Commemorative stamps, postage stamps issued to honour or commemorate a place, event or person, have been released by the United Kingdom since 1924. Several sets were released during the decade of the 1990s.

History Postage stamps were first used in Great Britain on 6 May 1840, with the introduction of the world's first adhesive postage stamp, the Penny Black. Up until 1924, all British stamps depicted only the portrait of the reigning monarch, with the exception of the 'High Value' stamps, the so-called "Sea Horses" design issued in 1913, which were twice the size of normal stamps with added pictorial design.

In 1924, the first 'Commemorative' stamp was issued for the British Empire Exhibition. There were then occasional issues over the next thirty years, when the frequency of new issues became more regular. From the mid-sixties, in most years, six to nine sets of commemorative stamps have been issued every year. PHQ Cards, postcard sized reproductions of commemorative stamps, have also been issued to accompany every new set of stamps since the mid-seventies.

+ British Commemorative stamps issued between 1990 and 1999 Issue date Issue details Stamps in set Designer(s) 1990 23 January 1990 150th Anniversary of Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Four 6 February 1990 Greetings Stamps "Smiles" Ten 6 March 1990 Europa & Glasgow 1990, European City of Culture Four 10 April 1990 25th Anniversary of Queen's Award for Export & Technology Two 3 May 1990 "Stamp World 90" International Stamp Exhibition, (Miniature Sheet) One (MS) 5 June 1990 150th Anniversary of Kew Gardens Four 10 July 1990 150th Birth anniversary of Thomas Hardy (Author) One 2 August 1990 90th Birthday of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Four 11 September 1990 Gallantry Awards Five 16 October 1990 Astronomy Four J. Fisher 13 November 1990 Christmas Five 1991 8 January 1991 Dogs – Paintings by George Stubbs Five 5 February 1991 Greetings Stamps "Good Luck" Ten 5 March 1991 Scientific Achievements Four: Charles Babbage (computing), Michael Faraday (electricity), Frank Whittle (jet engine), Robert Watson-Watt (radar). J Harwood 26 March 1991 Greetings Stamps "Smiles", same set as issued 06/02/90reprinted, inscribed "1st" instead of "20p" Ten 23 April 1991 Europa, Europe in Space Four 11 June 1991 World Student Games, Sheffield (22p, 26p & 31p)& Rugby World Cup, London (37p) Four 16 July 1991 9th World Congress of Roses, Belfast Five 20 August 1991 150th Anniversary of Dinosaur's Identification by Owen Five Bryan Kneale 17 September 1991 Bicentenary of Ordnance Survey. Maps of Ham Street, Kent Four Howard Brown 12 November 1991 Christmas Five 1992 14 January 1992 Wintertime Five 28 January 1992 Greetings Stamps "Memories" Ten 6 February 1992 40th Anniversary of Accession Five 10 March 1992 Death Centenary of Alfred, Lord Tennyson Four 7 April 1992 Europa, International Events Five 16 June 1992 350th Anniversary of the Civil War Four 21 July 1992 150th Anniversary of Sir Arthur Sullivan Five 15 September 1992 Protection of the Environment, Children's Paintings Four 13 October 1992 Single European Market One 10 November 1992 Christmas Five 1993 19 January 1993 600th Anniversary of Abbotsbury Swannery Five David Gentleman 2 February 1993 Greetings Stamps " Gift Giving" Ten 16 February 1993 300th Anniversary of John Harrison, inventor of the marine chronometer Four 2 March 1993 £10 Definitive One 16 March 1993 14th World Orchid Conference, Glasgow Five 11 May 1993 Europa, Contemporary Art Four 15 June 1993 Roman Britain Four 20 July 1993 Inland Waterways Four 14 September 1993 The Four Seasons, Autumn Five 12 October 1993 Sherlock Holmes Five Andrew Davidson 9 November 1993 Christmas Five 1994 18 January 1994 The Age of Steam Five 1 February 1994 Greetings Stamps "Messages" Ten 1 March 1994 25th Anniversary of Investiture of the Prince of WalesPaintings by Prince Charles Five 12 April 1994 Centenary of Picture Postcards Four 3 May 1994 Opening of Channel Tunnel (Joint issue with La Poste) Four 6 June 1994 50th anniversary of D-Day Five K Bassford 5 July 1994 Scottish Golf Courses Five 2 August 1994 The Four Seasons, Summertime Five 27 September 1994 Europa, Medical Discoveries Four 1 November 1994 Christmas Five 1995 17 January 1995 Cats Five 14 March 1995 Springtime Five 21 March 1995 Greetings Stamps 'Greetings in Art' Ten 11 April 1995 Centenary of the National Trust Five 2 May 1995 Europa, Peace & Freedom Five 6 June 1995 Science Fiction, Novels by H. G. Wells Four 8 August 1995 Reconstruction of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre Five 5 September 1995 Pioneers of Communication Four 3 October 1995 Centenary of Rugby league Five 30 October 1995 Christmas Five 1996 25 January 1996 Death Bicentenary of Robert Burns Four 25 February 1996 Greetings Stamps, Cartoons Ten 12 March 1996 50th Anniversary of Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust Five 16 April 1996 Centenary of Cinema Five 14 May 1996 European Football Championship Five H. Brown 9 July 1996 Olympic & Paralympic Games, Atlanta Five 6 August 1996 Europa, Famous Women Five 3 September 1996 50th Anniversary oc Children's Television Five 1 October 1996 Classic Sports Cars Five 28 October 1996 Christmas Five 1997 6 January 1997 Greetings Stamps, 19th century Flower Paintings Ten 21 January 1997 450th Death Anniversary of King Henry VIII Seven 11 March 1997 Religious Anniversaries Four 21 April 1997 Royal Golden Wedding Gold Definitives, 26p & 1st values Two 13 May 1997 Europa, Horror Stories Four 10 June 1997 British Aircraft Designers Five Turner Duckworth 8 July 1997 "All the Queen's Horses", 50th Anniversary of the British Horse Society Four 12 August 1997 Sub-Post Offices Four 9 September 1997 Birth Centenary of Enid Blyton Five 27 October 1997 Christmas, 150th Anniversary of the Christmas Cracker Five 13 November 1997 Royal Golden Wedding Four 1998 20 January 1998 Endangered Species Six Robert Maude 3 February 1998 Diana, Princess of Wales Commemoration Five 24 February 1998 The Queen's Beasts (650th Anniversary of the Order of the Garter) Five Jeffrey Matthews FSCD 24 March 1998 Lighthouses Five Dick Davis 23 April 1998 Comedians Five Gerald Scarfe 23 June 1998 Health (50 Years of the NHS) Four Vince Frost 21 July 1998 Magical Worlds (Classic Fantasy Books for Children) Five Peter Malone 25 August 1998 Europa. Carnival (Notting Hill Carnival) Four Tim Hazael 29 September 1998 Speed (Great British Land Speed Records) Five Roundel 2 November 1998 Christmas (Angels) Five Irene von Treskow 1999 12 January 1999 The Millennium Series. The Inventor's Tale Four David Gentleman 2 February 1999 The Millennium Series. The Traveller's Tale Four 2 March 1999 The Millennium Series. The Patient's Tale Four 6 April 1999 The Millennium Series. The Settler's Tale Four 4 May 1999 The Millennium Series. The Worker's Tale Four 1 June 1999 The Millennium Series. The Entertainer's Tale Four 15 June 1999 The Wedding of Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones Two John Swannell 6 July 1999 The Millennium Series. The Citizen's Tale Four 3 August 1999 The Millennium Series. The Scientist's Tale Four 11 August 1999 Solar Eclipse 7 September 1999 The Millennium Series. The Farmer's Tale Four 21 September 1999 World Changers Charles Darwin, Edward Jenner, Michael Faraday and Alan Turing. 5 October 1999 The Millennium Series. The Soldier's Tale Four 2 November 1999 The Millennium Series. The Christian's Tale FourClare Melinsky 7 December 1999 The Millennium Series. The Artist's Tale Four 14 December 1999 The Millennium Series. Millennium Timekeeper One David Gentleman

Other decades United Kingdom commemorative stamps 1924–1969 United Kingdom commemorative stamps 1970–1979 United Kingdom commemorative stamps 1980–1989 United Kingdom commemorative stamps 2000–2009 United Kingdom commemorative stamps 2010–2019 United Kingdom commemorative stamps 2020–2029

See also

List of people on stamps Philately PHQ Cards Stamp Collecting

References and sources Notes

Sources

Stanley Gibbons Gibbons Stamp Monthly Royal Mail Stamp Guide Royal Mail British Philatelic Bulletin

External links Stanley Gibbons Stamps Shop Homepage Royal Mail