Ireland, Edward I Halfpenny, 2nd Coinage, type 1a, Dublin Mint

Ireland, Edward I (1272-1307), silver Halfpenny, Dublin Mint, second coinage (1279-1302), type 1a (1281-82), crowned head within triangle, EDW R AIIGL'D IIS. hYB', rev. cross pattée, tri-pellets in each angle, beaded circles and legend surrounding, CIVI TAS DVBL INIE, weight 0.58g (Withers 1c; DF 69; S.6250). Toned, with some evidence of die clashing, weakly struck in one quarter, otherwise a bold fine and rare.

The Latin legends translate as on the obverse "Edward, King of England, Lord of Ireland" and on the reverse as "City of Dublin."

Edward son of Henry III and Eleanor of Proveance was born in June 1239 at the Palace of Westminster and was known as The Lord Edward whilst his Father was King. As a young adult he became involved in the political struggles of the Baronial rebellions and briefly sided with their reform in 1259 and supported the Provisions of Oxford. Edward later reconciled with his Father remaining loyal through the Second Barons War and was held hostage after the Battle of Lewes but later escaped. He went on to defeat Simon de Montfort at the Battel of Evesham in 1265 and within two years the rebellious barons were finished and peace once again reigned. Edward joined the Ninth Crusade to the Holy Land and it was on his way back in 1272 that he received news that Henry III had died on 20^th November 1272. Edward Longshanks as he now became known due to his tall stature believed to be 6 foot 2 inches, took a leisurely return to England and was coronated on the 19^th August 1274 at Westminster Abbey. It was not long till he had to suppress a rebellion in Wales in 1276-77 and again in 1282-83 which culminated in a full conquest with a series of castles built and English rule firmly in place. Edward continued to reform administration and common law with feudal liberties and then set his sights on Scotland claiming feudal suzerainty leading to war which continued after Edward's death though he was almost victorious on several occasions and became known as The Hammer of the Scots. Edward also became involved in war with France as a Scotch ally against Philip IV who confiscated the Duchy of Gascony, though Edward did recover it. The cost of these actions was heavy taxation for all and when he died in 1307 his son Edward II inherited conflict and strife.

Edward I was married twice, first in 1254 to Eleanor of Castile who bore him fourteen children and possibly two more as a number did not live to adulthood and only the one son Edward outlived his Father to become the next King. Eleanor died aged around 48 on 28^th November 1290 and is buried in Westminster Abbey. Edward went on to marry Margaret of France in 1299 who bore him two sons and a daughter and was some 40 years his junior. Edward died whilst campaigning in the north on the morning of 7^th July 1307 at Burgh by Sands in Cumberland suffering from dysentery, and he was buried at Westminster Abbey on 27^th October of that year.

The Hiberno Norse settlement of Dublin was founded by the Vikings on the banks of the RiverLiffey around 841 with the name literally meaning "the Black Pool" and was an early fortification with ditch, earth rampart and palisade. Stone walls were later constructed in the 11^th Century and a man made hill on which to have important political meetings. The Danes slowly converted to Christianity and the first Bishop of Dublin was appointed in 1028 and Christchurch Cathedral began construction. The town was sacked several times over the years in battles between the Irish and Viking Danes but the settlement grew to be the biggest and most important in Ireland and trade links were strong with Chester and Bristol. The wooden Norman style fort was replaced by a stone castle in the early 13^th Century and gained its first mayor in 1229. The four so-called "obedient shires" at this time were the Eastern counties of Meath, Louth, Kildare and Dublin and a boundary line known as the pale, marked the land as the King's perimeter and the people within received a degree of protection from the crown; whereas those beyond it were subject to more savage laws of the Irish and perhaps harsher living standards, through time evolving the colloquial phrase "beyond the pale". Dublin continues as a strong capital city to this day.

Provenance:

Ex Collection of an English Doctor part III, Sovereign Rarities fixed price list online August 2022.