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Indo-China
8th January 1889
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| Sc1 SG2 | Sc2 SG1 | Sc2a SG1b | xxx |
| Description | Surch | Scott † | SG | Mi | Y&T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surcharges on stamps of French Colonies, general issues | ||||||
| 5 centimes on 35c deep violet, orange | Black | 1 | 2 | |||
| 5c on 35c deep violet, orange | Red | 2 | 1 | |||
| 5c on 35c deep violet, orange ‡ | Red | 2a | 1b | Date smaller font | ||
† Scott [1] lists the black surcharge first and dates in as 8th January, then the black surcharges and dates them 10th January.
Gibbons reverses this: red first on 8th, black on 10th.
‡ Three stamps on the sheet of 25 with the red surcharge had the date of 1889 in a smaller font (Sc2a SG1b). Pairs of the two types do exist
but are very rare.
To summarise Mackay [1], the French conquered the area in late C19th and gave it the name Indochina from 1888 onwards, covering the colonies and protectorates of Cochin-China, Annam and Tongking (Vietnam) and Cambodia. Later additions were Laos (1893), and Kouang-Tcheou (1900).
Mackay notes that with "an area greater than France itself, inhabited by people of diverse races … it is not surprising that colonial rule was resisted to a greater or lesser degree". The resistance was greatest in Vietnam, eventually leading to the Vietnam War.