Anglo-Gallic Coinage

[Deeman]

Edward III Denier au Lion (Petit Guyennois Noir)

The billon denier au lion was issued on 10 Nov 1361. Diameter 18mm, 0.21 fine. There were two issues, one with lion right and the other with lion left.

The lion right issues were struck at Bordeaux, Figeac, Limoges and Poitiers, each bearing the initial letter of the mint (B, F L and P respectively). The Bordeaux, Figeac and Poitiers issues had their letter below the lion, whereas the Limoges issue had its letter at the end of the obverse or reverse inscription. It was also struck without mint identification.

The lion left issues were struck at Agen, Bordeaux, Limoges and La Rochelle, each bearing the initial letter of the mint (A, B, L and R respectively). The Agen, Bordeaux and Limoges issues had their letter below the lion, whereas the La Rochelle issue had its letter at the end of the reverse inscription or below the lion.
The obverse design has a lion within an inner circle and a circumscription translating to 'Edward, King of England' The reverse design is a cross pattée within an inner circle and a circumscription translating to 'Lord of Aquitaine'.



1361 denier au lion right, Limoges mint.
Obverse circumscription is + ЄD' RPX AnGLIЄ, triple pellet stops.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS AQITAnIЄ followed by 'L' for Limoges, triple pellet stop.



1361 denier au lion right, Piotiers mint.
Obverse circumscription is + ЄD' RЄX AnGLIЄ, 'P' below lion.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS AQITAnIЄ.



1361 denier au lion left, Bordeaux mint.
Obverse circumscription is + ЄD' RЄX AnGLIЄ, double annulet stops, 'B' below lion.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS AQITAnIЄ, double annulet stops.



1361 denier au lion left, La Rochelle mint.
Obverse circumscription is + ЄD' RЄX AnGLIЄ, double cross stops.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS AQITAnIЄ followed by 'R' for La Rochelle, double cross stops.

[Deeman]

Edward III Ponthieu Coinage

Ponthieu changed hands several times during the Hundred Years' War with the English claiming control for periods from 1279 to 1369 and then later until 1435. In 1336 it was confiscated by Philip VI of France (along with Aquitaine) sparking off the Hundred Years' War, returned by the Peace of Brétigny in 1360, then confiscated again in 1369.

During English control, Abbéville on the Somme estuary was its capital. In 1325, Edward III was given the title Count of Ponthieu.

Denier & Obole

The billon denier had a diameter of 20mm, obole 16mm. The obverse design is a cross pattée with annulet and crescent in alternate quarters, all within an inner circle with a circumscription translating to 'King Edward'. The reverse design has a lion left between two lines with MONET above and POTIVI below (Ponthieu mint, derived from the Latin 'Pagus Pontivi'). Above MONET is a cross flanked by pellets and below POTIVI is an annulet flanked by pellets.



Ponthieu denier. Very rare.
Obverse circumscription is + ЄDVVARDVS RЄX, crescent first quarter.
Reverse inscription is + MOnЄT / POTIVI.



Ponthieu obole. Very rare.
Obverse circumscription is + ЄDVVARDVS RЄX, crescent first quarter.
Reverse inscription is + MONET / POTIVI, 'ET' in ligature.

[Deeman]

Henry, 4th Earl and 1st Duke of Lancaster

Henry, 1st Duke of Lancaster, was the only son of Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster, and Maud Chaworth, was born at Grosmont Castle in the Welsh Marches, in around 1310.

Henry's first military encounter appears to have been in the Scottish expedition in 1336. At the outbreak of the Hundred Years' War in 1337, he took part the Battle of Sluys, a great naval victory in 1340. Later that year, he was committed as a hostage in the Low Countries for the king's considerable debts. He remained hostage until the following year and was required pay a large ransom for his release. On his return to England he was appointed the king's lieutenant in the north and stayed at Roxburgh until 1342.

Edward III planned a major assault on France in 1345 in the form of a three-pronged attack in which the Earl of Northampton attacked from Brittany, the king from Flanders, while Henry was dispatched to Aquitaine capturing the town of Bergerac on the Dordogne river in Perigord on 24 Aug. The following year he laid siege to, and captured, Poitiers. While he was in France, his father died at Leicester and he succeeded to the Earldom of Lancaster in 1345.

After he had taken part in the Siege of Calais in 1347, he was appointed as a founding knight of the Order of the Garter in 1348 by his second cousin, Edward III, in 1348. In 1350/1, he was created Duke of Lancaster, the second dukedom ever created in England. The new Duke spent the decade of the 1350s in France. In 1350 he fought at the naval Battle of Winchelsea, where, it is said, he saved the lives of the Black Prince and John of Gaunt, the sons of Edward III, by attacking the huge Spanish ship that had engaged the Prince's.

After the siege of Rennes in 1358, he participated in the last great offensive of the first phase of the Hundred Years' War, the Rheims campaign of 1359-60. He was then appointed principal negotiator for the Treaty of Brétigny, where the English achieved very favourable terms. After returning to England in Nov 1360, he fell ill early and died at Leicester Castle on 23 Mar 1360/1. It is likely that the cause of death was the plague, which that year was making a second visitation of England. He was buried at the Collegiate Church in Newark, in Nottinghamshire.

[Deeman]

Henry of Lancaster Coinage

On 1 Jun 1347, Edward III granted Henry the French lordship of Bergerac, in the duchy of Aquitaine, with the unprecedented right to mint coins in his name on the condition that his money should be as good as, or better than, the king's money of those parts. He exercised this privilege quite regularly until 1350/1 and then intermittently from 1355 after an idle period of the Bergerac mint until his death in 1360/1, striking a range of silver and black (billon) coins. Later, after the institution of the Principate, Edward the Black Prince struck gold coins at Bergerac.

Coins bearing the title COMES were struck as Earl of Lancaster from 1 Jun 1347 until 6 Mar 1350/1. Coins bearing the title DVX were struck between 6 Mar 1350/1 to 23 Mar 1360/1. All of Henry's coins are imitations of those struck in Aquitaine by Edward III. The Bergerac mint is identified on Henry's coinage using its Occitan dialect name Brageirac.

Henry as earl silver denominations:
Gros à la couronne, medium cross.
Gros tournois à la couronne, long cross with crown in châtel.
Gros au léopard.
Gros à la lis.
Gros au léopard passant.
Gros aquitanique, châtel with crenelated turrets.
Gros à la couronne, short cross.
Gros tournois au léopard, lion above châtel.
Gros tournois.

Henry as earl billon denominations:
Double (denier) à la couronne.
Double (denier).
Denier.

Henry as duke silver denominations:
Gros au léopard couchant.
Gros tournois à la couronne, short cross, crown in châtel.
Sterling.
Gros au lion.

Henry as duke billon denominations:
Double (denier).
Denier. No image.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl Silver Coinage

Gros à la Couronne (medium cross)

The silver gros à la couronne had a diameter of 26mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a medium cross pattée that divides the inner inscription. The outer circumscription probably translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a crown inside an inner circle with a circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure of arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros à la couronne, Bergerac mint. Extremely rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is probably + [BnDICTV SIT nOmЄ DnI nRI DЄI].
Obverse inner circumscription is hЄn / COm / LA / nCЄ, symbol after 'LA'.
Reverse circumscription is x DnS BRAGAIRA CII, annulet stops.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros Tournois à la Couronne (long cross, crown in châtel)

The silver gros tournois à la couronne had a diameter of 21-26mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a long cross pattée that divides both inscriptions. The outer circumscription probably translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God, Jesus Christ' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei ihesu christi). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a châtel with annulet turrets, crown within (giving the coin its name), circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure of arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros tournois à la couronne, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is probably [BnDICTV / SIT nOmЄ / DnI nRI DЄ / IhV XPI].
Obverse inner circumscription is hЄn / COm / LA / nCЄ.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRGGARACII, annulet stop.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros au Léopard

The silver gros au léopard had a diameter of 22mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a long cross pattée with a trio of pellets in each quarter dividing both inscriptions. The outer circumscription probably translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God'. The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a crowned lion left and a circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure of arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros au léopard, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is probably [+ BnDICT / V SIT nO / mЄ DnI / nRI DЄI].
Obverse inner circumscription is hЄn / COm / LA / nCЄ.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRAGAIRACII.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros à la Lis

The silver gros à la lis had a diameter of 24-26mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a short cross pattée. The outer circumscription translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God, Jesus Christ' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei ihesu christi). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a fleur-d-lis and circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros à la lis, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is + [BnDICTV SIT nO]mЄ DnI nRI IhV X, double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is + hЄn COmЄS LAn, double annulet stops.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRAGAIRACI, double annulet stop.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros au Léopard Passant

The silver gros au léopard passant had a diameter of 24-25mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a medium cross pattée that divides the inner inscription. The outer circumscription translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a lion passant between two lines, and circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros au léopard passant, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is + BnDICTV SIT nOm[Є DnI] nRI, double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is hЄn / COE / LA / nCЄ.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRAGAIRACI, double annulet stop.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros Aquitanique (châtel with crenelated turrets)

The silver gros aquitanique had a diameter of 26-28mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a short cross pattée. The outer circumscription translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a châtel aquitanique (crenelated turrets) and circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros aquitanique, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is + [BnDICTV SIT] nOmЄ DnI nRI DЄ, double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is + hЄn COmЄS LAn, double annulet stops.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRAGAIRAC, double annulet stop.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros à la Couronne (short cross)

The silver gros à la couronne had a diameter of 23-27mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a short cross pattée. The outer circumscription translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a crown with a circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure of arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros à la couronne, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is + BnDICTV SIT nOmЄ DnI nRI nNI, double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is + hЄn COmЄS LA.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRAGAIRACI, double annulet stop, annulet in crown and to left of crown.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros Tournois au Léopard (short cross, lion above châtel)

The silver gros tournois au léopard (29% silver) had a diameter of 25mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a short cross pattée. The outer circumscription translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a châtel with annulet turrets, lion above and a circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure of 9, 10 or 11 arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros tournois au léopard, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is + BnDICTV SIT nOmЄ DnI nRI DЄ, double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is + hЄnR COm LAnCAST, no stops.
Reverse circumscription is DnS BRAGЄRIACI, tressure of 11 arches, 3 annulets in châtel, pellet behind lion's tail.



1347-50/1 gros tournois au léopard, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is + [BnDICTV SIT] nOmЄ [DnI nRI DЄ], double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is + hЄn COm LAnC, pellet after 'L'.
Reverse circumscription is DnS BRAGЄRACI, tressure of 10 arches, 2 annulets and crescent in châtel, crescent behind lion's tail.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Gros Tournois

The silver gros tournois had a diameter of 27-29mm. The obverse design has two circumscriptions within beaded circles around a long cross pattée that divides both inscriptions. The outer circumscription translates to 'Blessed be the name of our lord God' (benedictum sit nomen domini nostri dei). The inner circumscription translates to 'Henry, Earl of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a châtel with annulet turrets, three pellets within and a circumscription translating to 'Lord of Bergerac', all within an inner circle surrounded by a tressure of 12 arches, each containing a leaf.



1347-50/1 gros tournois, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse outer circumscription is BnDIC / TV SIT / nOmЄ D / nI nRI D, double annulet stops.
Obverse inner circumscription is hЄn / COm / LA /nCЄ, annulet after 'L'.
Reverse circumscription is + DnS BRAGAIRC.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl Billon Coinage

Double à la Couronne

The billon double (denier) à la couronne had a diameter of 20-25mm. The obverse design is a crown inscribed COm, within an inner circle and a circumscription translating to 'Henry of Lancaster'. The reverse design is a processional cross within an inner circle, upright to bottom edge of coin dividing a circumscription translating to 'double currency'.



1347-50/1 double (denier) à la couronne, Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse circumscription is + hЄn LAnCASTRIЄ, annulet after 'L'.
Reverse circumscription is + mOnЄTA / DVPLЄX.

[Deeman]

Henry as Earl, Double

The billon double (denier) had a diameter of 23-24mm. The obverse design has an inscription on two lines translating to 'Earl of Lancaster' and a circumscription translating to 'Henry, Lord of Bergerac'. The reverse design is a cross calvary with floral terminations and a circumscription translating to 'double currency'.



1347-50/1 double (denier), Bergerac mint. Very rare.
Obverse circumscription is + h' DnS BRAGAIRACI, annulet after 'h', double annulet after DnS.
Reverse circumscription is + mOnЄTA DVPLEX, double annulet stop.