King George V’s passion for stamps

A new biography of British King, George V, which focuses on his obsession with stamps, is the first book on a philatelic subject to be published on Kindle. The book, ‘George V’s Obsession – a king and his stamps’, contains new archival material and is the first new biography of George V (the present British Queen’s grandfather) for 30 years. It describes George V’s life and his urge to be the greatest collector of his time. It examines his collecting and his interference with the production of stamps. It also examines the urge that people have to collect things. It shows how he shamelessly grabbed whatever philatelic material he could get hold of from across the British Empire – often in dubious circumstances.

The book movingly describes the King’s relationship with Edward Bacon (born 29th August 1860 – died 5th June 1938) – a well-known philatelist. Bacon, an accountant from the suburbs of South London, was invited by King George V in September 1913, to be the Curator of the Royal Philatelic Collection. He became one of the King’s closest associates and was probably the person with whom he spent most time. The book’s author, Jack Shamash, explained: “I was fascinated by the story of the King and Edward Bacon. I wanted to write a book that would appeal to philatelists and to a wider readership. I put the book on Kindle to make it accessible to an international audience.”