Blog # 1661 --- Day 1278 ( That's One Thousand Two Hundred and Seventy Eight Days ) Since the Start of the Current ( Second ) Russian Invasion of UKRAINE .
GLORY TO UKRAINE
It's blog update time again. This one may be long , at least that's my intent here now. I am starting with 4 cards I received from David . Three of them are from Azerbaijan and the other is from Ireland.
This first card is from Baku, the capital . Baku is 28 metres (92 Ft) below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world and also the largest city in the world below sea level. The card shows Shirvanshah Palace. The Palace of the Shirvanshahs is a 15th-century palace built by the Shirvanshahs and described by UNESCO as "one of the pearls of Azerbaijan's architecture"
David used a long stamp from this year. It depicts the ancient rock carvings at the Gobustan Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The next 2 cards are from Shusha and Khankendi, both of which are located in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Now there is a lot of history here, I'll try and give the Cole's Notes version and hope I don't mess up and cause another war. Most of Nagorno-Karabakh was governed by ethnic Armenians under the breakaway Republic of Artsakh – also known as the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) – from the end of the first Nagorno-Karabakh War between Armenia and Azerbaijan in 1994 to the announcement of the dissolution of the republic in September 2023.
On 27 September 2020, the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War broke out with an Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding territories. Azerbaijan made significant gains during the war, regaining all of the occupied territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh and capturing one-third of Nagorno-Karabakh, including Shusha and Hadrut. The war ended on 10 November 2020 when a trilateral ceasefire agreement was signed between Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Russia, under which all the remaining occupied territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh were formally returned to Azerbaijani control.
On 19 September 2023, after a blockade lasting several months, Azerbaijan launched a fresh large-scale military offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh.The Artsakh forces collapsed rapidly, resulting in an Azerbaijani victory, the dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh, the exodus of almost the entire Armenian population from the region, and the entry of Azerbaijani security forces into the former Artsakh capital of Stepanakert, known as Khankendi by Azerbaijan. On 1 January 2024, the Republic of Artsakh was formally dissolved, marking the end of a millennia-old Armenian presence in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The end result is that Nagorno-Karabakh was part of and controlled by Armenia, but is now part of and controlled by Azerbaijan. It only took a couple of wars for the change to take place.
The card from Shusha shows Shusha Fortress. It was opened in 1752.
David used 2 stamps on this card. The left stamp is from 2020 and has quite the political message - Karabach Is Azerbaijan. The right stamp was issued in 2024 and celebrates Shusha - the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World for 2024.
Here's the card from Khanikendi, showing an aerial view of the city.
There are 3 stamps on this one, all from 2022. The stamp on the left shows Coins from Shusha. The other 2 stamps celebrate the City of Shusha.
Before I move on to the next card, there is a comment or two that needs to be added. According to someone in the know, David, the card from Shusha was part of the first international mail sent from the city. Cards went to Ireland, Canada and the USA for the first time.
Next is the card from Ireland. I's a look at the Skelligs, The Skellig Islands are two small, steep, and rocky islands lying about 13 km (8 mi) west of Bolus Head in County Kerry, Ireland. The larger of the two is famous for an early Christian monastery that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The stamp -- 1 of 2 in a set , issued in 2025 celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the Birth of Daniel O'Connell .
There is also a definitive stamp label ,from the series Art on a Stamp. This one shows art of Eileen Gray.
This next card is from France. It's an evening view of Chateau d'If. The Château d'If is a fortress located on the Île d'If, the smallest island in the Frioul archipelago, situated about 1.5 kilometres offshore from Marseille in southeastern France. Built in the 16th century, it later served as a prison until the end of the 19th century. Château d'If is world-famous for being immortalised by Alexandre Dumas in The Count of Monte Cristo.
Dominique used a stamp from 2006 on this card. It was issued by France's postal service to commemorate or support corporate foundations. It was printed on brown paper.
Moving along now to the last card for today. It's from Germany. It's a lovely picture of Queen Maxima of the Netherlands. However at the time this picture was taken , she was Princess Maxima. Máxima is Queen of the Netherlands as the wife of King Willem-Alexander. Argentine by birth, she worked in finance when she met Willem-Alexander, eldest son and heir apparent of Queen Beatrix, in 1999. They married in 2002, and became king and queen on the abdication of her mother-in-law on 30 April 2013.
Isa used a couple of stamps on this card. The left stamp is 1 of 2 Classic car stamps issued in 2016, this one is a Porsche 911. The right stamp , from 2010, celebrates the 75th anniversary of Elly Beinhorn's record flight in 1935. She flew from Germany to Asia and back in 13.5 hours and covered 3470 km.
That's it for today. Thanks to David and Isa for today's cards. Drop by again soon.
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