Crete
Crete (Creta in Italian) is the largest and most populous island of Greece and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus and Corsica. It lies about 100 kilometers south of the Peloponnese and covers 8,450 square kilometers, with a mountain range running from west to east. Crete was the center of the Minoan civilization from 2700 to 1420 BCE, and the palace at Knossos is its best-known site. The Mycenaeans from mainland Greece then took over, and the name Crete first appears in their Linear B tablets in the 15th century BCE. Rome conquered the island in 69 BCE, and it stayed under Roman and then Byzantine rule for about 900 years.
In the 820s, Andalusian Arabs captured Crete and set up the Emirate of Crete, which lasted until Nikephoros Phokas retook the island for the Byzantines in 960 and 961. The emirate’s capital was called Chandax, and this is where the name Candia comes from, which Venetians and Italians later used for both the city and the island. After the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople in 1204, Boniface of Montferrat sold his claim to the Republic of Venice. Genoa seized the island first, however, and Venice only secured it as a colony in 1212. Venetian rule lasted more than four centuries, and Candia (now Heraklion) became one of the best fortified cities in the eastern Mediterranean. The Ottomans took the island in 1669 after the siege of Candia.
Cretans rose against Ottoman rule several times, and in February 1897 the Great Powers sent in troops. As a result, the island was garrisoned by Great Britain, France, Italy and Russia, and in 1898 it became the autonomous Cretan State under Prince George of Greece. The Cretan deputies declared union with Greece in 1908, but this was not recognized internationally until December 1, 1913. In May 1941, the Battle of Crete was fought between Allied forces, with help from local civilians, and the German invasion. The Germans occupied the island until the last of them surrendered at Knossos in May 1945. Today the island has 624,408 people (2021 census) and is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Greece, with 6.3 million visitors in 2023.
Note
A few years prior to this period, when these stamps were issued and Italy had a post office in Crete, the island was part of the Ottoman Empire. A few years later, it became part of the kingdom of Greece. During this period, it was an autonomous state with some oversight from the Ottoman Empire and controlled and occupied by the Great Powers (i.e., the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Russia) with Greek involvment and the intention of merging it into Greece. As a result of this history, I’m thinking that this page might belong under the Ottoman Empire section or by itself. I may move it.
Contains 20 spots: own 0 – 0 unused, 0 used.
Album or Web Page Last changed Feb 26, 2026
Stamp Details
The table below lists information about the stamps shown on this page of Lighthouse’s stamp album. For more details about a particular stamp, click on its description. That will take you to the related web page of Colnect.
spot |
own |
catalog |
subject |
description |
comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Umberto I |
1p (jul 1900) |
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2 |
Vittorio Emanuele III |
1p (jul 1901) |
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3 |
Savoy Emblem |
1c (nov 1906) |
|||
4 |
Savoy Crest |
2c (nov 1906) |
|||
5 |
Savoy Crest |
5c (nov 1906) |
|||
6 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
10c (nov 1906) |
|||
7 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
15c (nov 1906) |
|||
8 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
25c (nov 1906) |
|||
9 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
40c (nov 1906) |
|||
10 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
45c (nov 1906) |
|||
11 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
50c (nov 1906) |
|||
12 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
1₤ (nov 1906) |
|||
13 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Cellini |
5₤ (nov 1906) |
|||
14 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Leoni |
5c (jul 1907) |
|||
E1 |
Espresso |
25c (nov 1906) |
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15 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Leoni |
10c (mar 1907) |
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17 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Michetti |
25c (apr 1909) |
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18 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Michetti |
40c (jan 1910) |
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19 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Michetti |
50c (jan 1909) |
|||
16 |
Vittorio Emanuele III - Michetti |
15c (jan 1912) |
Footnotes
Spot refers to the postion of the stamp on the album page (e.g., 3.2 indicates row 3, position 2).
Amt. is an abbreviation for the face amount of the stamp.
Own indicates the stamp status: ✓ for unused; ✗ for used or canceled; ⭑ signifies I ordered one; ; ✨ indicates it was bought recently; ✠ means an auction bid is pending; and ◎ is used, and it costs too much for unused.
To search by catalog number, go to the search box and enter it in the catalog number box. However, it’s a bit broken; I need to fix it.
