InfoBritain

 

Currency

At present Britain has its own currency. The Euro will probably be adopted eventually, but for now British currency continues to reveal some quirky details of British history.

There is no full agreement as to the derivation of the term "pounds sterling", but silver coins of that name were minted in various Anglo Saxon British territories in the eighth century, with the earliest example dated to 775. Two hundred and forty coins were minted from one pound of sterling silver, hence pound sterling.

Sometimes a pound is referred to by the slang term "quid". There have been suggestions that this word comes from the Latin quid pro quo, meaning an equivalent amount of something. It has also been suggested that Gaelic speaking Irishmen in the British army would refer to their money as "mo chuid", chuid being a general word for "things" or "stuff". English soldiers then adopted this word which they heard as "quid".

On British coins you will see the initials F.D. stamped around the edge. These letters stand for Fidei Defensor, or Defender of the Faith. The story behind these two little initials dates back to 1521 when Pope Clement endowed Henry the Eighth with the title Defender of the Faith. Martin Luther the founder of Protestantism had escaped from confinement, and King Henry had written to Charles the Fifth, the Holy Roman Emperor, to denounce the dangers of Luther's new religious ideas. Pope Clement saw the letter, and was so impressed that he gave Henry his title. There was no mention of inheritance of the title as it was granted to Henry alone. Nevertheless after Henry cut himself off from Rome, to enable his divorce from Catherine of Aragon who apparently was unable to give him a son, he retained the title. The fact that he was now defender of a different faith was a minor detail which could be ignored. In 1543 the title was annexed to the crown by act of Parliament. British monarchs have carried the title ever since, and those letters F.D. are still carried on British coins. So the present queen, a protestant monarch of a protestant Church of England which she promises to defend, is actually sporting a catholic title awarded for opposition to the founder of Protestantism.

The letters D.G. REG that stand before F.D. on British coins stand for "Dei Gratia Regina", or "By the Grace of God, Queen".

 

There is a coin museum at the Royal Mint in Llantrisant, South Wales, but this is not open to the public. One of the best accessible collections of coins, both British and foreign can be found at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge.The museum is open Tuesday to Saturday 10:00am to 5:00pm, Sunday 12 midday to 5:00pm. It is closed Mondays except for bank holidays. It is also closed Good Friday, 24th-26th and 31st December and 1st January.The museum can be found in Truympington Street near the city centre. The nearest car park is Lion's Yard, but as with any visit to Cambridge, it is advisable to use Park and Ride facilities. There are tours for groups.

Access: There is a lift to all floors, wheelchairs available and a wheelchair friendly entrance in the Southern Courtyard.

Contact:

phone: +44 (0) 1223 332915

web: www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk