HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
twopence (2''d'') ( or )
coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...
was a denomination of sterling coinage worth two pennies or of a pound. It was a short-lived denomination in copper, being minted in only 1797 by Matthew Boulton's
Soho Mint Soho Mint was created by Matthew Boulton in 1788 in his Soho Manufactory () in Handsworth, West Midlands, England. A mint was erected at the manufactory containing eight machines, to his own patent design, driven by steam engine, each capable ...
. These coins were made legal tender for amounts of up to one
shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currency, currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 1 ...
by a proclamation of 26 July 1797. Short-lived twopence coins in silver were also minted in 1817, 1818 and 1820. Twopence coins were made redundant in 1860 with the advent of
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
coinage.


History

The minting of silver pennies for general circulation was halted by the British government in 1660, because the cost of silver had risen too high. By the late 18th century this policy had caused a deficiency in the number of circulating pennies, and many merchants and mining companies had taken to issuing their own copper tokens. For example, the Parys Mining Company on
Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...
issued huge numbers of tokens (although their acceptability was limited). In 1797 to alleviate this coin shortage, the government authorised Matthew Boulton to strike copper pennies and twopences at his Soho Mint in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
. As it was a requirement that a coin's face value should correspond to the value of the base metal, each was made from two pence worth of copper (2 ounces), making the coins significantly larger than earlier pennies which had been struck in silver. Their large size, combined with the thick rim, led to the nickname "cartwheels". All "cartwheel" twopences are marked with the date 1797. In total, around 720,000 such coins were minted. By 1802, the production of privately issued provincial tokens had ceased. However, in the next ten years the intrinsic value of copper rose. The return of privately minted token coinage was evident by 1811 and became endemic by 1812 as more of the government-issued copper coinage was melted down for trade. The
Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins. Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclu ...
undertook a massive recoinage programme in 1816, with large quantities of gold and silver coin being minted. To thwart the further issuance of private tokens, in 1817 an act of Parliament was passed which forbade their manufacture under severe penalties. A short-lived twopence denomination in silver was also produced, with circulation issues in 1817, 1818 and 1820, after which silver twopence coins were issued only as
Maundy money Royal Maundy is a religious service in the Church of England held on Maundy Thursday, the day before Good Friday. At the service, the British monarch or a royal official ceremonially distributes small silver coins known as "Maundy money" (legal ...
. In 1857, a survey by the Royal Mint found that around one-third of all copper coinage had become worn or mutilated, often by advertisements. A couple of years later Thomas Graham, the master of the mint, convinced
William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...
,
Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
, that so large a proportion of copper coinage must be taken out of circulation that it was worth introducing an entirely new coinage which would be "much more convenient and agreeable in use". New bronze coins were introduced in 1860, with a face value that was no longer required to match the value of the base metal. A year later, withdrawal of the old copper coinage began.


Design

The 1797 coin was minted in copper, with a weight of and a diameter of . The
obverse Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, '' ...
features a right-facing portrait of
George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Bri ...
, and incused into the rim are the words . The initial K appears on the lowest fold of the drapery at the base of the effigy, indicating that the design is the work of the German engraver Conrad Heinrich Küchler. The reverse, also designed by Kuchler, shows a left-facing seated figure of
Britannia Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Great ...
, with a trident held loosely in her left hand and an olive branch in her outstretched right. There are waves about her feet, with a small ship to the left and a
Union Jack The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the '' de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...
shield below and to the right. On the upper part of the rim is incused the word and on the lower part the date . The word appears next to the shield, indicating that the coin came from the Soho Mint.


Nickname (diminutive)

Tuppence, sometimes abbreviated to “Tuppy” is a diminutive or nickname, often given to a young child; cf. the fictional detective Prudence "Tuppence" Cowley, and the actress
Tuppence Middleton Tuppence Middleton (born 21 February 1987) is an English actress known for her performances in film, television and theatre. In 2010, she was nominated for the ''London Evening Standard'' Film Awards for Most Promising Newcomer. Middleton appea ...
, who takes her name from her mother's childhood nickname. It may relate to the smallness of the coin - the small coin used as Maundy money after the 1820s. It may also relate to its relative rarity, being produced initially in 1797 as a very large “cartwheel” copper coin and thereafter only as Maundy money as a rare and very small silver coin, largely given away only by the monarch. Only a few thousand are produced each year by the Royal Mint.


References


External links


Twopence (Circulating), Coin Type from United Kingdom - Online Coin Club
{{British coinage Coins of Great Britain Coins of the United Kingdom Pre-decimalisation coins of the United Kingdom