Shilling (British coin)

, struck between 1551 and 1553 The first coins of the pound sterling with the value of 12d were minted in 1503 or 1504 Between 1544 and 1551 the coinage was debased repeatedly by the governments of Henry VIII and Edward VI in an attempt to generate more money to fund foreign wars. This debasement meant that coins produced in 1551 had one-fifth of the silver content of those minted in 1544, and consequently the value of new testoons fell from 12d to 6d. The reason the testoon decreased in value is that unlike today, the value of coins was determined by the market price of the metal contained within them. This debasement was recognised as a mistake, and during Elizabeth I's reign newly minted coins, including the testoon (now known as the shilling), had a much higher silver content and regained their pre-debasement value. Debased testoons were overstruck with portcullis and greyhound symbols to indicate lower values of fourpence-halfpenny and twopence-farthing, before being withdrawn entirely. Shillings were minted during the reigns of every English monarch after Edward VI, as well as during the Commonwealth, with a vast number of variations and alterations appearing over the years. The Royal Mint undertook a massive recoinage programme in 1816, with large quantities of gold and silver coin being minted. Previous issues of silver coinage had been irregular, and the last issue, minted in 1787, was not intended for issue to the public, but as Christmas gifts to the Bank of England's customers. New silver coinage was to be of .925 (sterling) standard, with silver coins to be minted at 66 shillings to the troy pound. Hence, newly minted shillings weighed  troy ounce, equivalent to 87.273 grains or 5.655 grams. The Royal Mint debased the silver coinage in 1920 from 92.5% silver to 50% silver. Shillings of both alloys were minted that year. This debasement was done because of the rising price of silver around the world, and followed the global trend of the elimination, or the reducing in purity, of the silver in coinage. The minting of silver coinage of the pound sterling ceased completely (except for the ceremonial Maundy Money) at the end of 1946 for similar reasons, exacerbated by the costs of the Second World War. New "silver" coinage was instead minted in cupronickel, an alloy of 75% copper and 25% nickel. Beginning with Lord Wrottesley's proposals in the 1820s there were various attempts to decimalise the pound sterling over the next century and a half. These attempts came to nothing significant until the 1960s when the need for a currency more suited to simple monetary calculations became pressing. The decision to decimalise was announced in 1966, with the pound to be redivided into 100, rather than 240, pence. Decimal Day was set for 15 February 1971, and a whole range of new coins was introduced. Shillings continued to be legal tender with a value of 5 new pence until 31 December 1990. ==Design==

Testoons issued during the reign of Henry VII feature a right-facing portrait of the king on the obverse. Surrounding the portrait is the inscription , or similar, meaning "Henry, by the Grace of God, King of England and France". Henry VIII testoons have a different reverse design, featuring a crowned Tudor rose, but those of Edward VI return to the Royal Arms design used previously. Starting with Edward VI the coins feature the denomination printed next to the portrait of the king. Elizabeth I and Mary I shillings are exceptions to this; the former has the denomination printed on the reverse, above the coat of arms, and the latter has no denomination printed at all. Some shillings issued during Mary's reign bear the date of minting, printed above the dual portraits of Mary and Philip. ==In popular culture==

in the Guildhall Museum of Rochester illustrates the conversion between pence and shillings, going up in units of ten old pennies. A slang name for shilling was bob (plural as singular, as in "That cost me two bob"). The first recorded use was in a case of coining heard at the Old Bailey in 1789, when it was described as cant, "well understood among a certain set of people", but heard only among criminals and their associates. In the Gambia, white people are called toubabs, which may derive from the colonial practice of paying locals two shillings for running errands. An alternate etymology holds that the name is derived from French toubib, i.e. doctor. To "take the King's shilling" was to enlist in the army or navy, a phrase dating back to the early 19th century. To "cut someone off with a shilling", often quoted as "cut off without a shilling" means to disinherit. Although this has no basis in English law, some believe that leaving a family member a single shilling in one's will ensured that it could not be challenged in court as an oversight. A popular legend holds that a shilling was the value of a cow in Kent, or a sheep elsewhere. == Mintages ==

and Jean Baptiste Merlen. and Leonard Charles Wyon. and Edward Poynter. Victoria • 18381,956,240 • 18395,666,760 • 18401,639,440 • 1841875,160 • 18422,094,840 • 18431,465,200 • 18444,466,760 • 18454,082,760 • 18464,031,280 • 18481,041,480 • 1849645,480 • 1850685,080 • 1851470,071 • 18521,306,574 • 18534,256,188 • 1854522,414 • 18551,368,499 • 18563,168,600 • 18572,562,120 • 18583,108,600 • 18594,561,920 • 18601,671,120 • 18611,382,040 • 1862954,360 • 1863839,320 • 18644,518,360 • 18655,619,240 • 18664,989,600 • 18672,166,120 • 18683,330,360 • 1869736,560 • 18701,467,471 • 18714,910,010 • 18728,897,781 • 18736,589,598 • 18745,503,747 • 18754,353,983 • 18761,057,387 • 18772,980,703 • 18783,127,131 • 18793,611,407 • 18804,842,786 • 18815,255,332 • 18821,611,786 • 18837,281,450 • 18843,923,993 • 18853,336,527 • 18862,086,819 • 18874,034,133 • 18884,526,856 • 18897,039,628 • 18908,794,042 • 18915,665,348 • 18924,591,622 • 18937,040,386 • 18945,953,152 • 18958,880,651 • 18969,264,551 • 18976,270,364 • 18989,768,703 • 189910,965,382 • 190010,937,590 • 19013,426,294 Edward VII • 19027,905,604 • 19032,061,823 • 19042,040,161 • 1905488,390 • 190610,791,025 • 190714,083,418 • 19083,806,969 • 19095,664,982 • 191026,547,236 George V • 191120,065,908; 6,000 (Proof) • 191215,594,009 • 19139,011,509 • 191423,415,843 • 191539,279,024 • 191635,862,015 • 191722,202,608 • 191834,915,934 • 191910,823,824 • 192022,865,142 • 192122,648,763 • 192227,215,738 • 192314,575,243 • 19249,250,095 • 19255,418,764 • 192622,516,453 • 19279,262,244 • 192818,136,778 • 192919,343,006 • 19303,137,092 • 19316,993,926 • 193212,168,101 • 193311,511,624 • 19346,138,463 • 19359,183,462 • 193611,910,613 George VI Elizabeth II ==Notes==