Postcrossing Blog

Today we have a special guest post from Dawn (aka DJMinNL), a postcrosser who lives in the Netherlands but was born in Scotland. She recently wrote to us with a wonderfully quirky piece of postal history: the time when Scottish pillar boxes became the unlikely stars of a national “stooshie”. If you’ve ever looked twice at the lettering or symbols on a postbox, you’re going to enjoy this one!

The Scottish Pillar Box War was one of those odd moments in postal history when something as ordinary as a post box ended up at the centre of a national debate. Despite its dramatic name, it was never a real “war.” It was more of a stooshie (a good Scots word for an uproar) involving red pillar boxes, royal lettering, and a question of historical pride.

The story began in 1952 when Elizabeth II became queen. When she chose “Elizabeth II” as her regnal number, it seemed perfectly logical in England: she was the second monarch with that name after Elizabeth I, who ruled from 1558 to 1603. But there was a small historical wrinkle. Elizabeth I ruled England and Ireland before the crowns of England and Scotland were united in 1603. Scotland, therefore, had never had a Queen Elizabeth I. For some Scots, calling the new monarch “Elizabeth II” felt like England’s numbering system was imposed on them despite the historical facts.

Now, constitutional debates don’t usually involve everyday street furniture. However, the new red pillar boxes operated by the Royal Mail carried the royal cypher “E II R” short for Elizabeth II Regina (“Regina” meaning queen in Latin). Suddenly, those elegant raised letters on brand-new boxes became a visible reminder of the disputed “II.”

For a small number of annoyed Scots, the solution was simple: remove the “II.” Some pillar boxes had the number scratched out or hammered flat. Others were painted over. A few suffered more dramatic treatment—one or two were even damaged with small explosives. These incidents were rare but colourful enough to attract newspaper headlines, and the whole episode soon picked up its memorable nickname: the “Scottish Pillar Box War.”

Most of the activity took place between 1952 and 1953, particularly in Glasgow and Edinburgh. The “attacks” were usually carried out quietly at night by individuals or small groups rather than crowds. One pillar box in Edinburgh became particularly notorious, it was repeatedly defaced by tar, paint, and a hammer before finally being blown to pieces less than three months after it was installed.

From a postal perspective, the damage was inconvenient but hardly catastrophic. Still, it was enough to persuade authorities that perhaps a small design adjustment would make life easier for everyone.

A practical compromise soon followed. Instead of displaying the queen’s cypher, new pillar boxes installed in Scotland would simply show the Crown of Scotland. The change neatly avoided the disputed numbering while keeping a royal symbol on the box. After that, the vandalism quickly faded and the pillar boxes quietly returned to doing what they do best—collecting letters.

Interestingly, the design choice stuck. Even today, the Scottish pillar boxes continue to display the Scottish crown rather than a monarch’s cypher. When Charles III came to the throne in 2023, it was announced that Scottish boxes would keep the crown rather than adopt the new “C III R” lettering.

This episode is a reminder that post boxes are more than just practical street furniture. Their designs, ciphers, and symbols can reflect politics, identity, and sometimes a surprising amount of local feeling, for example, when Ireland gained its independence they painted the old red post boxes green.

And it raises an interesting question for Postcrossers: has there ever been similar controversies about post boxes or postal symbols in your country?

For anyone curious, the uproar even inspired a song. The lyrics to “Sky-High Joe”—a humorous take on the whole affair—can still be found online.

A fitting legacy for a dispute where, for a brief moment, the humble pillar box found itself at the centre of national attention.