List of countries that have used postal orders facts for kids
Have you ever wondered how people sent money to each other before online banking or even credit cards? One important way was through something called a postal order. This special piece of paper was like a safe way to send money through the mail. It was issued by a post office and could be cashed at another post office. Many countries around the world used postal orders, especially those connected to the British Empire. This article lists the countries that used them.
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What is a Postal Order?
A postal order is a type of money order that people used to send money safely through the mail. Imagine you wanted to send £5 to your friend in another town. Instead of putting cash in an envelope, which could get lost or stolen, you would go to a post office. You'd pay the post office £5 (plus a small fee), and they would give you a special paper called a postal order for £5. You could then mail this paper to your friend. When your friend received it, they would take it to their local post office and exchange it for £5 in cash.
Postal orders were very popular for many years, especially before banks were common everywhere and before electronic payments existed. They were a simple and trusted way to move money from one place to another using the postal service.
Countries That Used Postal Orders
Many countries around the world used postal orders. They were especially common in countries that were part of the British Empire or the British Commonwealth. This is because the British postal system was very influential and its methods, like postal orders, spread to many places.
The British Empire and Commonwealth
The British Empire was a huge collection of countries and territories ruled or influenced by the United Kingdom. When these places became independent, many joined the British Commonwealth. Because of their shared history and postal systems, most of these countries adopted the use of postal orders.
- Colony of Aden
- Aden Protectorate States
- Alderney
- Anguilla
- Antigua
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Ascension Island
- Australia (classed by issuing state and territory).
- Australian Capital Territory
- The Bahamas
- Bangladesh
- Barbados
- Basutoland (overprinted South African British postal orders issued in Basutoland).
- Bechuanaland Protectorate
- Belize
- Bermuda
- Bophuthatswana
- Botswana
- British Cameroons
- British Central Africa Protectorate
- British Guiana
- British Honduras
- British North Borneo
- British Solomon Islands Protectorate
- British Somaliland Protectorate
- British Virgin Islands
- Brunei
- Colony of Burma
- Canada (classed by issuing province and territory).
- Cape of Good Hope (Cape Colony)
- Ceylon
- Christmas Island (Indian Ocean)
- Ciskei
- Cocos (Keeling) Islands
- Cyprus
- Dominica
- East Africa (classed by country of issue - British Somaliland Protectorate, Kenya, Tanganyika, Uganda, and Zanzibar).
- Falkland Islands
- Fiji
- The Gambia
- Ghana
- Gibraltar
- Gilbert and Ellice Islands
- Gold Coast
- Grenada
- Guernsey
- Guyana
- Gwalior
- Colony of Hong Kong
- India
- Isle of Man
- Jamaica
- Jersey
- Jhind
- Kenya
- Lagos
- Lesotho
- Malawi
- British Malaya (classed by issuing state and territory).
- Malaysia (classed by issuing state and territory).
- Malta
- Mauritius
- Montserrat
- Nabha
- Namibia
- Colony of Natal
- New Guinea
- New South Wales
- New Zealand
- Nigeria
- Niue
- Norfolk Island
- Northern Rhodesia
- Northern Territory
- Nyasaland
- Orange Free State
- Orange River Colony
- Pakistan
- Palestine
- Territory of Papua
- Papua and New Guinea
- Papua New Guinea
- Patiala
- Pitcairn Islands
- Queensland
- Rhodesia
- Rhodesia and Nyasaland (classed by colony of issue - Nyasaland, Northern Rhodesia, and Southern Rhodesia).
- Saint Helena
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Kingdom of Sarawak (from 1908, when the British postal order system was extended there)
- Colony of Sarawak
- Sark
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Singapore
- South Africa
- South African Republic
- Federation of South Arabia
- South Australia
- South West Africa
- Southern Nigeria
- Southern Rhodesia
- Sri Lanka
- Straits Settlements (classed by issuing state and territory).
- Swaziland
- Tanganyika
- Tanzania (classed by whether they were issued in Tanganyika or Zanzibar).
- Tasmania
- Tonga
- Transkei
- Transvaal Colony
- Trinidad
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tristan da Cunha
- Turks Islands
- Uganda
- United Kingdom (classed by constituent country of issue - England, Ireland/Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales).
- Venda
- Victoria (Australia)
- Western Australia
- Western Samoa
- Zambia
- Zanzibar
- Zimbabwe
Other Countries Around the World
Beyond the British Empire, many other countries also found postal orders to be a useful way to send money. They developed their own systems or adapted ideas from other nations.
- Argentina
- Bahrain
- Bulgaria
- Republic of Burma
- China (Since 1898)
- Colombia
- Dubai
- Ecuador
- Egypt
- Eritrea - overprinted British Postal Orders valid only in Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- France
- Germany
- Iraq
- Israel
- Ireland
- Italy
- Jordan
- Kuwait
- Kingdom of Libya - during the reign of King Idris I
- Luxembourg
- Mexico
- Kingdom of Nepal
- Persian Gulf (GPO agencies)
- Portugal
- Qatar
- Romania
- Russia (at the time of the Russian Empire)
- San Marino
- Southern Yemen
- Sudan
- Thailand
- Transjordan
- United Arab Republic
- United States of America
- People's Democratic Republic of Yemen
Special Military Postal Orders
Sometimes, postal orders were also used by military forces, especially when soldiers were serving far from home. These special issues helped them send money to their families or manage their finances while on duty.
- British Army of the Rhine
- British Forces Post Offices
- Indian Field Force in Egypt