The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday, 18 June 1815.

The fiftieth anniversary was not celebrated as Britain and France were on good terms and no-one wanted to offend them.

The hundredth anniversary fell during the First World War and so there were other priorities although the hundredth anniversary of Trafalgar was marked.

A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armies of the Seventh Coalition. One of these was a British-led coalition consisting of units from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Hanover, Brunswick, and Nassau, under the command of the Duke of Wellington.  The other was composed of three corps of the Prussian army under the command of Field Marshal von Blücher (the fourth corps of this army fought at the Battle of Wavre on the same day). The battle marked the end of the Napoleonic Wars.The Marquis of Anglesey and the Charge of the British, AE by Mudie (1820)

Pistrucci's electrotype medal (1840s)

Wellington death 1852 (obv)  

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Charles Riley, Coins & Medals

 

Catch! A coronation medallion fit for a king.

At the coronation following the Restoration commemorative medallions were distributed to the congregation. The diarist Samuel Pepys recorded that “medals [were] flung up and down by my Lord Cornwallis of silver, but [Pepys] could not get any. Another witness, Elias Ashmole, noted medals, “flung abroad… medals both of silver and gold… as a princely Donation or Largesse…” 

 

Bust of Charles II  crowned in royal ermine robes, wearing collar and George of the Garter. On the obverse Charles II in royal robes, holding the sceptre, is seated on a throne; Peace, hovering over him, places the crown upon his head.  The inscription reads

EVERSO . MISSVS . SVCCVRRERE . SECLO . XXIII . APR . 1661.

Inscription translation: Sent to support a fallen age, 23 April, 1661.

Illustration by kind permission of Charles Riley, Coins & Medals www.charlesriley.co.uk

 

 

 

Collectors are divided on whether to buy slabbed coins. Many numismatists like the professional grading and descriptions and the protection the slabbing offers. However many of us prefer to handle the actual coins.

Interestingly archaeologists have discovered that slabbing coins was known to ancient Roman collectors. Perspex or plastic of any type had not been invented, and glass was expensive, so the coins had to be encased in stone or concrete. This meant the coin was protected from wear, accidental damage and were difficult to steal (or even move at all). However the coins could not be viewed by the collector. Julius Caesar who was a keen collector, came up with the saying “veni vidi vici” which means “I came, I saw, I saw no coin”.

 

Some coins were stamped SPQR which stands for Slab Pretty Quickly, Romans. So look out for rocks or stones which may contain a coin.  You would be a fool not to!

 

 The Penny

At our January meeting we looked at the humble penny in the UK and abroad. here are some colloquial uses:

"A penny for your thoughts" is a way of asking someone what they are thinking about. It was first documented John Heywood's 1547 Dialogue Conteinying the Nomber in Effect of All the Proverbes in the Englishe Tongue

"In for a penny, in for a pound," is a common expression used to express someone's intention to see something through, however much time, effort, or money this entails.

To "give (one's) tuppence/tuppenny/two'penneth (worth)", is a saying that uses the words for two pence to share one's opinion, idea, or point of view, regardless of whether or not others want to hear it. A similar expression using the US term of cents is my two cents. Give me five cents in Catalonia means to give the summary only. 

To "spend a penny" means to urinate. Its etymology is literal: coin-operated public toilets commonly charged a pre-decimal penny, beginning with the Great Exhibition of 1851.