Anglo-Saxon coinage from 828

Started by Deeman, April 24, 2021, 01:12:07 PM

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Deeman

Introduction

Coinage fell out of general use in Britain after the departure of the Romans. Slowly, during the 6th and 7th centuries, the Anglo-Saxon settlers learnt to use money. Sceattas (small, thick silver coins) were struck from around 675.

First introduced in the reign of the Mercian King Offa in about 760, an entirely new coin, the penny, supplanted the sceatta. The penny was larger and flatter than the sceatta. It was inscribed with the name of the king on the obverse and that of the moneyer (a private individual officially permitted to mint money) on the reverse.

From the 9th century, monarchs and their governments gained greater power over the control of coin production, and the designs used by different moneyers became standardised. In the 860s, the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex formed a monetary alliance by which coinage of a common design could circulate through both of their lands.

This topic illustrates examples of coins struck from Egbert of Wessex (802-839) who is recognised as the first British (England and Wales at that time) ruler from 830, to the last Saxon king, Harold II, who died at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

Deeman

#1
Firstly, a list of the associated kings:

Kings of the West Saxons (Wessex)

Egbert 802-839
Egbert (Ecgberht) was the first monarch to establish a stable and extensive rule over all of Anglo-Saxon England. After returning from exile at the court of Charlemagne in 802, he regained his kingdom of Wessex. Following his conquest of Mercia in 827, he controlled all of England south of the Humber. After further victories in Northumberland and North Wales, he is recognised by the title Bretwalda (Anglo-Saxon, "ruler of the British").

Æthelwulf 839-856
King of Wessex, son of Egbert and father of Alfred the Great. In 851 Æthelwulf defeated a Danish army at the battle of Oakley while his eldest son Æthelstan fought and defeated a Viking fleet off the coast of Kent, in what is believed to be "the first naval battle in recorded English history".

Æthelbald 856-860
The second son of Æthelwulf, crowned at Kingston-upon-Thames in southwest London, after forcing his father to abdicate upon his return from pilgrimage to Rome.
No coins are known to have been issued in the name of Æthelbald.

Æthelbert 860-866
Became king following the death of his brother Æthelbald. Shortly after his succession a Danish army landed and sacked Winchester before being defeated by the Saxons. In 865 the Viking Great Heathen Army landed in East Anglia and swept across England.

Æthelred I 866-871
Æthelred succeeded his brother Æthelbert. His reign was one long struggle with the Danes who had occupied York in 866, establishing the Viking kingdom of Yorvik. When the Danish Army moved south, Wessex itself was threatened, and so together with his brother Alfred, they fought several battles with the Vikings at Reading, Ashdown and Basing. Æthelred suffered serious injuries during the next major battle at Meretun in Hampshire and died shortly after.

Alfred the Great 871-899
Son of Æthelwulf, he had proven himself to be a strong leader in many battles, and as a wise ruler managed to secure five uneasy years of peace with the Danes, before they attacked Wessex again in 877. Alfred was forced to retreat to a small island in the Somerset Levels and it was from here that he masterminded his comeback. With major victories at Edington, Rochester and London, Alfred established Saxon Christian rule over first Wessex, and then on to most of England. To secure his hard-won boundaries Alfred founded a permanent army and an embryonic Royal Navy. He began the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.

Edward the Elder 899-924
Succeeded his father Alfred the Great. Edward retook southeast England and the Midlands from the Danes. Following the death of his sister Æthelflaed of Mercia, Edward unites the kingdoms of Wessex and Mercia. In 923, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles record that the Scottish King Constantine II recognises Edward as "father and lord". The following year, Edward is killed in a battle against the Welsh near Chester.

Æthelstan 924-927
Son of Edward the Elder.

Kingdom of England

Saxon kings

Æthelstan 927-939
In 927 Æthelstan took York from the Danes, and forced the submission of Constantine, King of Scotland and of the northern kings. All five of the Welsh kings agreed to pay a huge annual tribute. He also eliminated opposition in Cornwall. Æthelstan extended the boundaries of his kingdom at the Battle of Brunanburh in 937. In what is said to be one of the bloodiest battles ever fought on British soil, Athelstan defeated a combined army of Scots, Celts, Danes and Vikings, claiming the title of King of all Britain. The battle saw for the first time, individual Anglo-Saxon kingdoms being brought together to create a single and unified England.

Edmund I 939-946
Succeeded his half-bother Athelstan. He re-established Anglo-Saxon control over northern England, which had fallen back under Scandinavian rule following the death of Athelstan. Aged just 25, and whilst celebrating the feast of Augustine, Edmund was stabbed by a robber in his royal hall at Pucklechurch near Bath.

Eadred 946-955
The son of Edward the Elder by his third marriage, succeeded his brother Edmund following his premature death. He followed in the family tradition of defeating Norsemen, expelling the last Scandinavian King of York, Eric Bloodaxe, in 954.Eadred died in his early 30s, unmarried and without an heir, at Frome in Somerset.

Eadwig 955-959
The eldest son of Edmund I, Eadwig was about 16 when he was crowned king at Kingston-upon-Thames in southeast London. Legend has it that his coronation had to be delayed to allow Bishop Dunstan to prise Eadwig from his bed, and from between the arms of his "strumpet". Perhaps unimpressed by the interruption, Eadwig had Dunstan exiled to France. Eadwig died in Gloucester when he was just 20.

Edgar 959-975
The youngest son of Edmund I, Edgar had been in dispute with his brother concerning succession to the throne for some years. Following Eadwig's mysterious death, Edgar immediately recalled Dunstan from exile, making him Archbishop of Canterbury as well as his personal adviser. Following his carefully planned (by Dunstan) coronation in Bath in 973, Edgar marched his army to Chester, to be met by six kings of Britain. The kings, including the King of Scots, King of Strathclyde and various princes of Wales, are said to have signalled their allegiance to Edgar by rowing him in his state barge across the River Dee.

Edward the Martyr 975-978
Eldest son of Edgar, Edward was crowned king when aged just 12. Although supported by Archbishop Dunstan, his claim to the throne was contested by supporters of his much younger half-brother Æthelred. The resulting dispute between rival factions within the church and nobility almost led to civil war in England. Edward's short reign ended when he was murdered at Corfe Castle by followers of Æthelred, after just two and half years as king. The title 'martyr' was a consequence of him being seen as a victim of his stepmother's ambitions for her own son Æthelred.

Æthelred II the Unready 978-1013
Æthelred was unable to organise resistance against the Danes, earning him the nickname 'unready', or 'badly advised'. He became king aged about 10, but fled to Normandy in 1013 when Sweyn Forkbeard, King of the Danes invaded England.

Danish king

Sweyn Forkbeard 1013-1014
Sweyn was pronounced King of England on Christmas Day 1013 and made his capital at Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. He died just 5 weeks later.
No coins issued in his name whilst King of England.

Saxon kings

Æthelred II the Unready 1014-1016
Æthelred returned in 1014 after Sweyn's death. The remainder of Æthelred's reign was one of a constant state of war with Sweyn's son Canute.

Edmund II Ironside 1016-1016
The son of Æthelred II, Edmund had led the resistance to Canute's invasion of England since 1015. Following the death of his father, he was chosen king by the good folk of London. The Witan (the king's council) however elected Canute. Following his defeat at the Battle of Assandun, Edmund made a pact with Canute to divide the kingdom between them. This treaty ceded control of all of England, with the exception of Wessex, to Canute. It also stated that when one of the kings died the other would take all of England... Edmund died later that year, probably assassinated.
No coins issued in his name.

Danish kings

Canute 1016-1035
Canute became king of all England following the death of Edmund II. The son of Sweyn Forkbeard, he ruled well and gained favour with his English subjects by sending most of his army back to Denmark. In 1017, Canute married Emma of Normandy, the widow of Æthelred II and divided England into the four earldoms of East Anglia, Mercia, Northumbria and Wessex.

Harold I 1035-1040
Also known as Harold Harefoot, in recognition of his speed and skill as a hunter. Harold was the illegitimate son of Canute; he claimed the English crown on the death of his father whilst his half-brother Harthacanute (aka Hardicanute), the rightful heir, was in Denmark fighting to protect his Danish kingdom. Harold died three years into his reign, just weeks before Harthacanute was due to invade England with an army of Danes. He was buried in Westminster Abbey before Harthacanute had his body dug up, beheaded, and thrown into the Thames. His bits were later gathered and re-buried at St. Clement Danes in London.

Hardicanute 1040-1042
The son of Canute, Harthacanute sailed to England with his mother, accompanied by a fleet of 62 warships, and was immediately accepted as king. Perhaps to appease his mother, the year before he died Harthacanute invited his half-brother Edward, her son from her first marriage to Æthelred the Unready, back from exile in Normandy. Harthacanute died aged just 24 and was the last Danish king to rule England.

Saxon kings

Edward the Confessor 1042-1066
Following the death of Harthacanute, Edward restored the rule of the House of Wessex to the English throne. A deeply pious and religious man, he presided over the rebuilding of Westminster Abbey, leaving much of the running of the country to Earl Godwin and his son Harold. Edward died childless, eight days after the building work on Westminster Abbey had finished. With no natural successor, England was faced with a power struggle for control of the throne.

Harold II Jan-Oct 1066
Despite having no royal bloodline, Harold Godwin was elected king by the Witan (a council of high-ranking nobles and religious leaders), following the death of Edward the Confessor. The election result failed to meet with the approval of one William, Duke of Normandy, who claimed that his relative Edward had promised the throne to him several years earlier. Harold defeated an invading Norwegian army at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire, then marched south to confront William of Normandy who had landed his forces in Sussex. The death of Harold at the Battle of Hastings meant the end of the English Anglo-Saxon kings and the beginning of the Normans.


Deeman

#2
Egbert (Ecgberht) of Wessex 802-839



828-39 silver penny with an obverse inscription + ECGBEORHT REX (King Ecgberht) around the word SAXON and, on the reverse, + IFA MONETA (Ifa, moneyer) around a cross pattée. Winchester mint.





828-39 silver penny with an obverse inscription + ECGBEORHT REX (King Ecgberht) around the word SAXON and, on the reverse, + TIDEMAN MONE (Tideman, moneyer) around a cross pattée. Winchester mint.





828-39 gold mancus, value equal to 30 silver pence, with an obverse inscription + ECGBEORHT REX (King Ecgberht) around the word SAXON and, on the reverse, + BOZA MONETA (Bosa, moneyer) around a cross pattée. Winchester or Southampton mint.





828-39 silver penny with an obverse inscription + ECGBEΛ RHT RE (King Ecgberht) around a diademed and draped bust facing right and, on the reverse, + TIDBEΛRHT (Tidbeorht, moneyer) around DOROB C monogram.
Dorob(ernia) C(ivitas) – Canterbury.

Deeman

#3
Æthelwulf 839-856



839-44 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EÐELVVLF RE:X (King Æthelwulf) around a cross pattée with wedges in quarters and, on the reverse, + OSMVND MONETA (Osmund, moneyer) around SAXOINORVM (Saxonorium) in three lines SΛX / ONIO / RVM. Canterbury mint.





844-49 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EÐELVLF REX (V as inverted A) (King Æthelwulf) around a diademed bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, + MANNA MONETA (Manna, moneyer) around a cross-crosslet. Canterbury mint.





854-58 silver penny with an obverse inscription + ΛEÐELVVLF REX (second L retrograde) (King Æthelwulf) around a diademed bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, + HVNBEA RHT MO N E T Λ (Hunbeorht, moneyer) moneyer's name being arranged on limbs of, and around, a beaded cross. Canterbury mint.

Deeman

#4
Æthelbert 860-866



Silver penny with an obverse inscription + ΛEÐELBEΛRT REX (T is sideways) (King Æthelbert) around a diademed bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, + SEFREÐ MONETA (Sæferth, moneyer) moneyer's name in, and around, a beaded cross. Canterbury mint.

Deeman

#5
Æthelred I 866-871



Silver penny with an obverse inscription +AEÐELRED REX (King Æthelred) around a diademed bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name (Ælfere) across three lines
MON / ELBERE / ETA. Canterbury mint.

Deeman

#6
Alfred the Great 871-899



871-75 Silver penny with obverse inscription REX ELFRED (King Alfred) around a diademed Mercian style bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name MON / +VVINE / ETA (Wine) across three lines. Canterbury or London mint.





880-83 silver penny with obverse inscription ÆLF RED REX (King Alfred) around a diademed bust facing right and, on the reverse, LONDONIA monogram, cross of wedges above, cross of pellets below. Moneyer unknown. London mint.





880-99 silver penny with an obverse inscription ÆL FR ED REX (King Alfred) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name CVDB / ERHT (Cudberht) across two lines with pellets between.





877-80s silver penny with an obverse inscription ΛELFRED REX SΛX around a diademed bust facing right and, on the reverse, moneyer's name BERHAH MOHETΛ (Beorheah?) around a cross pattée within lozenge over long beaded cross, crossbars at lozenge ends.

Deeman

Found this print taken from a copperplate circa 1797. It shows designs of Anglo-Saxon coinage from Egbert (Ecgberht) to Hardicanute (Harthacanute).
Only one design per reign is shown, and some reigns are omitted. Perhaps coins from the missing kings hadn't been found at the time.

Deeman

#8
Edward the Elder 899-924



Silver halfpenny with an obverse inscription + EΛDVVDEARD REX (King Edward) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name VVIII / HARD (Wulfheard) with an annulet after the last I, across two lines with three crosses pattées.
The coin is 15mm dia., pennies are around 20-22mm.
The first halfpennies were made in the 880's, but after 973, when King Edgar reformed the currency, units smaller than a penny were made simply by cutting a coin into two or even four (farthings).





Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EVDΛΛEVRD REX (King Edward) (Λ and V all inverted) around a diademed bust facing left within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name TILIM / ONETΛ (Tila) across two lines with three crosses pattées between and trefoil pellets above and below.





Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADVVEARD REX (King Edward) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name DEORV / VALD MO (Deorwald) across two lines with three crosses pattées between and a pellet above and below.





910-15 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADVVEARD REX (King Edward) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name EA DM VN D+ (Edmund) divided by Saxon church tower.





910-15 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADVVEΛRD REX (King Edward) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name BV GA (Boga) enclosed within branches of floral design.
North Western mint (probably Chester).



Deeman

#9
Æthelstan 924-939

Æthelstan improved the way in which coinage was to be produced, and tightened up the rules on mints and individual moneyers, part of his legacy was centred around consistency within the monetary Kingdom.





Silver penny with an obverse inscription + ÆÐELSTAN REX around a diademed draped bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, + HRODEAR MO NORVI (Hrodgar, moneyer) around a circle with a central cross pattée. Norwich mint.





927-39 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EÐEL·:STΛN REX To BRIT (Æthelstan King of all Britain - Rex Totius Britanniae) around a small cross pattée and, on the reverse, + REGИΛLD Mo EFoRPC (Ragnald, moneyer Eoforwic) around a circle with a central cross pattée. York (Eoforwic) mint.
The capture of York by the Anglo Saxons in 927 and subsequent homage paid to Æthelstan by the Danes and other Scottish, Welsh, and British kings and princes allowed Æthelstan to proclaim himself King of All Britain.

Deeman

#10
Edmund I 939-946



Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADMVND REX EC (King Edmund) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name INGEL / GARM (Ingelgar) across two lines with three crosses pattées between and trefoil pellets above and below. York mint.





Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADMVND RE X (King Edmund) around a diademed draped bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse + ERGIMBALT MONETA (Ergimbalt, moneyer) around small cross patteé. Norwich mint.

Deeman

#11
Eadred 946-955



Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADRED REX O (King Eadred) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name HVNR / EDMO (Hunred) across two lines with three crosses pattées between and trefoil pellets above and below.





Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EΛDRED REX (King Eadred) around a diademed draped bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse +VVILFREÐ MOHET (Wilfred, moneyer) around small cross patteé.





Silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADRED REX (King Eadred) around a symmetrical floral device with berries within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name BVRH / ELMMO (Burhelm) across two lines divided by a small cross pattée between two anchors. Marks in upper and lower portions of the reverse consistent with the coin having been fixed to a mount in Saxon times. South-eastern mint.




Deeman

#12
Eadwig 955-959



Silver penny with an obverse inscription +EADVVIG REX (King Eadwig) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name BOGA / MONE (Boga) across two lines with three crosses pattées between and trefoil pellets above and below.





Silver penny with an obverse inscription +EADVVIG REX (King Eadwig) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, moneyer's name LEOF / RICMO (Leofric) across two lines with three crosses pattées between and a cross pattée above and below. Winchester mint.

Deeman

#13
Edgar (Eadgar) 959-975

Gradually during the early years of Edgar's reign, the coinage had become debased due to the lack of new silver and the continued re-melting of the existing coins. However, in the 960's rich veins of silver were discovered in Saxony, Germany, which resulted in a huge increase in cross channel trade and the import of large quantities of new silver to pay for the exports of grain and wool from England.
This glut of new silver allowed Edgar to fundamentally reform the coinage. The fineness and weight of these coins were restored to the standards set a hundred years earlier by Alfred. In 973 Edgar introduced a new coinage. A royal portrait now became a regular feature with the reverses having with the name of the mint in addition to that of the moneyer.





959-73 silver penny with an obverse inscription +EADGAR REX with triangle of pellets between A-R, a pellet between R-R and two annulets at the end. The inscription is around a small cross pattée central within inner circle. On the reverse is the moneyer's name Athelaver ADELA / VERHO (the H is barred). across two lines with three crosses pattées between and trefoil pellets above and below. North-eastern mint.





959-73 silver penny with an obverse inscription +EADGAR RE (King Edgar) around a small cross pattée central within inner circle and, on the reverse, ALDE / ǷINEM (Aldewine, moneyer) across two lines with a cross pattée with a pellet within an annulet either side and a rosette of seven pellets above and below. North-western mint. ('Ƿ' is 'W' in the Runic alphabet.)





959-73 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EADGAR REX (King Edgar) around a diademed draped bust facing right breaking inner circle and, on the reverse, +BRVNINC MONETAE (Bruninc, moneyer) around a small cross patteé. Norwich mint.





Reform coinage 973-75 silver penny with an obverse inscription + EΛDGΛR REX ΛNGLORX (Edgar King of England) around a diademed bust facing left and, on the reverse. + OSVLF MO - DERBУ (Asulfr, moneyer, Derby mint) around a small cross patteé.

Deeman

#14
Edward the Martyr 975-978



Silver penny with an obverse inscription +EΛDPEΛRD REX ΛN (Edward King of England) around a diademed bust facing left and, on the reverse, +EΛLDIC MONETA BEDΛ (Baldic, moneyer, Bedford mint) around a small cross patteé.