Swedish Livonia
From 1581 to 1621, when Riga was under the rule of the Duchy of Livonia, and also from 1621 to 1710, when it was a part of Swedish Livonia, postal services were used only for governmental purposes. In the 16th century several postal organisations existed — for governmental purposes, as well as for clerics, universities, cities and merchants. In 1632 the Postmaster General of Prussia and Livonia, Jacob Becker, who was appointed in Swedish Livonia by the King of Sweden, organised the first regular public postal service. Initially, the postal service was the private property of the Postmaster General, who also received annual funding from the Riga City Council and the Governors of Swedish Livonia. In 1644 the Livonian Postal Service was linked to the Stockholm Postal Service routes in Finland.