Pattern coins of King Edward VIII

[Galapagos]

King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom.

From Wikipedia:

Edward VIII, later The Duke of Windsor, was born in 1894 and died in 1972. He was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936. Before his accession to the throne Edward, as Prince of Wales, was associated with a succession of older, married women but remained unmarried.

Only months into his reign, Edward caused a constitutional crisis by proposing marriage to the American socialite Wallis Simpson, who had divorced her first husband and was seeking a divorce from her second. The prime ministers of the United Kingdom and the Dominions opposed the marriage, arguing that the people would never accept a divorced woman with two living ex-husbands as queen. Additionally, such a marriage would have conflicted with Edward's status as head of the Church of England, which opposed the remarriage of divorced people if their former spouses were still alive. Edward, who knew that the government led by British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin would resign if the marriage went ahead, abdicated. He was succeeded by his younger brother Albert, who chose the regnal name George VI. With a reign of 326 days, Edward was one of the shortest-reigning monarchs in British and Commonwealth history. He was never crowned.

After his abdication, he was created Duke of Windsor. He married Wallis Simpson in France on 3 June 1937, after her second divorce became final. Later that year, the couple toured Germany. During the Second World War, he was at first stationed with the British Military Mission to France but, after private accusations that he held Nazi sympathies, moved to the Bahamas after his appointment as Governor. After the war, he was never given another official appointment and spent the remainder of his life in retirement in France.

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Plaster of crowned portrait of EVIII, by William McMillan. 

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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Plaster of crowned portrait of EVIII, by Percy Metcalfe. 

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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Plaster of crowned portrait of EVIII, by Percy Metcalfe.

This became the approved version of the crowned effigy.

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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Plaster for the half crown by Humphrey Paget.

Made during the review of the coinage during the reign of EVIII.

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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Plaster for the shilling, by Harold Wilson-Parker.

Made during the review of the coinage during the reign of EVIII.

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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Pattern crown portrait of EVIII, by Humphrey Paget. 

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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Edward VIII uniface pattern crown, 1937, by George Kruger Gray. 

Copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

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From September 2019:

A UK auction record for a copper coin was set when a rare Edward VIII 1937 pattern penny sold at Spink & Son.

Rare King Edward VIII's abdication coin makes UK auction record

Images copyright of Spink & Son.

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Image copyright: Royal Mint Museum.

UK pattern half crown. Design by Humphrey Paget.

Another version with an English legend.

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Half crown design by Humphrey Paget.

Image copyright of the Royal Mint Museum.

An early model for the proposed half crown.

Ultimately the Golden Hind ship design was reserved for the half penny.

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Plaster model of Humphrey Paget's sixpence design.

Image copyright of the Royal Mint Museum.

This proposed design for the 6 pence coin was not adopted.

See:  Humphrey Paget's unadopted sixpence design.

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Madge Kitchener's design for a scalloped 3 pence coin.

Image copyright of the Royal Mint.

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Madge Kitchener's amended design for a 12-sided 3 pence coin.

Image copyright of Heritage Auctions.

This design featured a thrift plant, in art deco style.

Thrift is also known as sea pink.

See: UK: three nickel-brass threepence variations of 1936/1937.

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Edward VIII's pattern 3 pence coin came in two varieties.

The design without the inner circle was chosen for circulation.

Ultimately, the King abdicated and his coins were not circulated.