1/2 Groat United Kingdom Silver

1422-1430, Great Britain, Henry VI. Silver ½ Groat (2 Pence) Coin

Mint Place: Canterbury

Mint Period: 1422-1430

Denomination: 1/2 Groat (2 Pence)

References: North 1712; SCBC 2210.

Diameter: 18mm
Material: Silver
Weight: 1.5gm

Obverse: Facing crowned bust of the King within polylobe with inner decorative trefoils.

Legend: + HENRIC DI GRA REX ANGL Z F

Reverse: Long cross pattée dividing the legend, with three pellets in each angle.

Legend: OSVI DEVM ADIVTORE MEVM, CIVITAS CANTOR 

The groat is the traditional name of a defunct English and Irish silver coin worth four pence, and also a Scottish coin which was originally worth fourpence, with later issues being valued at eightpence and one shilling. It was after the French silver coin had circulated in England that an English groat was first minted under King Edward I.

Henry VI (6 December 1421 – 21 May 1471) was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. The only child of Henry V, he succeeded to the English throne at the age of nine months upon his father’s death, and succeeded to the French throne on the death of his grandfather Charles VI shortly afterwards. Henry inherited a long-running conflict in France, known as the Hundred Years War, where Charles VII contested his claim to the French throne. Henry married Charles’s niece, Margaret of Anjou, partially in the hope of achieving peace in 1445, but the policy failed, leading to the murder of William de la Pole, one of Henry’s key advisors. The war recommenced, with France taking the upper hand; by 1453, Calais was Henry’s only remaining territory on the continent.

Henry experienced a mental breakdown after the failure of the war, with Richard of York taking control of the government as regent until his recovery the following year. Civil war broke out in 1460, leading to a long period of dynastic conflict known as the Wars of the Roses. Henry was taken prisoner by Richard of York at Northampton on 10 July 1460 but was rescued that December by forces loyal to Margaret. He was deposed on 29 March 1461 following the victory at Towton by Richard’s son, who took the throne as Edward IV. Henry was suffering from another breakdown and, despite Margaret continuing to lead a resistance to Edward, he was captured by his forces in 1465 and imprisoned in the Tower of London. Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick, restored Henry to the throne in 1470, but Edward defeated Neville and retook power in 1471, imprisoning Henry in the Tower once again.

Henry died in the Tower during the night of 21 May 1471, possibly killed on the orders of Edward. He was buried at Chertsey Abbey, before being moved to Windsor Castle in 1484. Miracles were attributed to Henry after his death, and he was informally regarded as a saint and martyr until the 16th century. He left a legacy of educational institutions, having founded Eton College, King’s College (Cambridge) and All Souls College (Oxford). William Shakespeare wrote a trilogy of plays about his life, depicting him as weak-willed and easily influenced by his wife, Margaret.