In memory of Queen Elizabeth II

It is with great sadness that NZ Post acknowledges the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. We offer our deepest condolences to the Royal Family and our sympathies to all who are grieving, reflecting on and processing the loss of the Queen and the end of the second Elizabethan era.

NZ Post has a long history of commemorating the Royal Family and the Monarch, beginning with Queen Victoria on New Zealand’s first-ever stamps in 1855.

Born on 21 April 1926, Elizabeth became heir to the throne when her father became King upon the abdication of his brother Edward VIII in December 1936. On 20 November 1947 she married Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh. When King George VI died on 6 February, 1952, Elizabeth acceded to the throne at the age of 25.

On 25 May 1953, stamps were issued to mark Queen Elizabeth’s coronation. Along with a portrait of the new Queen, the ‘Buckingham Palace’ stamp featured the London residence of Britain’s sovereigns. Queen Victoria was the first British monarch to live there, moving into the palace immediately after her accession to the throne.

1855 Full Face Queens single 2d ‘Blue’ gummed stamp (imperforate) 1937 Coronation single 1d ‘Red’ gummed stamp Coronation single 2d ‘Buckingham Palace’ gummed stamp.

The first visit to New Zealand by a British sovereign took place when Queen Elizabeth II visited in 1953 and two special stamps were issued to mark the event. King George VI and Queen Elizabeth had been scheduled to visit, but the King died before their postponed visit was able to take place. Because it was proposed to issue a Coronation set as well as the new definitive set with Her Majesty’s portrait, approval was given for only two stamps to commemorate the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh’s visit.

In 1954 the New Zealand Post and Telegraph Department issued a large set of Queen Elizabeth II stamps, after it was decided that the stamps depicting the late King should be replaced as soon as possible. The set featured two designs by L C Mitchell in various colours, and one illustration by J Berry. Owing to a shortage of stamps, the 1 1/2d stamp was issued in December 1953 prior to the other values. A redrawn issue of the stamps was issued in 1955 because of criticism of the denomination on the original low values, and that the colours of the original 3d and 8d stamps had been too similar.

A special set of ‘official’ stamps was also issued in 1954. It was agreed that the stamps should be distinct in appearance from those used for ordinary correspondence. The stamps depicted an informal portrait of Queen Elizabeth II set against a pattern made up of the letters ‘N’ and ‘Z’.

1953-1954 Queen Elizabeth II single 9d ‘Brown/Green’ gummed stamp 1954 Queen ‘Official’ single 2d gummed stamp. 1955 Queen Elizabeth II single 8d ‘Queen Elizabeth II’ gummed stamp

Queen Elizabeth next appeared on stamps commemorating the centenary of the Post Office Savings Bank in 1967. Her profile appeared alongside a profile of Queen Victoria, who had been Queen in 1867. Designed by Mark Cleverley, the 1970 Pictorial highvalue stamps were issued in time for a royal visit to New Zealand. The 10c stamp featured the New Zealand Coat of Arms with a silhouette of Queen Elizabeth II.

In 1974, to commemorate New Zealand Day - known now as Waitangi Day - a miniature sheet of five 4c stamps was issued, with one of them featuring Queen Elizabeth II. The other stamps featured the Treaty House at Waitangi, Parliament Buildings and the Beehive extension, the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and New Zealand school children.

In 1977 the Queen’s Silver Jubilee was celebrated in the United Kingdom and throughout the Commonwealth. As part of a tour of Commonwealth countries to mark the occasion, the Queen travelled to New Zealand with the Duke of Edinburgh, and a miniature sheet incorporating five stamps was issued on 23 February 1977. A definitive stamp featuring on one of five photographs used on the Silver Jubilee miniature sheet was issued later that year.

New Zealand, along with a number of other Commonwealth countries, issued stamps to mark Commonwealth Day in 1983. Consisting of four denominations, the issue reflected New Zealand’s cultural, geographic and economic diversity. Each stamp featured the Commonwealth symbol. The Queen featured on the 24c stamp wearing the Sovereign’s Badge of The Queen’s Service Order.

In 1997, a special miniature sheet was issued to celebrate the 50th wedding anniversary of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. The Golden Wedding Anniversary stamp depicted one of a series of official photographs taken by Photography by Woolf at Government House in Wellington, New Zealand on 26 February 1986. A first day cover and Limited Edition were also issued.

Post Office Savings Bank Centenary 4d gummed stamp 1970 Pictorials (high value) 4d gummed stamp 1974 New Zealand Day miniature sheet

1977 Silver Jubilee miniature sheet

1983 Commonwealth Day set of four stamps 1997 50th Wedding Anniversary miniature sheet

Queen Elizabeth visited New Zealand 10 times during her reign. She opened sessions of the New Zealand Parliament, the first sovereign to do so. She attended concerts and command performances, attended sports events, visited schools and factories and won admiration for her informal ‘walk-abouts’. She shared with us events from the bicentennial of Captain Cook’s landfall to the opening of the Beehive (Parliament’s executive building) and the 150th Anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi. Her final visit to New Zealand took place in 2002, when she toured Commonwealth countries in celebration of her 50th Jubilee.

In 2007 two stamps were issued to commemorate the 60th wedding anniversary of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. Issues commemorating the Diamond Jubilee and 60th coronation anniversary followed.

2001 Queen Elizabeth II single $2.00 ‘Official Portrait for New Zealand’ gummed stamp. 2007 Royal Diamond Wedding Anniversary $2.00 ‘Wedding Day 1947’ gummed stamp

On 9 September 2015 Queen Elizabeth II succeeded Queen Victoria as New Zealand’s longest-reigning monarch. To show the vast span of time for which Queen Elizabeth II had reigned, seven stamps were issued to represent each decade from the 1950s to the 2010s. Photographs of the Queen from each decade were shown next to typographic depictions of various events that had taken place in New Zealand with the Queen as our Head of State.

Following commemorations of her platinum wedding anniversary and 90th birthday, the final New Zealand stamp issue commemorating the Queen during her lifetime was released in 2021, with a celebration of her 95th birthday. Most recently, coins were issued in 2022 on behalf of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to acknowledge Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee and her remarkable 70 years of service.

NZ Post is proud to have captured the Queen’s legacy and special relationship with New Zealand. A constant figure in the lives of most living New Zealanders, her passing will have been a significant moment in many lives. The monarchy will continue to have an important place in the stamp and coin programmes, and Elizabeth II’s descendants will carry that legacy forward in the years to come.

2015 Longest Reigning Monarch set of seven stamps

2021 Queen Elizabeth II 95th Birthday miniature sheet