Our beloved Lauritz Andreas Thodal, Our Governor over Iceland and Sub-Governor over the South and West District, and Our beloved Ole Stephensen, Our Sub-Governor over the North and East District, regarding the establishment of a postal service in Iceland.
We, Christian VII, by the Grace of God King of Denmark and Norway, Venden, and Gothenland, Duke of Slesvik, Holstein, Stormarn and Ditmarsken, Count of Oldenborg and Delmenhorst;
Our benevolence as of old. We have most complaisantly been informed that there is no regular service in Iceland for forwarding either official or private letters. This causes not only difficulties for the inhabitants, but also great slowness and uncertainty in the proper forwarding of Our official correspondence. We therefore announce that in order as far as possible to avoid such inconvenience in future, we have in the first instance, and until further notice, decided to approve the proposals which you, Governor Thodal have put before Us, for the establishment of a post in Iceland, to go thrice a year from each quarter of the country to Bessastadir with letters which officials or others have to dispatch, thither or to Copenhagen. These posts are to reach Bessastadir at the beginning of March, June and October as follows;
In winter the post shall depart from the Bailiff of Norður-Múlasýsla through eastern Iceland to all Bailiffs there. Letters from the Bailiff of Norður-Múlasýsla, or from other inhabitants of the county, for Copenhagen or Bessastaðir are to be despatched at the end of January to the Bailiff of Suður-Múlasýsla so that they can reach him by February 1st. The travels of this post are decided as follows: If no letters from the Bailiff of N.Múlasýsla reach the Bailiff of S.Múlasýsla by February 1st, subject to any special weather conditions, the former will despatch an express courier carrying any letters he may have to Austur-Skaftafellssýsla, and if no post arrives there by February 8th the Bailiff will despatch his letters to Vestur-Skaftafellssýsla, where the post's departure is fixed for February 16th. If no letters are received by this date, the Bailiff is to send his letters to Rang´vallasýsla; after waiting till February 22nd this county's letters are forwarded to the Bailiff in Arnessýsla, who waits until the last day in February before sending to Bessastaðir.
In summer however the post from Eastern Iceland shall proceed as follows:
Letters shall be despatched by the Bailiff of Súður-Múlasýsla in time to reach the
Bailiff of Norður-Múlasýsla not later than May 6th; but in the case of delays which may
occur the latter shall wait until May 8th before sending letters to the Bailiff of Nordur-
sysla, so that they may arrive there on May 15th. In the autumn the post is to go the same
way, leaving Suður-Múlasýsla in time to reach the Bailiff of Norður-Múlasýsla by September
16th when the post sets off from there, in time to reach the Bailiff of Norður-sýsla on
September 26th. From A.Skaftafellssýsla the post continues to go both summer and autumn
by the southern route on the following days: From V.Skaftafellssýsla on May 16th, from
Rang´vallasýsla on May 22nd and from Arnessýsla on May 28th. The Bailiff of
A.Skaftafellssýsla must therefore make his despatches in time to reach V.Skaftafellssýsla
on the dates mentioned i.e. May 16th and September 12th.
In winter the northern post goes from the Bailiff in Norður-sýsla to the Bailiff in Eyjarfjarðarsýsla on February 1st. If no post is received there by February 7th, letters from the Bailiff are to be sent to the bailiff of in Skagafjarðarsýsla in time to reach him on February 12th. If by that time no post is received from the north, the post from this county is to be despatched to the Bailiff in Húnavatnssýsla to reach him by February 18th. The post then goes from there to Hjarðarholt, by February 26th, when the Bailiff of Mýrasýsla despatches letters from both north and west together, to Bessastaðir. Summer dates for the northern post are fixed as follows: from the Bailiff in Norður-sýsla on May 15th, and from the Bailiff of Eyjarfjarðarsýsla on May 20th, but the Bailiff in Húnavatnssýsla is to send his letters to meet the post on his way to the Bailiff in Skagafjarðarsýsla by May 25th, because the northern post takes the mountain route from Skagafjarðarsýsla to Hjarðarholt. In the autumn the northern post leaves Norður-sýsla on September 20th, Eyjarfjarðarsýsla on September 28th, Skagafjarðarsýsla on October 3rd, and Húnavatnssýsla on October 8th for Hjarðarholt.
The western post in winter leaves Ísafjarðarsýsla on February 10th to the Bailiff of Barðarstrandarsýsla; if no letters from Ísafjarðarsýsla reach there by February 15th or 16th any letters thence shall proceed to the Bailiff of Dalasýsla and thence to Hjarðarholt, and since it is easiest for the postal route from Ísafjarðarsýsla to cross the upper fjords and in Barðarstrandarsýsla to cross Gilsfjörður, the Bailiffs in both counties must make arrangements with the inhabitants located most conveniently and nearest to these fjords, to ferry the post across for reasonable payment which for each of the small fjords in Ísafjarðarsýsla is fixed at 8 skilling. Summer dates for the western commercial post are fixed as follows: from Ísafjarðarsýsla May 12th, from Barðarstrandarsýsla May 18th, and from Dalasýsla May 22nd. In the autumn the post leaves Ísafjarðarsýsla September 24th, Barðarstrandarsýsla September 30th, and Dalasysla October 4th, for Hjarðarholt. When letters have to be sent to Bessastaðir from Snæfellsnessýsla the post must leave there early enough, during the three seasons, to reach Hjarðarholt on February 24th, May 24th, and October 8th, visiting the Bailiff in Hnappadalssýsla on route, where the courier is to arrive on February 20th, May 20th and October 4th. But in case the Bailiff has letters for Copenhagen or Bessastaðir and no letters are received from Snæfellsnessýsla on the fixed dates or a day later, he may send a special express messenger to Hjarðarholt. If the Bailiff of Strandasýsla has any letters for Copenhagen or Bessastaðir he may send them either to meet the post from Húnavatnssýsla in winter and autumn, or to Dalasýsla, as he finds to be most convenient and most direct. But the Bailiff in Mýrdalssýsla, where the three posts meet, waits a few days or till the last day of February and May, and October 12th, if all the posts have not arrived, before sending to Bessastaðir.
Bailiffs are to fix a reasonable fee to postmen in accordance with local custom which in winter, however, is not to exceed 1 Crown ( = 68 skilling) for each Þingmannaleið (reckoned as 23 miles), or 5 or 6 miles (old Danish miles), but in summer less, and in accordance with the custom of the country. The Bailiff advances the money and at the end of the year he submits to each Sub-Governor an account of expenses incurred for approval, which are then refunded by the Treasurer. Each Bailiff numbers the letters he forwards, and encloses a list of the letters with the date of despatch.
By the aforementioned letters to Copenhagen or Bessastaðir is meant official letters to Ministries, urgent petitions and or urgent official letters to the authorities of the country. No post shall be set in motion without such letters, but if a post is under way with such letters, any other letters may be sent along with them.
If a postman traverses several counties continuously and requires fresh horses for rent, the local Bailiff shall hire them for him against reasonable and normal payment. If however the postman cannot proceed because of bad travel conditions or is otherwise hindered the post must not be delayed, but the local Bailiff,where the post was hindered, shall take over the post and forward it as soon as conditions allow.
If, on the other hand, a safe and reliable opportunity offers itself at the same time as the post is due to proceed, such as by fishermen travelling from north to east, and it was known that they could convey the letters to Hjarðarholt or further in good time, likewise by them from the east to the southern district, the Bailiff may send letters by them against a reasonable gratuity, in order to save expenses on postmen, provided the Bailiff has satisfied himself of their honesty and reliability.
Just as it is here decreed, how and at what times letters from all quarters are to reach Bessastaðir, so you must also consider and render proposals on how and when the return posts from Bessastaðir to all counties can most conveniently be arranged, so that all instructions and orders from Ourselves and Our Ministers, as well as communications from the authorities because of this or other official business within the country, may be delivered in good time to recipients.
It must also be borne in mind that the present postal arrangements which We have now most benevolently confirmed, as well as the postal arrangements that you may propose for the future, apply only to despatches on the fixed postal route from one county to another. The postal service is not concerned with despatches outside the postal route, whether it is delivery within a county from the post office appointed therein, or within the county, to the post station therein. This must be arranged by the persons concerned as best they can and know how.
Since apart from this it is the aim of this establishment to meet the convenience and requirements of all inhabitants of the country, and it is therefore proper that a plan should at once be drawn up with the aim that it cannot only in due course pay its own way without burden to our Treasury, but which will also, if possible, show some profit which, by My further and most benevolently given instructions thereon, could be used to some general advantage of the country. You are therefore to consider the question in the light of local circumstances and most complaisantly to submit proposals as to what may be considered reasonable and suitable rates of postage for the country to pay on private letters, both for the fixed postal route as a whole, and for the various stages of this route, and to form a regulation thereon. With the same aim in mind you should submit a clear definition along the basic lines most benevolently laid down by Us in the decree of January 17th 1771, and the Proclamation of September 12th 1772, as to what shall constitute private letters liable to the fixed postage, and what shall be regarded as public or official letters, which shall be forwarded free. These proposals,both concerning the aforementioned rates of postage, and any others which you may find necessary in connection with the service, to ensure it's most efficient operation, shall then be submitted to Our West Indian-Guinean Revenue and Customs Office, so that thence further proposals may be submitted for Our most benevolent approval as seen fit, in order that a complete Decree for a postal service in the country may be prepared, as quickly as possible, and thereafter announced publicly.
This being Our will. Entrusting you to God. Done in Our Palace of Christiansborg in Our Royal Presidial City of Copenhagen, on May 13th, 1776.
Under Our Royal Hand and Seal.
Moltke: First Deputy of the Chancellor and Minister of State. Praetorius: Deputy of the Revenue Office Erichsen: Jón Eiriksson