulous FDC.

Archbishop Makarios III of Cyprus became the nation's first President when Britain granted the island independence in 1959. In his three terms (1959-1977), he survived four assassination attempts and a 1974 coup. Born Michael Mouskos, Makarios was elected bishop of Kition in 1948 and archbishop of Cyprus in 1950. Leader of the Greek Cypriots in the movement for enosis (union with Greece), he was exiled by the British in 1956 on charges of encouraging terrorism.

In 1958 he begins to press for Cypriot independence from Great Britain rather than union with Greece. When an agreement is reached on the independence of Cyprus, he is elected president. He pursues a neutralist policy, favoring a peaceful solution between the island's Greek and Turkish communities.

In 1972 he came under increasing pressure from the Greek government to allow for greater Greek influence in Cypriot affairs; the Cypriot Orthodox Church pressured him to resign if he failed to do so. Gen. George Grivas (also in photo), leader of the enosis movement, launched a terrorist campaign aimed at overthrowing Makarios, finally succeeding in July of 1974, when a Greek Junta-sponsored coup deposes Makarios declaring that he is dead in the rubble of his palace. But shortly thereafter Makarios's voice is heard on the radio telling his people that he is alive and that they should resist the leaders of the coup. When Turkey invades the island it precipitates the fall of the Junta in Athens. After several months of exile he returns to Cyprus and resumes the presidency.

When Makarios died in August of 1977 of a heart attack the funeral is interrupted by a rainstorm, unheard of in Cyprus for that month. Some call it a miracle. Greek Cypriot newspaper refer to the extraordinary event as proving an old Greek proverb, that when a good man is buried, even the heavens shed tears. A Turkish Cypriot newspaper however, said that the un-seasonal rain had proved an old Turkish proverb, that when an evil man is buried, the heavens open to wash away his misdeeds. Regardless of what people thought of him, Makarios' leadership created an identity for Cypriots that went beyond being Greek or Turkish

Makario Stadium, Nicosia 30.8.1978

Yes Merja, I’d love to visit the Makario Stadium. The Stadium is an all-seater multi-purpose stadium in Nicosia, Cyprus. It was the largest and main sports venue of the capital up to the construction of the GSP stadium in 1999. At present it is mostly used for football matches and is the home ground of Digenis Morphou and Ethnikos Assia. The stadium holds 16,000 seated spectators. The playing field is surrounded by a running track and can be adapted to hold most track and field events. Apart from corporate boxes and the press centre, there are no coverings for spectators.

It is built in the Nicosia suburb of Makedonitissa, close to the grounds of the Cyprus State Fair, with which it shares a large car park.

Over the years it has served as the home ground for Nicosia teams such as AC Omonia, APOEL and Olympiakos. The Cypriot national team has also played home matches there in the past. All those teams have now relocated to the New GSP stadium.

The Makario was built in 1978 and is named after Makarios III, the Ethnarch of Cyprus; Archbishop and first President of Cyprus. It has hosted many Cypriot Cup and Super Cup finals and was the main venue for the 1989 Games of the Small States of Europe. The stamp on this cover was issued to commemorate the opening of the Athletic Centre in 1978.

KJ Ståhlberg 22.3.1965

Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg (January 28, 1865 – September 22, 1952) was a Finnish jurist and academic, who played a central role in the drafting of the Constitution of Finland in 1919. He was the first President of Finland (1919–1925) and a nationalist liberal. After Finland gained its independence in December 1917, the Constitutional Committee drafted new proposals for a form of government of an independent Republic of Finland. As chairman of the council, Ståhlberg was involved in the drafting and re-drafting of constitutional proposals during 1918, when the impact of the Finnish Civil War, and debates between republicans and monarchists on the future constitution, all led to various proposals. His proposals would eventually be enacted as the Constitution of Finland in 1919. In 1918, Ståhlberg supported the idea of republic instead of the then-popular constitutional monarchy. Pia gave me this FDC that has great historical significance.

Archbishop Makarios 19.1.1986

Further to my post on May 26, 2011., this is a Special cancellation to remember and commemorate the First President of Cyprus, Archbishop Makarios. The stamps on this FDC were issued in 1977 and are the same as on the FDC in the post mentioned ibid. This cover was given to me by Merja.

Abe Lincoln Death Anniversary Centenary Issue 1965

This minisheet of four stamps in Honour of Abraham Lincoln was issued by Ghana to commemorate his 100^th Death anniversary.

Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and promoting economic and financial modernization. Reared in a poor family on the western frontier, Lincoln was mostly self-educated. He became a country lawyer, an Illinois state legislator, and a one-term member of the United States House of Representatives, but failed in two attempts at a seat in the United States Senate. He issued his Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and promoted the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, abolishing slavery.

As the leader of the moderate faction of the Republican party, Lincoln's policies and personality were "blasted from all sides": Radical Republicans demanded harsher treatment of the South, War Democrats desired more compromise, Copperheads despised him, and irreconcilable secessionists plotted his death. Politically, Lincoln fought back with patronage, by pitting his opponents against each other, and by appealing to the American people with his powers of oratory. His Gettysburg Address of 1863 became the most quoted speech in American history. It was an iconic statement of America's dedication to the principles of nationalism, equal rights, liberty, and democracy. At the close of the war, Lincoln held a moderate view of Reconstruction, seeking to speedily reunite the nation through a policy of generous reconciliation in the face of lingering and bitter divisiveness. However, just six days after the surrender of Confederate commanding general Robert E. Lee, Lincoln was assassinated by actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theatre while watching the play Our American Cousin. His death marked the first assassination of a U.S. president. Lincoln has been consistently ranked by scholars as one of the three greatest U.S. presidents.

Mauno Henrik Koivisto - ninth President of Finland 25.11.1993

Mauno Henrik Koivisto (born November 25, 1923) is a Finnish politician who served as the ninth President of Finland from 1982 to 1994. He also served as Prime Minister 1968–1970 and 1979–1982. He was the first Social Democrat to be elected as President by electoral college in 1982, and re-elected in 1988. He was the First President born in independent Finland. Only veteran President who served in armed forces 1939-1945. My dear friend Pia sent me this FDC.

4th President of Finland Kyösti Kallio 13.4.1973

Kyösti Kallio, April 10, 1873 – December 19, 1940) was the fourth President of Finland (1937–1940). He was a prominent leader of the Agrarian League, and served as Prime Minister four times and Speaker of the Parliament six times.

Kallio was elected president with the votes of centrist (Agrarian and Progressive) and social democratic coalition, which wanted to ensure that President Svinhufvud would not be re-elected. Kallio took a role of a parliamentarian president and avoided use of his personal power.

On the eve of the Winter War, when Marshal Mannerheim once again threatened to resign from his post as chairman of Finland's Defence Council due to schism with the Cabinet, Kallio convinced him to stay. During the war he resisted the idea of giving up any territory to the Soviet Union, but was forced to agree to sign the Moscow Peace Treaty in 1940. His health begun to fail – his right arm was paralysed – and he was not active in the dealings with Germany leading to the Continuation War. On August 27 he suffered a serious stroke. Prime Minister Risto Ryti took over his duties. Kallio's heart became weak while he knowingly took risks by agreeing to the formal farewell ceremonies. Kallio resigned formally on November 27, 1940. He was going to Nivala to his farm after the farewell ceremonies on the evening of December 19, 1940, when he collapsed and died at the Helsinki Central Railway Station, before a guard of honour and in the arms of Marshal Mannerheim. This FDC was amongst the entire set of FDCs of the Presidents of Finland that my dear friend Pia sent to me.

Tenth President of Finland (1994–2000) and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Ahtisaari 10.12.2008

Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari; born 23 June 1937) is a Finnish politician, the tenth President of Finland (1994–2000), Nobel Peace Prize laureate and United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work. The two First Day covers dated 23.6.1997 and 10.12.2008 were issued to commemorate Maetti Ahtisaari, firstly as the President of Finland, and then for his becoming a Nobel Laureate. These two FDCs were given to me by my dear friend Pia.

Ahtisaari was a UN Special Envoy at the Kosovo status process negotiations, aimed at resolving a long-running dispute in Kosovo, which declared its independence from Serbia in 2008. In October 2008, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize "for his efforts on several continents and over more than three decades, to resolve international conflicts". The Nobel statement said that Ahtisaari has played a prominent role in resolving many conflicts in Namibia, Indonesia, Kosovo and Iraq, among other areas.

President Juho Kusti Paasikivi

Juho Kusti Paasikivi (November 27, 1870 – December 14, 1956) was the seventh President of Finland. Representing the Finnish Party and the National Coalition Party, he also served as Prime Minister of Finland (1918 and 1944–1946), and was generally an influential figure in Finnish economics and politics for over fifty years. He is particularly remembered as the main architect of Finland's foreign policy after the Second World War. He was born as Johan Gustaf Hellsten in 1870 at Hämeenkoski in Päijänn, Tavastia in Southern Finland, the son of August Hellsten, a merchant, and Karolina Wilhelmina Selin. He Finnicized his name to Juho Kusti Paasikivi in 1885. Pia sent me this FDC. (1946–1956).

USA - Prominent Americans series 17.11.1967

The Prominent Americans series is a set of definitive stamps issued by the United States Post Office Department (and later the United States Postal Service) between 1965 and 1978. It superseded the Liberty issue of 1954, which by the mid-1960s had become somewhat dated, for instance in its focus on political figures. This was the first U. S. omnibus definitive series in which Benjamin Franklin did not appear at or near the beginning: on the ½¢ or 1¢ stamp. The values of the new series included figures from all walks of life, each depicted in a different style by a different designer, presumably in a quest for wide diversity—a significant departure from the uniformity of concept that had marked previous definitive issues. The stamps appeared one by one from 1965 on, and the basic designs had all been issued by 1968; tagged versions made their first appearances gradually through 1973, and coil and booklet version of the 15¢ were issued in 1978 in response to a first-class rate change. The cover shows the Inauguration of George Washington at New York on 30^th April 1789.
The 5¢ Washington was originally excessively shaded around the lower part of the face, so much so that it has come to be known as the "dirty face" or "unshaven" Washington. Originally appearing in February 1966, it was superseded by a lightened version in November 1967. Thank you Maria for this FDC.

Finland - Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim 4.6.1967

Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim (4 June 1867 – 27 January 1951) was the Commander-in-Chief of Finland's Defence Forces during World War II, Marshal of Finland and a politician. He was Regent of Finland (1918–1919) and the sixth President of Finland (1944–1946).
The First Day Cover shown and the stamp on it were issued on 04.06.1967 on the Birth Centenary of Finland's Marshall Mannerheim. And the equestrian statue of the Marshall shown on the stamp is in Helsinki.

Mannerheim was born in the Grand Principality of Finland, a territory of Imperial Russia, into a family of Swedish-speaking nobles settled in Finland since the late 18th century. His paternal German ancestor Marhein had emigrated to Sweden during the 17th century. His maternal ancestry has its roots in Södermanland, Sweden.
He made a career in the Russian army, rising to general. He also had a prominent place in the ceremonies for Tsar Nicholas II’s coronation and later had several private meetings with the Russian Tsar. After the Bolshevik revolution, Finland declared its independence but was soon embroiled in a civil war along class lines. The workers overwhelmingly held a socialist ("Red") creed; whereas the bourgeois, farmers, and businessmen held a capitalist ("White") creed. Mannerheim was appointed to be the military chief of the Whites. Twenty years later, when Finland was at war with the Soviet Union from 1939–1944, Mannerheim was appointed commander of the country's armed forces. My Dear friend Pia sent me this topical First Day Cover, the stamps and the cards with the portraits of Mannerheim.

Tarja Halonen, 11th President of Finland 1.12.2003

The FDC and stamp were issued on the 60^th birthday of Tarja Halonen. The first lady to occupy the important post of President in Finland. Tarja Kaarina Halonen born 24 December 1943) is the 11th and current President of Finland. The first female to hold the office, Halonen had previously been a member of the parliament from 1979 to 2000 when she resigned after her election to the presidency. In addition to her political career she had a long and extensive career in trade unions and different non-governmental organizations. Halonen is a graduate of the University of Helsinki, where she studied law from 1963 to 1968. She was active in student politics and served as the Social Affairs Secretary and Organization Secretary of the National Union of Students from 1969 to 1970. In 1971 she joined the Social Democratic Party and worked as a lawyer in the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions until she was elected to parliament in 1979. Halonen served in the parliament of Finland for six terms, from 1979 to 2000, representing the constituency of Helsinki. She also had a long career in the city council of Helsinki, serving there from 1977 to 1996. She started her campaign for the presidency at the beginning of 1999 after President Martti Ahtisaari announced that he would not stand for a second term in the office. She easily won her party's nomination, and eventually got 40% of the votes in the first round of the presidential elections, and 51.6% in the second, thus defeating the Centre Party's Esko Aho and becoming the 11th president of Finland.
During the time of her presidency she has been extremely popular among Finns: her approval ratings rose and reached a peak of 88% in December 2003. Even though her ratings were so good, she was not re-elected in the first round in the next presidential elections in 2006. She beat National Coalition Party candidate Sauli Niinistö in the second round by 51.8% against 48.2%. In 2004 she finished 5th in a TV-show called Great Finns, which was based on the BBC's 100 Greatest Britons. Halonen is widely known for her interest in human rights issues. In 1980–81 Halonen served as the chairman of SETA, the main LGBT rights organization in Finland. During her presidency, she has participated actively in discussion of women's rights and problems of globalization. In 2006, she was mentioned by many sources as a potential candidate for the United Nations Secretary-General selection, but later she stated that she wanted to finish her term as president before thinking about other career options. Halonen is a member of the Council of Women World Leaders, an International network of current and former women presidents and prime ministers whose mission is to mobilize the highest-level women leaders globally for collective action on issues of critical importance to women and equitable development. In 2009, Forbes named her among the 100 Most Powerful Women in the world. This cover was sent to me by Brita.