Beer money is the nickname for an allowance, established in the year 1800, that was given to non-commissioned officers and soldiers in the British Army. The practice was started at the suggestion of the Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany. Beer money payments were 1 penny per day and was a replacement for a daily issuance of beer or spirits while troops were on home service. The allowance continued until 1873 when it was rolled into the soldier's daily pay.
The phrase "beer money" is still used in England as a colloquialism for personal money set aside for entertainment, such as going to a pub.
Famous quotes containing the words beer and/or money:
“I’m only a beer teetotaller, not a champagne teetotaller. I don’t like beer.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“There is no intrinsic worth in money but what is alterable with the times, and whether a guinea goes for twenty pounds or for a shilling, it is ... the labour of the poor and not the high and low value that is set on gold or silver, which all the comforts of life must arise from.”
—Bernard Mandeville (1670–1733)