GROATS OF THE HENRIES COINED AT THE MINT

OF DUBLIN.

A FRIEND of mine, who had expended a large sum of money in bricks and mortar, remarked to me, that he believed no one ever built a house but that after its completion he perceived it might be much improved. And the remark, I believe, holds good in most of our undertakings, whether trivial or important. An after-survey introduces us to many errors of omission and commission. Among the former, in my Olla Podrida, is that of a Plate to illustrate the paper entitled, "Dublin Groats attributed by Simon to Henry the Fifth." I therefore avail myself of this Supplement to remedy the omission, and which I am enabled to do through the kindness of Dr. A. Smith, who has allowed me to make a selection from his drawings of groats struck at the Mint of Dublin, and bearing the name of Henry. Dr. Smith, as my readers will remember, is of opinion that they were all struck during the reign of Henry the Seventh, for reasons, stated with great ability in his publication "On the Irish Coins of Henry the Seventh" (vide the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, vol. xix. part ii.); and I cannot refer even passingly to Dr. Smith's numismatic papers in these publications without repeating my earnest and anxious hope that the numismatists of England and Scotland may have the benefit of access to his labours, by their being published as a separate and independent work. It is unnecessary for me now to do more than refer to my previous paper, in which I dissent from allowing Henry the Seventh to monopolise all these coins. In the plate now presented for the consideration of my readers I have separated them into three reigns, Henry the Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth, and every one must judge for himself as to which arrangement is most probable; for in the absence of all historical authority on the subject of types it becomes little more than a question of probabilities. I have only to mention that the

size of my plate has not allowed me to include all the varieties of those groats which I concur with Dr. Smith in considering to have been struck by Henry the Seventh, and that my arrangement of those that are engraved differs from Dr. Smith's. Those that are numbered in my plate 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, in Dr. Smith's are 25, 29, 32, 40, 46, 36, 34, 53, now first published.

On referring to these groats of Henry the Seventh it will be seen, that those with busts wearing the flat crown have some reverses with a plain cross, and others with a cross fourcheé; and that the busts with the arched crown have also reverses, some a plain cross and some a cross fourchée. There has been, consequently, a change, backwards and forwards, either of crowns or crosses. Dr. Smith and Mr. Lindsay concur in considering that the change has been in the crowns, first flat then arched, and then flat again. I have in the paper which this plate is to illustrate, more particularly at page 160, stated the reasons that induce me to think, that when the arched crown was once placed on the coinage of Henry the Seventh it would not be laid aside. I have since then read a good deal more respecting that mean,* cruel, and cold-hearted usurper of the English throne, which strengthens my conviction that his Dublin mint would not have risked exciting this tyrant's ever wakeful and vindictive suspicions,† by laying aside the arched and reverting to the flat crown; and that their first engraving a plain cross on the reverse, then changing it for the fourchée, and subsequently again using the plain cross, is the least of the two difficulties which these groats present to the numismatist. Having the facts before them, my readers must exercise their own judgments on the whole question at issue.

Since this paper was written Dr. Smith ascertained that a patent from a King Henry, creating a mint-master for Ireland, was in the

* "But it was the misfortune of Sir Robert Plumpton to have lived in the days of a monarch (Henry the Seventh), who, under the pretence of a rigid enforcement of the law, sought only the means to gratify his avarice. By the greedy and rapacious lawyers, his tools, every defect of title or breach of statute which might furnish the pretext for a suit or fine was eagerly caught at in order to swell the revenue; the proceedings consequent ended in reducing Sir Robert Plumpton to beggary."—(Plumpton Correspondence, p. xcv.)

Everything affrights the guilty: usurpation is full of jealousies, and fear no less full of projects and imaginations; makes us think every bush a man and every man a thief.Bishop Hall's Contemplations, "The Sages and the Star," p. 28.

Harleian MS. 4004, and I am indebted to Mr. J. G. Nichols's untiring kindness for a copy of it. Unfortunately we are unable to say whether it was granted by Henry the Seventh or Henry the Eighth ; most probably the former, as we are all agreed that we have Irish coins of his reign. The harp groats of Henry the Eighth we also know were coined in England, as we have numerous advices from the English to the Irish government of their being struck and remitted for the public service in Ireland. And towards the close of Henry the Eighth's reign it was agreed to have a mint in Dublin, which intention does not seem to have been ever more than written about. In 1537 we have the Lord Deputy Grey's testimony that there was not a mint in Ireland. I have always supposed that these disputed groats may have been struck in the very early part of Henry the Eighth's reign. And from the state in which Ireland was, at a much later period, under the rule of Henry the Eighth's deputies, who, with almost only one great exception, appear to have had only one great object, enriching themselves, at the expense of king and country, by every species of falsehood, robbery, and wrong, I can readily believe that these wretched coins may have been struck and issued by a lord deputy without the knowledge or concurrence of his own council in Dublin, much less that of his "dread majestie in London. I subjoin the patent, with a translation, and an extract from a dispatch of Lord Grey.

Henricus dei gratia Rex Angliæ et Franciæ et dominus Hiberniæ, Omnibus ad quos præsentes literæ pervenerint salutem. Sciatis quod nos de gratia nostra ac in consideratione boni et acceptabilis servitii quod dilectus et fidelis serviens et consiliarius noster Johannes Estrete nobis impendit et durante vita sua impendere intendit, dedimus et concessimus ac per præsentes damus et concedimus eidem Johanni officium Magistri Cunagii sive Numismatis nostri et heredum nostrorum infra terram nostram Hiberniæ, fiendi, cunandi, sive operandi, Habendum, tenendum, occupandum, et exercendum eidem Johanni per se vel per sufficientem deputatum sive sufficientes deputatos suos pro quo vel quibus nobis respondere voluerit, quamdiu se bene gesserit in eodem, percipiendo annuatim in officio prædicto feoda et vadia viginti librarum sterlingorum per manus suas proprias sive per manus deputati sui in officio prædicto de exitibus proficuis et reven

tionibus Cunagii sive Numismatis prædicti, videlicet, ad festa Pasche et Sancti Michaelis equis portionibus unacum hujusmodi vadiis feodis et regardis eidem officio ab antiquo debitis et consuetis, eo quod expressa mentio de vero valore annuo officii prædicti, vadiorum, feodarum, et cæterorum præmissorum aut de aliis donis sive concessionibus per nos aut progenitores nostros ante hæc tempora factis in præsentibus minime facta existit, aut aliquo statuto, actu, ordinatione sive provisione in contrarium facto, edito, ordinato seu proviso non obstante. In cujus rei testimonium has literas nostras fieri fecimus patentes. Teste me ipso apud Westmonasterium vicesimo sexto die Martii anno regni nostri secundo.

Per breve de privato sigillo et de data predicta, autoritate parliamenti.-MS. Harl. 4004, fol. 110.

[Translation.]

Henry, by the grace of God King of England and France, and Lord of Ireland, to all to whom these present letters shall come greeting, Know ye that we of our favour, and in consideration of the good and acceptable service which our dearly beloved and faithful servant [serjeant?] and our counsellor John Estrete confers on us, and intends to confer during his life, we have given and granted and by these presents give and grant to the same John the office of master of the coinage, or of making, striking, or working our money, and that of our heirs within our land of Ireland, To have, hold, possess, and exercise to the same John, by himself or by sufficient deputy, or his sufficient deputies for who or whom he shall be willing to answer to us as long as he shall conduct himself well in the same, receiving annually in the aforesaid office by his own hands, or by the hands of his deputy, the fees and wages of twenty pounds sterling of the issues, profits, and revenues of the coinage or aforesaid money, in the aforesaid office, that is, at the feasts of Easter and St. Michael, in equal portions, together with such wages, fees, and rewards, due and customary of old to the same office, notwithstanding that express mention of the real annual value of the aforesaid office, wages, fees, and other the premises, or of other gifts or grants made by us or our progenitors before now, by no means exists in these presents, or any statute, act, ordinance, or provision to the contrary made, published, ordained, or provided. In witness whereof we have caused these our

letters to be made patent.

Witness ourself at Westminster, the 26th

day of March, in the second year of our reign.

By writ of privy seal and of the date aforesaid, by authority of Parliament.

66

FROM A DESPATCH FROM LORD DEPUTY GREY TO CROMWELL,

DATED DUBLIN, 18 MAY, 1537.

Concerning the Acte to have Coin currant here aftir the rate of Sterling, ye knowe the oppinions of us and others by our other letters. The Commons at thes Season did strike veray sore to passe it, for feare that having ther Irishe coyne damned, and no mynte here, thei shuld have no coyne amongis them."-Cromwell Correspondence, vol. ii. p. 439.

PLATE No. 24.-HENRY THE SIXTH.

No. 1.--Obverse, full-faced bust, flat crown, within a tressure of seven arches, ceasing at the shoulders, M. M. four pellets; the inscription, separated by pellets, "Henricus Dei Gra. Dns. Hybernie."-Reverse, a plain cross, without any M. M.; "Posvi, &c. Civitas Dublinie."

No. 2.-Obverse, bust and crown as before, within a tressure of nine arches, M. M. a small cross, nearly saltire; the inscription, separated by small crosses, "Henricus Dei Gra. Dns. Hiber."

All the coins of this class of the Henries confined to groats, Dns. Hibernie, which I consider Henry the Sixth's, have a great and characteristic similarity in their style of work, and the only variety of inscription that I have noticed is Hibernie, full or abbreviated.

HENRY THE SEVENTH.

My Plate has not admitted all the varieties, either obverse or reverse, of the undisputed coins of Henry the Seventh. The title Rex is their broad distinction.