How involved was Charles III in choosing the new UK flora and fauna designs ?

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By Royal Approval: The United Kingdom's New Definitive Coins

FLORA AND FAUNA

Personally approved by The King, these new reverse designs represent nature and conservation, causes close to His Majesty's heart, and include a pattern based on The King's cypher.

The Royal Mint's internal product design and technical teams collaborated with the RMAC and external artists to create eight new designs that both symbolise the four nations of the UK and pay tribute to the conservation of the natural world – a cause close to The King's heart. Providing feedback throughout the process, His Majesty's involvement with the design process is testament to his passion for craft and the arts.

For a king who has dedicated much of his life towards the conservation of the natural world, these new designs represent a lifetime's work.

Above we see descriptions from the Royal Mint's website.

They raise the question of how close the new King's involvement was in choosing the new designs.

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We know that in 1936 King Edward VIII was heavily involved in choosing the designs for the eventual circulation coins of his abortive reign. In the end, only patterns were ever minted of his proposed designs.

King George VI accepted most of Edwards's choices, including the thrift plant on the new brass three pence coin and the wren on the farthing. He also allowed the Dominions (Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa) to use his uncrowned effigy on their coins, a decision instigated by Edward VIII that he could not carry out during his own reign. I have not heard any evidence that George VI had any great interest in the coinage.

Clearly Charles III has taken an interest in the themes of the coinage for his new reign. To what extent was he involved? Should he have been involved at all, other than approving his own portrait?

Was there a competition to choose the themes and the designs? It seems there was not. Is this the correct way to proceed in a democracy?

The jigsaw series was the result of a competition, and several of our members here did not like it. By contrast, several of us are very pleased with the new coin designs. It does not therefore matter to me how much input the King had in choosing the designs. For me, the end has justified the means!

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I do hope and expect that the Royal Mint will have a glossy in-depth book ready for Christmas, that will tell all about the preparation of the new coinage. Then we will no doubt learn the extent of the new King's involvement in the choice and development of the themes for the new coinage.

[Deeman]

King George VI accepted most of Edwards's choices, including the thrift plant on the new brass three pence coin.

As a matter of interest regarding the introduction of the dodecagonal brass threepence, the picture below is of an early experimental nickel-brass trial blank struck for Edward VIII, 18.5mm diameter, 2.46g weight. Same design on both sides.



It was supplied by ICI Metals Ltd, proprietors of the Kings Norton mint in Birmingham, for consideration by the Royal Mint . In the early months of 1936 there was considerable discussion about the weight and thickness of the new coin, the Mint preferring a lightweight piece of about 60 or 70 grains (3.9 to 4.5g), but such a piece could have been used to operate automatic machines and electricity meters designed for sixpences and shillings. Because of this the flan thickness (and consequently the weight) had to be increased to 105 grains (6.8g).

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Yes, the old nickel-brass threepence was quite a thick coin.

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How involved do the Spanish, Beneluxian and Scandinavian monarchs get in the design policy of their countries?

Is it restricted to their portraits, or do they approve and / or influence the reverse designs too?

[eurocoin]

The Dutch monarch chooses the design for every Dutch coin. A design competition is being held and a design will be picked by the Mint Advisory Committee. I believe that also the State Secretary for Finance has a say in it.

Then all designs are being sent to the monarch, along with an advice indicating which design is the best one. But the monarch is the one who takes the final decision. I know that for example in 2003-2013 it never happened that then Queen Beatrix chose one of the other designs, although she would occasionally remark that she found one of the other designs also very nice.

The Dutch monarch does not give advice beforehand about what should be depicted on the coins. He only gets to choose a design once they have already been made.

[<k>]

So possibly Beatrix preferred other designs but liked to honour the result of the competition.

[eurocoin]

So possibly Beatrix preferred other designs but liked to honour the result of the competition.

Well, there would not really be a result for the competition yet. There is only an advice of the Mint Advisory Committee and the State Secretary for Finance about which design is the best one according to them. But the monarch has the final say. But yes, it could certainly be the case that her mentioning that she thought one of the other designs to also be very nice, was a diplomatic way of saying that she considered that other design to be better, without going against the advice of the advisory committee and state secretary.