Elementary arithmetic, with brief notices of its history... by Robert Potts.

26

MONEY.

gold coinage, at length produced consequences which were suffered in
the reigns of the sovereigns who succeeded him.'
It is a fact worthy of remark, that although Henry VIII. managed
to enhance the silver coinage of England largely above its commercial
value, the gold coinage was never so enhanced. He no doubt intended to make a like profit by the debasement of the gold coinage as
he had succeeded in making of the silver coinage, but this profit
could only be gained by making one metal dearer than the other.
He had already raised silver to about four times its former value,
while gold was raised only about one-third, and thus the relation
as coinage was greatly altered; while the commercial value was
not so altered. The gold was therefore kept nearly at its commercial value, and could be employed to purchase silver at its
commercial value; and as silver had been raised by the king's proclamation to bear so exorbitant a value in coinage above its commercial value, it was possible for the merchant to secure considerable
profits so long as the stock of gold in the country was not exhausted.
Edward VI. 1547 —1553, was a minor on his accession, and the
Regency added to the debasemeut of the coinage. The baseness of
the festoons coined in the first year of his reign gave occasion to
great complaints, and to several epigrams which were circulated in
manuscript at the time.2
In 1549, thle testoons were called in by proclamation, and by
an indenture of the same year a new issue of coins was somewhat
improved in fineness though reduced in weight. The pound of gold
of 22 carats fine and 2 alloy was to be coined into ~34 by tale into
sovereigns of 20 shillings, and crowns of 5 shillings a piece, with
halves of proportional value. The pound of silver of 6 ounces fine
and 6 ounces alloy into 72 shillings of 12 pence each by tale, of which
the merchant, for every pound weight of fine silver, received ~3. 4s.,
and the Crown about ~4 gain (Lowndes, p. 46). These testoons or
shillings, thus reduced in weight, but a little improved in fineness,
are those most probably which Bishop Latimer alluded to in his two
sermons before the king on 8 B'arch and on 22 March, 1549, which
gave considerable offence.3
Rents of lands and tenements, with the prices of victuals, were raised far
beyond the former rates, and, as Strype in his time remarks, had hardly been
brought down since. It is probable that Erasmus in his Adagia, p. 130, in
speaking of the Plunbeos Anglice, might refer to the debased silver coins. The
inspection of one of them, a groat of Henry VJII. in the Fitzwilliam Museum at
Cambridge, will fully warrant the justice of the expression. It is suggestive,
that some of the base coins of Henry VIII. have the following words on the
reverse, " Redde cuique quod suurn est."
It appears from a passage of Budelius de Monetis, p. 5, that the leaden
tokens mentioned by Erasmus as current in the reign of Henry VIIi, still continued in circulation so late as the year 1591, the 33 of Elizabeth.
The following are two of the epigrams alluded to, copied from John
Ileywood's Woorkes, printed in London, 1566.
63.
Of Testons.
Testons be gone to Oxforde, God be their specde:
To studie in Breasennose there to proceede.
64.
Of Redde Testons.
These Testons look redde: how like you the same?
'lis a tooken of grace: they blush for shame.: ihe foiilowing passage alludes to the new coinage: " We have now a prety