By 1790 the Post Office ran a service using mail coaches and sailing packets that was fast, safe and reliable. High postal rates, however, restricted its use to merchants and the more affluent, and there were no special arrangements for the armed services. In 1795 this changed. Recognizing the benefits to morale, the authorities introduced a scheme whereby soldiers and sailors could send and receive letters at a cost of only one penny. This generated an increase in letter writing by seamen who were delighted to receive news from home. The Admiralty left the scheme in the hands of the Post Office, which tried to deal with it using its normal processes. This article describes how mail got to, and was collected from sailors, and the problems which arose when ships were increasingly deployed outside home waters where their locations were unknown or frequently changed. It describes the difficulties and successes of the Post Office and its, at times, uneasy relationship with an Admiralty reluctant to give information on ship movements. As the wars progressed, British successes at sea removed many initials problems, and the scheme become so well established that it continued after 1815.

中文翻译：

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拿破仑战争中的邮局、海军部和给水手的信

到 1790 年，邮局使用邮车和航海包提供快速、安全和可靠的服务。然而，高邮资限制了它的使用，仅限于商人和更富裕的人，而且对武装服务没有特殊安排。1795 年，情况发生了变化。认识到对士气的好处，当局推出了一项计划，士兵和水手只需花费一分钱就可以收发信件。这导致海员写信增加，他们很高兴收到家里的消息。海军部把这个计划交给了邮局，邮局试图用它的正常程序来处理它。这篇文章描述了邮件是如何到达和从水手那里收集的，以及当船舶越来越多地部署在其位置未知或经常变化的本国水域之外时出现的问题。它描述了邮局的困难和成功，以及它有时与不愿提供船舶动向信息的海军部的不安关系。随着战争的进行，英国在海上的成功消除了许多首字母缩写的问题，该计划变得非常成熟，以致于 1815 年后继续使用。