Existing comment:
From Royal Mail to Public Post: The Path to Philately
Although the reforms of 1635 made the Royal Mail useful for business correspondence, individuals still found the system expensive and complicated. Rates on private mail were high to subsidize free postage for members of Parliament, government officials, and publishers.
Based on distance and the number of pages, postage was charged to the recipient -- not the sender -- of a letter, and many refused to pay. Cities and towns established independent penny posts in an attempt to make local communication easier, but the United Kingdom overall became a dizzying patchwork of different postal rates and zones. The post office operated at a deficit. |