1 Shilling – England

In 1634, England operated under a bimetallic monetary system, with both silver and gold coins in circulation, but the period was marked by significant instability and scarcity of sound currency. The primary unit was the silver pound sterling, subdivided into shillings and pence, but the coinage was severely degraded. Decades of "clipping" (shaving metal from coin edges) and counterfeiting had reduced the average silver content in circulation, while official attempts to introduce new, milled-edge coins under James I had failed to replace the old, worn money. This created a chaotic marketplace where good and bad coins circulated side-by-side, their value often determined by weight rather than face value, causing confusion and hindering trade.

The root cause was the Crown's chronic financial weakness. Without a standing army or efficient bureaucracy, the monarch's ordinary revenue was insufficient for state needs, and Parliament, which controlled taxation, was not in session between 1629 and 1640 (the "Personal Rule" of Charles I). Consequently, the monarchy lacked the funds for a large-scale, costly recoinage to restore confidence. Instead, the government focused on exploiting its prerogative rights for revenue, such as enforcing outdated laws and selling monopolies. The Mint itself was largely dormant, as the official mint price for silver was set below its market value, discouraging individuals from bringing bullion to be coined.

This deteriorating currency situation existed within a broader context of fiscal tension that would lead to the English Civil Wars. Charles I's government was increasingly reliant on controversial and unpopular fiscal measures, like Ship Money, to raise funds without Parliament. The poor state of the coinage was a tangible daily frustration for merchants and the public, eroding trust in the Crown's ability to manage the economy. It underscored a fundamental crisis of royal finance and authority, where the inability to provide a sound medium of exchange highlighted the wider political and institutional failures of the Stuart state in the 1630s.