The Industrial Revolution

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1027928145

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-159926

Document type:: Monograph

Author:: Cunningham, William http://d-nb.info/gnd/128907487

Title:: The Industrial Revolution

Place of publication:: Cambridge

Publisher:: The University Press

Year of publication:: 1922

Scope:: xxii S., S. 404-886

Digitisation:: 2021

Collection:: Economics Books

Usage license:: Get license information via the feedback formular.

RECOINAGE OF 1696 433 in monetary history’. The policy of allowing the export of AD, 03% bullion has on the whole been maintained, although it was ’ frequently set aside by proclamation? under Charles II.; and de, of the practice of coining money, without making a charge for free coin- seigniorage, has been regularly followed, in spite of occasional protests®. As a result, the English currency became liable to be depleted, through the very slightest fluctuations in the value of the precious metals. The changing ratio of gold and silver was doubtless a constant cause of trouble; and frequent difficulty arose from the fact that silver was rated so low in England‘ that it was occasionally remunerative to melt down the silver coins, issued from the Mint, in order of we'g to sell them as bullion. Besides this, till the mill and press pa were introduced® in 1663, the currency consisted entirely of hammered money, and the pieces varied considerably from one another, in size and weight. As payments were made by tale, there was a frequent temptation to hoard the new pieces which issued from the Mint, or to melt them down for sale to silversmiths and for purposes of export’. The coins left in circulation became more worn and defective as time passed, so that the difference, between the nominal value of the coins as money and their real value as silver. became E A n 2Y 1 Tt has been reprinted by J. R. Macculloch, in Select Collection of Rare Tracts on Money, p. 145. 3 Shaw, History of Currency, 163. 3 E.g. by Dudley North. Discourse of Trade, quoted by Shaw, History of Currency, 221; also Ruding, Annals of the Coinage of Great Britain, mo. 12, ¢ See above, p. 137. This difficulty appears to have been felt, though in a less degree, in the reign of James I. (Proclamations 18 May, 1611, S. P. D. J. I. Lxni. 88, and 23 March, 1614, S.P.D., J. I. cLxxxvir. 87. Some confusion was caused at that time by the rate at which Scotch gold coins were rendered current in England (Rnding, 1. 362, and Proclamation 8 April, 1603, Brit. Mus. 506. b. 10 {5)). Owing to the scarcity of silver, an attempt was made to put farthing tokens, duly issued from the Mint, iuto circulation. Proclamation 19 May, 1618, Brit. Mus. 506. h. 12 (75). ¢ H. Haynes, op. cit. p. 40. ¢ Haynes describes the conditions in some detail. “Bat tho’ all the pieces together might come neer the pound weight or be within remedy; yet diverse of ‘em compar’d one with the other were very disproportionable; as was too well known to many persons, who pick’d out the heavy pieces, and threw ’em into the Melting pott, to fitt ‘em for exportation, or to supply the Silver Smiths. And ‘twas a thing at Inst so notorious, that it ’scap’d the observation of a very few; for ‘twas pretty commonly known that the following pieces of hammer’d mony ® IR

Access restriction

Copyright

fullscreen: The Industrial Revolution

Monograph

Table of contents

Download

Monograph

This page

Image fragment

Citation links

Citation recommendation