Postage Stamps and Postal History of Northern Epirus - Later Greek Occupations

Later Greek Occupations

Greece resumed control over Epirus in November 1914; on the 30th, to meet the area's postal needs, stamps from its "Campaign issue" were issued with the overprint B. ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ horizontally in black; red overprints were also made, but not issued. (Some cancelled copies are known to exist.) These replaced Epirus' definitive issues. In December 1915 the same overprint was applied vertically, reading either up or down, to Greek definitive stamps of 1911 and 1913 issues. All of these have been counterfeited.

Greek forces were driven out of Epirus by Italy in 1916; at the same time, Koritsa came under French occupation. Under French administration, a short-lived Republic of Koritsa was formed there and stamps were issued in December 1916. They were produced by further overprints of a double-headed eagle and new values in centimes on Greek stamps with the B. ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ overprint.

In October 1940, Italy launched an invasion of Greece from Albania. A Greek counter-attack succeeded in occupying much of southern Albania, including Epirus. During this period of Greek control, which lasted until the German invasion of April 1941, the overprint ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΔΙΟIΚΗΣΙΣ (Hellenic Administration) in black or carmine was applied to Greek definitive issues, airmail stamps, postage due stamps and charity stamps. The overprinted issues were withdrawn from sale in June 1941.