Ever since Georgian mail coaches thundered along turnpike roads and letter-carriers knocked on doors, postal workers have been distinguished by their blue and scarlet uniforms. Some of the earliest couriers wore embroidered blue or red livery suits and when servants of the British Postal Service received their first official issue of regulation clothing in the late-1700s, the chosen colour was red – the royal colour of England – in honour of the royal origins of the postal system.

Soon after the introduction of horse-drawn mail coaches in 1784, London mail coach guards and drivers were issued with a scarlet cloth coat faced with blue lapels and lining, blue waistcoat and black felted beaver fur hat. The guard, responsible for protecting both the mail and any passengers travelling in the coach, carried a cutlass, blunderbuss and brace of pistols, as well as a horn or bugle to warn other road users and toll-keepers of the fast-approaching vehicle.

London letter-carriers making house-to-house calls gained smart uniforms in 1793, like those of the mail coach teams: fashionably-styled scarlet coats with blue lapels and cuffs, the coat bearing brass buttons inscribed with the wearer’s unique number. They also received waistcoats and hats but had to supply their own breeches and, later, trousers. Despite the early formation of a recognisable London postal uniform, however, the wider adoption of standardised garments was slow: only in the 1830s did many provincial letter-carriers receive uniforms, and regional variations persisted.

During the Victorian era the postman’s uniform gradually shed its more picturesque, colourful elements, reflecting developments in other civilian (and military) uniforms,. Firstly, in c1855 a scarlet full-skirted frock coat replaced the old-fashioned tail coat, the carrier’s number now worn on the collar, while the traditional beaver hat gave way to a glazed top hat modelled on French postmen’s headwear. Waterproof capes were also issued to protect the coat, but nonetheless bright red clothing became quickly blackened in industrial cities. So, in 1861 the original colours were reversed, a functional dark blue frock coat now faced with scarlet collar and cuffs and the initials GPO being embroidered on the collar, above the wearer’s number. Scarlet piping also edged the matching blue waistcoat and the outside seam of the blue winter and grey summer trousers, while from 1862 a blue cloth-covered shako cap with a straight glazed peak replaced the unpopular glazed hat. Finally, in 1868 a military-style dark blue tunic superseded the frock coat and waistcoat, this smart, functional uniform continuing until c1910.

By the early-1900s the Post Office was one of the largest employers world-wide and took its uniforms seriously. In 1910 the Committee on Uniforms declared six grades of ranked workers including post office staff, postmen and women and telegram messengers entitled to specific uniforms, thereby ending any remaining regional distinctions. Simultaneously the tunic was phased out and replaced by a modern lounge-style jacket with reveres, the red collar discontinued but red piping retained. Eventually adopted countrywide, this uniform style, along with a modern peaked cap, continued until the late-20th century.

Despite female employment since the 1700s, women’s postal uniforms only developed in 1894: a waterproof cape and tailored skirt. During the Great War when the GPO employed many more females, a full uniform was issued comprising navy blue serge calf-length skirt, double-breasted coat or fitted jacket and peaked cap or wide-brimmed felt hat. Post women also received a police whistle for emergencies and stout boots for their rounds, described by one wearer as “of a weight and of a fearsome rigidity that the foot accustomed to lighter shoes cannot easily endure”. Further developments occurred during the Second World War when slouch hats and practical trousers became comfortable modern alternatives for women.