Crown (British Coin)

Crown (British Coin)

The British crown, the successor to the English Crown and the Scottish Dollar, came into being with the Union of the kingdoms of England and Scotland in 1707. As with the English coin, its value was five shillings.

Always a heavy silver coin weighing about one ounce, during the 19th and 20th centuries the Crown declined from being a real means of exchange to being a coin rarely spent and minted for commemorative purposes only. In that format it has continued to be minted, even following decimalization of the British currency in 1971. However, as the result of inflation the value of the coin was revised upwards to five pounds.