- £550.00
China. (French China - Liberation of Shanghai). 1945. Chinese illustrated stamp-less envelope (with censored four page letter in French) addressed to Hanoi, Tonkin written from China (Shanghai) dated '17th Oct 1945' with framed 'Troupes Francais/ En Chine/ Controle Au Depart' in violet on reverse and signed by the 'lieutenant' (bottom left).
The Shanghai French Concession was a Foreign Concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1943. The Concession came to an end when Vichy France under German pressure signed the enclave over to the Japanese puppet State in Eastern China (Nanjing). The Japanese occupied the International Settlements of the British and Americans. Civilians and the Troops surrendered and were placed in P.O.W. or Internment Camps. The French Troops did not move from the preserved French Concession as the Vichy Government considered itself Neutral. Towards the end of the war the city was liberated from the Japanese and the French Troops left for home at the end of 1945.
This rare censor is only found on the reverse of military mail and is scarce with just a few items known. The cachet (censor) is illustrated in Desrousseaux, Livre 4, page 309.
