The General Post Office (GPO) was officially established in England in 1660 by Charles II and it eventually grew to combine the functions of both the state postal system and telecommunications carrier. Similar General Post Offices were established across the British Empire. In 1969 the GPO was abolished and the assets transferred to The Post Office, changing it from a Department of State to a statutory corporation. In 1981 the organisation was split into separate Post Office and British Telecommunications corporations. The Wikipedia page is [1]