From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
1950s post box vandalism in Scotland
The
Pillar Box War
refers to a number of politically motivated acts of vandalism against
post boxes
in
Scotland
during the early 1950s in a dispute over the correct title in Scotland of the new
British monarch
,
Elizabeth II
or Elizabeth I.
[1]
Background
[
edit
]
Ascending to the throne in February 1952, Elizabeth adopted the
royal style
of Elizabeth the Second. This was reflected in her
royal cypher
, which took the
Latin
form 'E
II
R'. Some objected to this usage as the new queen was the first Elizabeth to reign over the
United Kingdom
or indeed
Great Britain
,
Elizabeth I
having been the queen of the former kingdoms of
England
and
Ireland
but not
Scotland
.
[2]
In 1953,
John MacCormick
took legal action against the
Lord Advocate
in the case of
MacCormick v Lord Advocate
, challenging the Queen's right to call herself Elizabeth the Second. The case failed on the grounds that the matter was within the
royal prerogative
, and thus the Queen was free to adopt any title she saw fit.
[2]
Actions and legacy
[
edit
]
Some occasions of vandalism and even explosions of
post boxes
which carried the Queen's 'E
II
R' insignia were recorded.
[3]
[4]
One particular pillar box in
Edinburgh's Inch district
was repeatedly vandalised with tar, paint and a hammer before being blown to pieces less than three months after its unveiling.
[5]
The folksongs
Sky High Joe
[6]
and
The Ballad of the Inch
[7]
commemorate these events.
[8]
After 1953, new post boxes were placed in Scotland carrying only the
Crown of Scotland
image rather than the 'E
II
R' cypher,
[9]
[10]
which continued to be used in the rest of the United Kingdom, and indeed in some of the Queen's other realms and territories. A post box with the 'E
II
R' cypher was installed in
Dunoon
in 2018 and immediately scheduled for replacement on discovery of the error.
[11]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"National Records of Scotland; Research, Learning, Features - Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022) and Scotland "Symbols of monarchy"
"
. NRS
. Retrieved
8 October
2022
.
- ^
a
b
"Judge dismisses petition on Queen's title. Covenant Association to Appeal"
.
The Glasgow Herald
. 18 May 1953. p. 3
. Retrieved
20 April
2017
.
- ^
Scott, Andrew Murray; Macleay, Iain (18 January 1990).
Britain's Secret War: Tartan Terrorism and the Anglo-American State
. Mainstream Pub.
ISBN
9781851583065
– via Google Books.
- ^
"The return of our fiends in the north"
.
The Independent
. 6 March 2002.
Archived
from the original on 26 May 2022.
- ^
The Scots Independent, March 1953, Page 2
- ^
Spiegel, Max.
"SKY-HIGH JOE"
.
mudcat.org
.
- ^
"Features - the Rebels Ceilidh Song Book - the Ballad of the Inch"
. Archived from
the original
on 23 February 2008
. Retrieved
2 May
2008
.
- ^
Neat, Timothy (25 August 2012).
Hamish Henderson: The Making of the Poet
. Birlinn.
ISBN
9780857904867
– via Google Books.
- ^
"About Boxes ? The Letter Box Study Group"
.
lbsg.org
.
Q = Queen Elizabeth. When the first of Queen Elizabeth's boxes were erected in Scotland, in 1952, some objected to the EIIR cipher, arguing that Scotland had never had an Elizabeth I. Several boxes in Scotland were vandalised. The problem went as far as the prime minister; eventually it was decided that Scottish boxes would bear a Scottish Crown in place of the EIIR cipher.
- ^
Collins, Mike (1 March 2019).
"St Andrews in Focus Issue 66 Sep Oct 2014"
.
Issuu
.
- ^
National Newsdesk (17 August 2018).
"New EIIR postbox sparks fury among residents of Scottish seaside town"
.
The National
.