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The predecimal system explained!!


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Predecimal system - I think I have got it right I have no doubt someone will shout up if it is wrong!!

 

LSD (L = Pounds, S = Shillings and D = Pence)

 

240 pennies in a pound

20 shilling in a pound

10 florins to a pound

5 shillings in a crown

2 shillings to a florin

60 pennies in a crown

30 pennies in a halfcrown

12 pennies in a shilling

2 halfpennies in a penny

4 farthings in a penny

 

Farthing also known as a 1/4d

Halfpenny also known as a 1/2d or "ha'pennies"(Plural Halfpence)

Penny also known as a 1d (Plural Pence)

Threepence also known as a 3d, "thrupence" or "joey" (Brass commonly called a thrupenny bit)

Sixpence also known as a 6d or tanner

Shilling also known as 1/- or a "bob"

Two Shillings also known as a "florin" or 2/-

Half Crown also known as 2/6 or "2'n'6"

 

Phew I think thats it :ninja:

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You forgot the following

 

4d known as a Groat which is the real Joey, named after a Mr Joseph Hume who reccomended it to pay the correct fair for the London Omnibus Then standing at 4d.

 

:ninja:

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I have heard it called a diddler before, but have not yet found out why LOL I have some theories though LOL there was also 'Half a dollar' refering to Two shillings and sixpence & 'A Dollar' to Five shillings.

 

Other coins included

 

Crown: = 5 shillings

 

Half-sovereign: =10 shillings. Small gold coin. Rarely used.

 

Sovereign: =20 shillings. Small gold coin. Rarely used.

 

Guinea: =21 shillings. Small gold coin. Rarely used. Term still used in horse racing and auctions.

 

 

 

:ninja:

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I have heard it called a diddler before, but have not yet found out why LOL I have some theories though LOL there was also 'Half a dollar' refering to Two shillings and sixpence & 'A Dollar' to Five shillings.

 

Other coins included

 

Crown: = 5 shillings

 

Half-sovereign: =10 shillings. Small gold coin. Rarely used.

 

Sovereign: =20 shillings. Small gold coin. Rarely used.

 

Guinea: =21 shillings. Small gold coin. Rarely used. Term still used in horse racing and auctions.

;)

 

Thanks for the additions :ninja: , I know a few poeple have asked about the system, so at least this post gives them a good starting point.

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Went the way of the Dodo from 1968 as we decided to join what is now the EU (No Euro back then) and it was to bring us into line with the rest of Mankind LOL

 

 

:ninja:

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Went the way of the Dodo from 1968 as we decided to join what is now the EU (No Euro back then) and it was to bring us into line with the rest of Mankind LOL

:ninja:

 

 

Actually 15th February 1971 was D-day for Decimal coinage, now the 5p and 10p coins were released beginning in 1968 in place of shillings and florins, and the 50p came out in place of the 10/- note in 1969. But the other coins were not released until 1971. The old tanners continued circulating as a 2 1/2p coin until 1980 when they were withdrawn, then the bobs and florins soldiered on until the early 1990's when the 5p and 10p coins were downsized.

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In 1867 there was a 10 pence piece (equal to 1 Franc)

1913 the eight pence peice (only in patterns I think)

And of course there had been the Maundy 2d for rather a long time as well

 

 

:ninja:

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  • 5 weeks later...

And the 1797 Twopence - The cartwheel tuppence which weighed two ounces (of copper) and was commonly used by cooks as a weight for scales.

They also used the Cartwheel penny which weighed an ounce

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In 1867 there was a 10 pence piece (equal to 1 Franc)

1913 the eight pence peice (only in patterns I think)

And of course there had been the Maundy 2d for rather a long time as well

:ninja:

 

 

Interesting, any images of these at all, the Eight Pence especially.

 

Another one not mentioned above (I think) was the Double Florin (4/-) which was first minted in 1887 and last minted in 1890. they did circulate for a little while afterwards but were eventually withdrawn.

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...

I can verify but don't forget there were also half-farthing (Ceylon), quarter-farthing (Ceylon) and third-farthings (Malta: = 1 grano as 3 grani were equal to 1 farthing)). Although only the halves were ever valid in the 19th-Century for a short period as change in Britain.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Revision A..........

 

LSD (L = Pounds, S = Shillings and D = Pence)

 

240 pennies in a pound

20 shilling in a pound

10 florins to a pound

5 shillings in a crown

2 shillings to a florin

60 pennies in a crown

30 pennies in a halfcrown

12 pennies in a shilling

2 halfpennies in a penny

4 farthings in a penny

 

Denominations - Smallest to Largest

 

Quarter Farthing - 16 to a penny, a staggering 3840 in a pound!!!

Third Farthing

Half Farthing

Farthing also known as a 1/4d

Halfpenny also known as a 1/2d or "ha'pennies"(Plural Halfpence)

Penny also known as a 1d (Plural Pence)

Penny Halfpence also known as 1 1/2d

Twopence also known as a "tuppence"

Threepence also known as a 3d, "thrupence" or "joey" (Brass commonly called a thrupenny bit)

Fourpence also known as a "Groat"

Sixpence also known as a 6d or "Tanner"

Shilling also known as 1/- or a "Bob"

Two Shillings also known as a "Florin" or 2/-

Four Shillings also known as a "Double Florin" or 4/-

Half Crown also known as 2/6 or "2'n'6"

Five shillings also known as a "Crown"

 

 

Phew I think thats it :ninja:

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  • 3 weeks later...

Not quite it, you forgot the gold. There's also;

 

(pre-1817)

 

Quarter Guinea (5 shillings and threepence)

Third Guinea (7 shillings)

Half Guinea (10 shillings and sixpence)

Guinea (21 shillings, aka One Pound and one Shilling)

Two Guineas (42 shillings, aka two pound two)

Five Guineas (105 shillings, aka five pound five)

 

(1817 onwards)

 

Half Sovereign (ten shillings)

Sovereign (twenty shillings or one pound)

Two Pounds (forty shillings)

Five Pounds (one hundred shillings)

 

 

 

And Sovereigns are still legal tender for one pound.

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  • 3 years later...

And this is all vital information for when you get into pre-decimalization British program(me)s like the Goon Show and ISIRTA... once you've sorted out the accents, of course. :)

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Yikes even I don't know most of those, a lot seem to be London area slang. I never hear the terms Monkey or Pony up in this part of the country, I know well they're slang terms for certain amounts but until I looked at that I couldn't have told you how much each was for!

 

Up in Yorkshire we tend to just use the following;

 

Quid (for £1), tenners (£10), fivers (£5), grand (£1000) and that's about it.

 

Older generations still drop in predecimal references primarily 'bob' for what is now 5p, rare to hear and other predecimal slang though. I have to confess though I hear it so rarely these days that I am sometimes taken aback when someone says 'bob' to refer to an actual amount. Usual it's only used in stock sayings like 'save a few bob', 'i've only got a few bob'. The only time it's used to refer to values tends to be to say '10 bob' (50p), but even when I go somewhere like Barnsley where everyone on the markets talks in lbs and ozs, it's not common at all.

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