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| Khust | Mukachiv | Berehove | Teresva |
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE STAMPS OF CARPATHO-UKRAINE, 1939 and 1945
| Background | The Uzhhorhod Provisional Overprints |
| The National Assembly Issue | Watermarks |
| The Yasinia Local Trident Overprints | First Edition |
| Second Edition | |
| A Change in Regimes | Forgeries |
| The National Council Definitive Issues | Cancellations |
| First Definitive Issue | Censorship |
| Second Definitive Issue | Epilog |
| Third Definitive Issue | Conclusion |
A Change in Regimes
Carpatho-Ukraine was occupied by the Red Army in October of 1944. The Czechoslovak government-in-exile exercised civil authority for a brief period, but by early 1945, it had moved on to Košice in Slovakia (which had also been freed from Hungarian rule). This body produced some local issues (40 items) in Khust and authorizing documentation is known. Czechoslovak "Sympathy Issues" were also prepared in Mukachiv (81 items), Berehove (31 items), and Teresva (113 items), but precisely who was responsible for their issuance is unclear (Figure 7).
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| Khust | Mukachiv | Berehove | Teresva |
Very few covers demonstrating usage of these local stamps have survived from Khust and Mukachiv. Some from Khust are possibly genuine, but virtually all from Mukachiv were philatelically prepared. The authors are unaware of any covers from Berehove or Teresva. Because of their dubious nature, these local issues are not dealt with in this Handbook.
Meanwhile, a network of local political organizations had evolved to become the "National Council of Carpatho-Ukraine," known as the NRZU (after the Ukrainian initials for "Narodna Rada Zakarpatskoi Ukrainy"). Eventually, the Soviet military authorities entrusted the civil administration of Carpatho-Ukraine to the NRZU. This autonomy extended to postal matters. Under NRZU auspices, two overprinted issues and three definitive issues were produced and distributed throughout Carpatho-Ukrainian territories.
All Carpatho-Ukraine stamps from this time period lack an indication of the currency. At one time, it was thought that the Soviet, Hungarian, and Czech currencies were allowed to circulate at equal value. Current thinking is that only the Hungarian fillér / pengő currency was in circulation. It is also plausible that the currency designation was omitted since it represented a symbol of the Hungarian occupation. This article will indicate denominations as either “f” (fillér) or “P” (Pengő).
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