despite great opposition, the Bill for the reform of the postal service on the lines suggested by Rowland Hill in his pamphlet on Post Office Reform (1837) was carried through Parliament in 1939.

It rpovided that letters should be carried at a uniform rate of four pence per half ounce (reduced to one penny, the "Penny Post", on January 10, 1840). The right of "Franking" was abolished and adhesive postage stamps were introduced.

Results of the 1839 Reform

Trade benefitted greatly from cheap postage and letter communications, both national and international, burgeoned during the 19th century.

The reduction in postage costs led to a huge increase in the number communications and a corresponding increase in Post Office revenue. 124,000 letters and papers were delivered in 1839 - seventy years later, in the year ending March 31st, 1909, this figure had increased (including parcels) to 5,000-million.