https://blog.plover.com/history/pillar-box-war.html

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Mark Dominus (Tao Min Xiu ) Sat, 06 May 2023
mjd@pobox.com
                      The pillar box war
[TOP]
                      Aphotograph of two red pillar-style post boxes,
About me              side by side. Each isroughly cylindrical, with
                      a black base, a flat flaring top, and alarge
RSS Atom              slot near the top for the insertion of letters.

12 recent entries     A "pillar box" is a British mailbox. It usually
                      has the monogram ("cypher") of the reigning
Two words, two lies   monarch at the time it was built. At right are
(again)               two examples. The one to the right has the
The pillar box war    monogram of Queen Elizabeth II, also depicted
Water, polo, and      below.
water polo in Russian
Recent addenda to     Royal cypher of Elizabeth II consisting of the
articles 202304:      letters "ER" witha roman numeral "II" in
Inappropriate         between, surmounted by a royal crown.
baseball team names
and anagrams in       ("EIIR" is short for "Elizabeth II Regina"). The
Russian               pillar box to the left has the monogram of her
Notes on rarely-seen  father, George VI.
game mechanics
Why use cycle         When Elizabeth was crowned in 1953, there was a
notation for          dispute in Scotland over what she should be
permutations?         called. "Elizabeth II of Scotland" was a bit of
Show how the student  an oddity because Scotland had never before had
could have solved it  a queen named Elizabeth: England's Elizabeth I
Thought on cynicism   had never been queen of Scotland, which at the
Math SE report        time was a separate kingdom. Compare the
2023-04:              so-called James VI and I who was King James VI
Simplest-possible     of Scotland but King James I of England. (He
examples, pointy      was the son of Elizabeth's cousin Mary. James
regions, and          I-V had been the kings of Scotland from
nearly-orthogonal     1406-1542.)
vectors
I liked this simple   Post boxes in Scotland with Elizabeth's "EIIR"
calculus exercise     monogram were repeatedly vandalized and in some
Two words, two lies   cases exploded. A lawsuit was filed in
Recent addenda to     Scotland, asserting that the proclamation of
articles 202303       Elizabeth II was a violation of the 1707 Act of
                      union between England and Scotland. The court
Archive:              disagreed: "The [Act of Union] did not contain
                      any provision as to the style and titles to be
2023: JFMAM           adopted by the monarch of the new [United]
2022: JFMAMJ          kingdom." The plaintiff was required to pay the
      JASOND          respondent's legal expenses.
2021: JFMAMJ
      JASOND          The two nations found an acceptable compromise:
2020: JFMAMJ          after 1953 pillar boxes erected in Scotland
      JASOND          omitted Elizabeth's monogram entirely, and
2019: JFMAMJ          included only a heraldic representation of the
      JASOND          crown of Scotland.
2018: JFMAMJ
      JASOND          The issue doesn't come up with Charles III, who
2017: JFMAMJ          is the third monarch of that name in both
      JASOND          England and Scotland.
2016: JFMAMJ
      JASOND          Pillar box photograph by Kitmaster is in the
2015: JFMAMJ          public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
      JASOND          Elizabeth II's royal cypher by Sodacan is in
2014: JFMAMJ          the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
      JASOND
2013: JFMAMJ
      JASOND          [Other articles in category /history] permanent
2012: JFMAMJ                                                     link
      JASOND
2011: JFMAMJ
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2010: JFMAMJ
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2009: JFMAMJ
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2008: JFMAMJ
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2007: JFMAMJ
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2006: JFMAMJ
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2005: OND


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