British Kings "Bullet Book," Henry IV, 1399 - 1413
BillJones
Posts: 34,118 ✭✭✭✭✭
Henry IV Gold Noble, S-1715
• Henry IV was the son of Edward III’s forth son, John of Gaunt, and was not by birth next in line for the crown. He won the crown by deposing king Richard II. As such his claim to the crown was tenuous.
• Henry was plagued with ill health for the last seven years of his reign. He believed that God was punishing him for his sins. Many sources say that he had leprosy although one author said that his problems stemmed from a stroke. At any rate Henry described himself as “a sinful wretch whose life I have mispended.”
• Henry’s coins are rare and difficult to obtain. When I was in the market for a Henry IV coin, the first piece I found was a penny that I would have graded “Fair” using American standards. It was priced at $2,400. I could not bear to pay that price for such a wrenched coin. The gold piece shown above was quite a bit more expensive, but far more presentable.
• Henry adopted this elegant but simple design for the kings and queens of England, which featured three gold British lions and three French fleurs-de-lis. It would be used by English monarchs from the next 200 years, making it the most enduing version of the royal arms.
Comments
Another version of the royal arms.
Yes, I have those images on the front of my "Bullet Book."
You will note that the seal I published with my post is on the king's shield on the coin.
Wow, just wow!
Henry iv is one I've never owned.
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Finding it was not easy. Henry IV is one of the "stelth kings" that surprise you when you are working on the collection. One would suspect that a king like Harold II, who ruled for only nine months, would be tough, but not this king who ruled for 14 years.
Beautiful noble and great post!
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
From Canterbury cathedral
Years ago I endeavoured to acquire a coin of each of the monarchs. Many of them are not too impossible. But HIV, the Richards, Stephen etc made that impossible. So I settled for Scottish monarchs, and only Alexander II has escaped my clutches.
When it comes to "HIV, the Richards, Stephen etc," you have to put aside your desire for nice coins. They most all look like something that the cat dragged in, and like I said before, sometimes you are well advised to buy the cheapest coin from the cat if you can tell what it is without much trouble.