Postboxes: the start of the legend
Postboxes, or pillar boxes, were introduced to the UK by Anthony Trollope after he saw them in France. The first pillar box was erected in mainland Britain in September 1853. It was an octagonal box and was painted dark green. It stood in Botchergate, Carlisle. Early postboxes are said to be tall enough for a man wearing a top hat to use them.
The first six London pillar boxes appeared on 11 April 1855. They were rectangular in shape. A replica box can found on the same spot in Botchergate today. Royal Mail now has 115,300 postboxes of all shapes and sizes across the United Kingdom.
