or a boy wizard's adventures at school. By fortune of circumstance and the energy that inspiration brings, Rowland Hill was the one who made it public and made it happen. Despite the haughty air visible in the most popular engraving of Hill, his biographers do not portray him as an arrogant man or even an unduly self-interested one; there is certainly no evidence of stealing another's ideas for credit, and he emerges keenly focused on the common good. Perhaps this explained his popularity. His reforms, which seem to us today both elementary and long overdue, were still a leap into the unknown. People were not used to paying for the postal service in advance; but they trusted Hill and his practical convictions.
Hill envisaged another breakthrough: 'Probably it would soon be unnecessary even to await the opening of the door, as every house might be provided with a letter box into which the Letter Carrier would drop the letters, and having knocked, he would pass on as fast as he could walk.'
Support for Hill's proposals followed in enthusiastic waves as soon as his pamphlet appeared. Newspapers, who saw how much they would benefit themselves, were keen champions, and soon a government Select Committee was calling expert witnesses. Principal opposition arose from the office most criticised by the reformers. The Postmaster General, Lord Lichfield, complained that 'of all the wild and visionary schemes which I have ever heard or read of, it is the most extravagant!', but his voice was lonely and his criticism contained the one apt description of Hill's proposals that we still uphold today: visionary. The House of Commons voted in favour of penny postage in July 1839, and in the Lords even the Postmaster-General announced his grudging support due to 'universal' feeling in the country. A few weeks later, Hill was offered a post at the Treasury, and after a prolonged period of haggling over his salary and the power of his office, he undertook to change the nature of communication.
Hill was born in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, and later moved to north London, where his father ran a school and encouraged his son to consider issues of educational reform. He had no background in postal matters, although his skill at administration had been evident in his job as secretary to the government department that encouraged emigration to South Australia.
He was less skilled in the matter of design. How was the new stamp to look? The basics we now take for grantedâthe size, the monarch's head, the lickingâwere all to be formulated. Uniform Penny Postage was introduced four months before the new adhesive labels were ready, with handstamps from about three hundred towns being used in their place. There was an immediate increase in the amount of post through the system, despite some bafflement over the need to prepay. But there was an immediate incentive to grasp the new reforms: prepaid letters would cost one penny, whereas those paid on delivery would cost two.
The Treasury announced a competition to find a design for the new stamp. A notice in
The Times
requested that 'artists, men of science, and the public in general, may have an opportunity of offering any suggestions or proposals as to the manner in which the stamp may best be brought into use'. Particular attention was to be paid with regards to convenience of use, security against forgery and expense, and there were to be awards of £200 and £100.
There were more than 2,600 entries, and although the Treasury committee praised the widespread ingenuity, none were considered exact or desirable enough to pass into production. Four £100 commendations were issued, including one to Henry Cole, who was already employed as Rowland Hill's chief assistant. In the end, the stamp was designed and produced by a group of professional men already known to Hill and the Inland Revenue for their role in the printing of bank notes and other official items. The Queen's head was drawn by
Hill envisaged another breakthrough: 'Probably it would soon be unnecessary even to await the opening of the door, as every house might be provided with a letter box into which the Letter Carrier would drop the letters, and having knocked, he would pass on as fast as he could walk.'
Support for Hill's proposals followed in enthusiastic waves as soon as his pamphlet appeared. Newspapers, who saw how much they would benefit themselves, were keen champions, and soon a government Select Committee was calling expert witnesses. Principal opposition arose from the office most criticised by the reformers. The Postmaster General, Lord Lichfield, complained that 'of all the wild and visionary schemes which I have ever heard or read of, it is the most extravagant!', but his voice was lonely and his criticism contained the one apt description of Hill's proposals that we still uphold today: visionary. The House of Commons voted in favour of penny postage in July 1839, and in the Lords even the Postmaster-General announced his grudging support due to 'universal' feeling in the country. A few weeks later, Hill was offered a post at the Treasury, and after a prolonged period of haggling over his salary and the power of his office, he undertook to change the nature of communication.
Hill was born in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, and later moved to north London, where his father ran a school and encouraged his son to consider issues of educational reform. He had no background in postal matters, although his skill at administration had been evident in his job as secretary to the government department that encouraged emigration to South Australia.
He was less skilled in the matter of design. How was the new stamp to look? The basics we now take for grantedâthe size, the monarch's head, the lickingâwere all to be formulated. Uniform Penny Postage was introduced four months before the new adhesive labels were ready, with handstamps from about three hundred towns being used in their place. There was an immediate increase in the amount of post through the system, despite some bafflement over the need to prepay. But there was an immediate incentive to grasp the new reforms: prepaid letters would cost one penny, whereas those paid on delivery would cost two.
The Treasury announced a competition to find a design for the new stamp. A notice in
The Times
requested that 'artists, men of science, and the public in general, may have an opportunity of offering any suggestions or proposals as to the manner in which the stamp may best be brought into use'. Particular attention was to be paid with regards to convenience of use, security against forgery and expense, and there were to be awards of £200 and £100.
There were more than 2,600 entries, and although the Treasury committee praised the widespread ingenuity, none were considered exact or desirable enough to pass into production. Four £100 commendations were issued, including one to Henry Cole, who was already employed as Rowland Hill's chief assistant. In the end, the stamp was designed and produced by a group of professional men already known to Hill and the Inland Revenue for their role in the printing of bank notes and other official items. The Queen's head was drawn by
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