Here is a short piece, originally published in “The Postage Stamp” (15 October, 1910), concerning the dethronement of Manoel of Portugal and his philatelic pursuits.
THE sympathies of all stamp collectors will go out to the royal philatelist who, according to the newspaper reports at the time of writing, has been deposed by the Republicans of his country.
Whilst appreciating the causes, which have led up to the present revolution in Portugal and recognising the inevitability, one cannot but feel a great solicitude for the young monarch, who has stuck thus bravely to the perilous position, which has been his unlucky heritage.
King Manoel as Stamp Collector
It is by no means generally known that King Manoel, in common with the monarchs of Great Britain and Spain, is an enthusiastic stamp collector. Such is, however, the case, the specialistic tendencies of the last of the Braganzas, lying in the direction of the stamps of Portugal and her Colonies and Brazil, which as an Empire was united with the Portuguese throne. It will be remembered that the early part of this year (1910), he presented a collection of the so-called “King of Spain “ reprints of Portugal to the Royal Philatelic Society.
King Manoel in full uniform
For an interesting account of King Manoel’s exile see the Twickenham Museum’s account: http://www.twickenham-museum.org.uk/detail.asp?ContentID=79