Coinage memoranda book

Manuscript memoranda book, 1817-1824, relating to the issue of the new silver coinage in February 1817 when the Hon William Wellesley-Pole (later 1st Baron Maryborough and 3rd Earl of Mornington) was Master of the Mint. Full details are given of the administrative measures taken to collect the old silver coin of the realm and to replace it by the new issue. The operation began on 13 February and was completed in fourteen days. Enclosed is a draft of a letter dated 10 February 1824 to Mr. B. Barnard, banker, of 50 Cornhill, London, announcing the presentation to him, by officers of the Mint, on the occasion of the Master's retirement (1824), of a bronze medal 'for assisting in the arrangement for the exchange of the silver coin in 1817'.

The English Royal Mint was responsible for the making of coins according to exact compositions, weights, dimensions and tolerances, usually determined by law. Minting in England was reorganised by King Edward I to facilitate a general recoinage in 1279. This established a unified system which was run from the Royal Mint in London by the Master and Warden of the Mint. There remained smaller mints in Canterbury and elsewhere until 1553, when English minting was concentrated into a single establishment in London. For several centuries control of policy relating to the coinage rested soley with the monarch, with Parliament finally gaining control following the Revolution of 1688. The Mint itself worked as an independent body until that date, when it came under the control of the Treasury.

Single item.

Access to the items in the collection is unrestricted for the purpose of private study and personal research within the controlled environment and restrictions of the Library's Palaeography Room. Access to archive collections may be restricted under the Freedom of Information Act. Please contact the University Archivist for details.

Given by the Public Library, Shrewsbury, through the British National Book Centre, in 1959.

Collection level description.

9" x 7¼"

Compiled by Sarah Aitchison as part of the RSLP AIM25 Project.

Copies may be made, subject to the condition of the original. Copying must be undertaken by the Palaeography Room staff, who will need a minimum of 24 hours to process requests.

Other University of London Manuscripts relating to the Royal Mint and coinage include MSS 14, 21, 51, 62, 72, 100, 102, 108, 151, 152, and 154.