UK – The country and its coins

Interesting figures, data, facts

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, also known as the United Kingdom (U.K.) or Britain, is a sovereign state on the northwest coast of mainland Europe.

Official language

English is the official language of the United Kingdom, but there are a variety of dialects throughout the country. The intonation changes so frequently that you can encounter a different dialect within a few kilometers.

The Union Jack is the flag of the United Kingdom. The design is a mixture of the Scottish flag, the English flag and the flag of St. Patrick (representing Ireland).

Total area: 240,000 sq. km (94,000 sq. miles)

The capital of England and the United Kingdom (population 68.7 million as of October 2022): London (population 9.54 million as of October 2022).

London is the largest city in the United Kingdom and one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in.

Birmingham (population: 1.14 million as of 2022) is the second largest city in the United Kingdom.

Some famous people from the United Kingdom

Queen Elizabeth II. (also known as Queen Elizabeth II) was the longest reigning queen in the world. She was born in 1926 as Elizabeth Alexandra Mary in Mayfair, London; and died in September 2022).

Sir Winston Churchill was a politician, a soldier, an artist and the most famous Prime Minister of the 20th century.

Diana, Princess of Wales (Princess of Wales, 1961-1997), born Diana Frances Spencer. Lady Di was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of the current King Charles III and mother of Princes William and Harry. Princess Diana was known above all for her charitable work. During her marriage, the princess was president or patron of over 100 charities.

Charles Darwin / Charles Robert Darwin (1809-1882), was an English naturalist whose scientific theory of evolution by natural selection became the basis of modern evolutionary research.

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, lyricist and actor. His comedies and tragedies are among the most important stage plays in world literature and are the most frequently performed and filmed. During his lifetime, William Shakespeare wrote about 37 plays and over 150 poems! His works: Romeo and Juliet;

Hamlet; A Midsummer Night’s Dream; The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, King Lear, Macbeth, Timon of Athens, etc. are world famous.

Sir Isaac Newton was an English physicist, astronomer and mathematician at Cambridge University and head of the Royal Mint. As it became known only later, he was also engaged in theological, historical and alchemical research.

Sir Paul McCartney was a singer, songwriter and guitarist with The Beatles, the biggest rock band of the 1960s.

John Lennon – John Winston Ono Lennon (1940-1980) was a British musician, composer, and peace activist, as well as an Academy Award and multiple Grammy Award winner.

Freddie Mercury (1946-1991) was one of the greatest rock singers and the lead singer of the rock band “Queen”.

Elton John is a singer, pianist and composer – one of the best-selling artists of all time.

George Michael (1963-2016) was one of the best-selling music artists of all time.

Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977) was a British actor, director, screenwriter, editor, composer, film producer and comedian. Chaplin is considered the first world star of cinema and is one of the most influential comedians in film history.

Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993) – British actress, is one of the greatest female screen legends of the Golden Age in Hollywood.

Rowan Atkinson – British comedian and actor, known for his role in the sitcom “Mr. Bean”).

Daniel Craig – English actor who gained international fame when he took the lead role in the James Bond film series.

J.K. Rowling (also known as Joanne K. Rowling) is a British writer who became known for the Harry Potter series of novels about the eponymous student wizard.

She is the first writer who became a billionaire through her works. With an estimated net worth of $1 billion as of September 2022, she is now one of the richest authors in history.

Agatha Christie was a British writer. The sold world circulation of her books is said to be over two billion. She is one of the most successful authors in the history of literature.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, was a British writer and philologist. His novel The Lord of the Rings (English: The Lord of the Rings) is one of the most successful books of the 20th century and is considered a foundational work for modern fantasy literature.

Charles Dickens (1812-1870), was an English writer. Dickens is considered one of the most important and influential writers of the 19th century.

Margaret Thatcher was the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom and held the office of prime minister longer than anyone else in the 20th century.

David Beckham is a leading English footballer and former star of the legendary Manchester Unit.

Lewis Hamilton – British Formula One driver and winner of seven Drivers’ World Championship titles). He holds the record for race wins, pole positions and, along with Michael Schumacher, is the man who has won the most world championships.

Richard Branson is an English business magnate and billionaire. The founder of Virgin Group Ltd, which controls more than 400 companies, was included in Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In October 2022, Richard Branson’s net worth is estimated at $5 billion.

Most popular drink: Tea is by far the most popular drink among Britons.

Most popular sport: Football is one of the most popular games in the UK.

Soccer, rugby, golf, boxing and cricket were invented in the United Kingdom.

The typical food in the UK is roast beef and Yorkshire beef, but the British have chosen chicken tikka (an Indian recipe) as their national dish.

One of the interesting facts in the UK are the Indian restaurants. It is estimated that there are more Indian restaurants in London than in Indian urban centers such as New Delhi or Mumbai.

London’s Underground is the oldest in the world. There are 180 subway systems in 56 countries around the globe, but London’s famous “Tube” is the oldest.

The Eurotunnel (also known as the Channel Tunnel – French: Tunnel sous la Manche, English: Channel Tunnel or Chunnel) connects the cities of Calais in France and Dover in England. At 37.9 kilometers, it is the longest underwater section of any tunnel in the world and the third longest rail tunnel in the world. The maximum speed for trains through the tunnel is 160 kilometers per hour (100 mph = miles per hour). The cost of the project was 5.29 billion euros, 80% more than expected. The construction lasted six years (1988-1994). It is actually three tunnels – two for trains and a smaller service tunnel that can be used in emergencies.

The British royal family still resides at Windsor Castle, the oldest royal residence. The royal family received its family name from the castle in 1917. Today, more than 500 people live and work in Windsor Castle – the largest inhabited castle in the world.

Royal wed dings are national holidays. The day after the ceremony, people have a day off.

The first stamp was designed in Great Britain. It was designed in May 1840 and showed Queen Victoria.

The monument of Stonehenge is said to be one of the oldest monuments in the world. Scientists believe that it was built over in 3,000 BC.

Big Ben, also known as Clock Tower, is one of the most beautiful landmarks in London.

Gold coins from the United Kingdom

It is almost impossible to be a gold bullion coin fan without knowing the importance of the British Royal Mint. Every year, the British Royal Mint releases new coins for collectors around the world to enjoy. But what really keeps collectors buying from the mint is its track record of issuing outstanding annual collectibles.

The collection of the British monarchs

This innovative five-year series from the Royal Mint (text source: https://www.royalmint.com/our-coins/events/british-monarchs/henry-vii/remaking-history-introducing-the-british-monarchs-collection/) features a total of 21 monarchs.

In celebration of this unparalleled history of sovereignty, the British Monarchs Collection pays tribute to some of the most famous, beloved and infamous kings and queens who have ruled the British Isles. Using the latest numismatic technology, we breathe new life into the classic coin designs of the respective reigns of the monarchs. In this innovative five-year collection, 21 British monarchs will be resurrected in the form of coins.

Featuring kings and queens from four royal dynasties – Tudor, Stuart, Hanoverian and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha/Windsor – four new coins are issued each year. While coin design has evolved exponentially since the respective reigns of these various monarchs – particularly the Tudor and Jacobean eras – each obverse design has been carefully recreated to provide an authentic representation of the original design while maintaining the high standards of 21st century coinage.

Issued consecutively over a five-year period, these coins form a sweeping timeline of British royal history over the past 500 years. The collection begins with perhaps one of the most famous – and infamous – royals in British history, the legendary founder of the Tudor dynasty -.
King Henry VII
(r. 1485-1509) – with an original portrait that first appeared on coins during his reign. This is followed by the coins of Henry VIII (reigned 1509-47), Edward VI (reigned 1547-53), Mary I (reigned 1553-58) and Elizabeth I (reigned 1558-1603) – the four successors of the patriarch from the House of Tudor.

After the coin to Henry VII, the collection will enter the Jacobean period with the second coin to the British monarchs and the reign of the first Stuart king of England,
King James I
. (r. 1603-25), celebrate. The self-proclaimed “King of Great Britain” was the first king to rule Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland simultaneously, making him a worthy subject for the second coin in this collection of revived coin designs. James I would be succeeded in the coming years by all his Stuart successors: Charles I (r. 1625-49), Charles II (r. 1660-85), James II (r. 1685-88), William III (r. 1689-1702), and co-monarch Mary II. (r. 1689-94), and finally Queen Anne (r. 1702-14).

The third coin in the series is dedicated to George I (r. 1714-27), who also served as ruler of the Duchy and Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg. The reign of George I marked the beginning of the Hanoverian era in Great Britain. He was followed by his namesakes George II (r. 1727-60), George III (r. 1760-1820), and George IV (r. 1820-30); the subsequent reigns of William IV (r. 1830-37) and Queen Victoria (r. 1837-1901) ended the Hanoverian era. The British Monarchs Collection pays tribute to each of these Hanoverian monarchs throughout the collection by designing their respective coins.

The last royal house in the collection is the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, which became the House of Windsor from 1917. Beginning with Edward VII (r. 1901-10), this part of the collection pays tribute to the crowned monarchs of the most recent and current dynasty, including George V (r. 1910-36) and George VI (r. 1936-52). The collection will reach a worthy conclusion in 2026 with a coin dedicated to the longest reigning monarch in British history – Her Majesty The Queen (r. 1952-2022).

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