Today we're going to discuss the history of the postal service. In the early 19th century, letters were delivered by horse-drawn coaches, which was slow and expensive. The recipient usually paid the postage, not the sender. This changed in 1840 with the introduction of the Penny Post in Britain, where the sender prepaid a uniform rate of one penny. This innovation dramatically increased the volume of mail. Interestingly, the first adhesive postage stamp, the Penny Black, was also issued at this time. However, the postal service faced challenges, including how to deal with increasing volumes and ensuring timely delivery across expanding railway networks.