On the 12th September 1848, a new Federal Constitution was approved by the 22 cantons, thereby creating
a centralised government to run the affairs previously administered by the cantons. An elected two-chamber
Federal Assembly was established, and a Federal Council (the government) consisting of seven members with
a rotating presidency.
With effect from 1st January 1849, the newly formed Federal Postal Administration took over responsibility
for the postal service, until then operated by some of the larger cantons. Initially this consisted of
establishing laws concerning rates and setting up the 11 postal districts that were to run the entire
operation.
At this point, the administration did not manufacture any postage stamps and two of the cantons, namely
Zürich and Geneva continued to produce stamps of their own for another 15 months
(the Transitional Issues).
1850 Orts Post & Poste Locale
Orts Post (with frame)
Orts Post (without frame)
Poste Locale
On the 5 April 1850, the Federal Council made postage stamps available to centres of large population,
to be used as pre-payment on letters. These stamps were the 2½ Rappen "Orts Post" and "Poste Locale",
featuring the cross of the newly formed Swiss Confederation, and lithograph printed on white wove paper
by Karl Durheim of Bern.
Forty types were hand-drawn on a stone (printing plate), arranged eight horizontally by five vertically.
The forty types were transferred from the stone and repeated four times, occasionally twice, producing
sheets of 160 or 80 stamps respectively.
Occasionally, the frame surrounding the cross shifted by as much as 0.5mm and proved quite troublesome for
the printer. In June 1850 both stamps appeared without the frame around the cross. The frame was removed
from the original stone, but often not completely, so partial frames do exist.
The Orts Post and Poste Locale were issued to serve in the German and French-speaking areas of the country
respectively. However, both issues were used across both areas. These two stamps, having a low value, were
issued for local use but were also used for greater distances when adequate multiples were placed on
envelopes. The higher values that followed were designed for different rayons (postal zones), depending
on distance from the despatching post office.
In 1849 the postal rates in Switzerland were fixed according to classified distances, measured in
"wegstunden" (way hours) and known as Rayons (postal zones).
These were in addition to the 2½ Rappen local rate (Ortskreis).
| Rayon | Distance | Weight | Postage |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | up to 10 hours | per ½ loth | 5 Rp. |
| II | 10-25 hours | per ½ loth | 10 Rp. |
| III | 25-40 hours | per ½ loth | 15 Rp. |
| IV | over 40 hours | per ½ loth | 20 Rp. |
| Distance was measured in Wegstunden or 'way hours' (1 wegstunde = 4.8km.) | |||
The weight of letters also had a bearing on the postage rate. On 1st April 1850, a circular from the Federal Council, announced that prepaid letters would be carried at the following tariffs:
| Up to 2 loth (1 ounce) inclusive | 2 ½ Rappen | |
| 2 to 4 loth (1-2 ounces) | 5 Rappen | |
| 4 to 8 loth (2-4 ounces) | 10 Rappen |
The circular went on to state: "Stamps of 5 and 10 Rappen will shortly be issued; these may also be used for the local post in such cases." On 1st October 1850, the dark blue Rayon I and yellow Rayon II issues were placed on sale.
1850 Rayon I & II
1850 Rayon I
1850 Rayon II
The Rayon I stamp was printed on white wove paper in black and red on a dark-blue background. There were
several shades, the grey-blue background being the most common. As with the Orts Post & Poste Locale before,
this stamp was initially printed with a black frame surrounding the Federal cross. With later printings it
was erased from the stone.
The Rayon II was also printed on white wove paper in three colours, black and red on a yellow background.
Examples of this stamp with frame around the cross are extremely rare
Forty types of Rayon I and II were hand-drawn on a stone (printing plate), arranged eight horizontally
by five vertically. These forty types were transferred from the stone and repeated four times, occasionally
twice, producing sheets of 160 or 80 stamps respectively.
The first two issues on a dark-blue or yellow background proved very expensive to print, and so, in
September 1850, a request was made to the printer to run trial colour changes on the existing plates.
The Rayon I was changed to light blue on white paper with a red shield, and proved successful. However,
when the Rayon II was changed to yellow on white paper with a red shield, it was not clearly visible in
certain light and so the proposed change for this issue was abandoned.
1851 Rayon I
1851 Rayon I
The date of issue for the Rayon I in light blue is believed to be the 30th March 1851, although the earliest
known cancellation is dated 15th April 1851.
The Federal Council were planning a new series of stamps, the imperforate Sitting Helvetia, with silk
thread, to be ready for distribution by 1st January 1852. However, due to the complicated process of
producing these stamps, the engraver, Johann Weiss of Munich, was unable to supply on time.
This delay resulted in the authority's decision to continue with the Rayon I and II as prepayment for
the first and second postal zones and introduce an additional stamp with a value of 15 Rappen for a
third rayon, representing a greater distance limit.
The first Federal Coinage Act was approved by the Federal Assembly on 7 May 1850, establishing the franc
as the monetary unit of Switzerland, replacing the different currencies of the cantons.
At the time, there was a discrepancy between the values of the centime in the French cantons and the Rappen
in the German cantons. To create parity between the two currencies a changeover was arranged for the
1st January 1852, and to ensure a smooth transition, no stamps were sold at post offices between 25th
December 1851 and 1st January 1852.
1852 Rayon III
Rayon III (small 15 Rp)
Rayon III (small 15 Cts)
Rayon III (large 15)
This stamp was intended to be in red and black, but was actually printed in red only. The value in the
lower left circle of the first issue was inscribed with a small 15 and a currency identifier of either
"Rp." or "Cts".
Mid-way through the year the currency identifier was standardised as "15 Rp.", with the value changed to
a larger figure. These issues are described as either "small 15" or "large 15".
All of the Rayons were declared invalid on October 1st, 1854, when the silk thread issue of the imperforate Sitting Helvetia was placed on sale.