Fourteenth-Century Monetary Terms

Fourteenth-Century Monetary Terms (for Students of English Literature and History)

Throughout Europe the basic monetary units were the same, based on ancient Roman coinage: libri, solidi, and denarii; these, in English, were called "pounds" (abbreviated "L" or "£" for "libri"), "shillings" ("s" for "solidi"), and "pence" ("d" for "denarii").
In England, for most of the Middle Ages, the only coin minted was the silver penny. Until the early fourteenth century, it was common to "clip" the penny to make half-pennies and farthings ("fourthings," quarter-pennies).

"Moneys of account" (these are monetary units, but there were no corresponding coins; they are accounting terms only):

Pound = 20 shillings (240d)
Mark = 2/3 pound (2 nobles or 13s 4d or 160d)
Shilling = 12d or 3 groats

Edward I introduced new coins: groats, pennies, half-pennies, and farthings, and made it illegal to clip coins. Groats (4d) did not catch on at this time, but were reintroduced by Edward III.

Edward III's coinage (these continue as the principal coins until Edward IV, though under Henry IV they were reissued with smaller quantities of metal):

Gold coins:

Noble = 6s 8d (or 80 pence, or 1/3 of a pound, or 1/2 of a mark)
Half-Noble = 3s 4d (or 40 pence, or 1/6 of a pound, or 1/4 of a mark)
Quarter-Noble = 1s 8d (or 20 pence, or 1/12 of a pound, or 1/8 of a mark)

Silver coins:

Groat = 4d
Half-Groat = 2d
Penny
Half-Penny = 1/2d
Farthing = 1/4d

The value of money, in terms of a day's wage

(from the preface to Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England by Judith M. Bennett (Oxford, 1996), p. xv):

An adult male labourer earned ca. 1.5d per day in 1300
---------------------------------------- 3d ------------- in 1400
---------------------------------------- 4d ------------- in 1500
---------------------------------------- 8d ------------- in 1600
An adult female labourer earned 1/2 to 3/4 the wage of a man.

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Stephen R. Reimer
English; University of Alberta; Edmonton, Canada
Created: 8 Sept. 2003

email: Stephen.Reimer@UAlberta.Ca
URL: http://www.ualberta.ca/~sreimer/engl403/403-bib.htm