Edward I, II, III pennies: the broad Edwardian sequence

The three Edwards (I, II, III) together struck more silver pennies than any other group of English kings before the Tudor reformation. They share the same fundamental design — crowned facing bust on a broad silver penny, solid long cross with three pellets per angle on the reverse — which is exactly why detectorists confuse them. Here’s how to tell them apart, class by class.

The Edwardian reform of 1279

For nearly two centuries before Edward I, English silver pennies named the moneyerand the mint on the reverse. Edward I’s 1279 reform did two things at once: it changed the reverse from the voided long cross to a solid long cross, and it dropped the moneyer’s name in favour of the mint town in a CIVITAS [city] or VILLA [town]formula. The reform also tightened weight (1.30–1.45 g) and added halfpenny and farthing denominations for the first time in centuries.

How to tell which Edward

On a well-struck penny, three diagnostics resolve the king. On a worn one, you may get only one of them — in which case the right attribution is “broad Edwardian penny, c.1279–1377” with whatever sub-class confidence the surviving features support.

1. The obverse legend wording

The obverse legend is the most categorical when readable. Different spellings of Edward’s name pin classes very tightly:

2. Crown type

The crown profile is the single most reliable Edwardian diagnostic that survives wear well:

• Trifoliate crown(three lobes each side, like a three-petalled flower) → Edward I, Classes 1–10 (early 10).
• Bifoliate crown(two lobes each side) → late Class 10cf, Edward II Classes 11–15. The transition is the single most useful Edward-I-vs-Edward-II tell.
• Spread bifoliate with bushy hair→ Edward III, Florin (third) coinage and after. The crown widens and the hair mass grows visibly under it.

3. Bust style

• Edward I: thinner face, narrower bust, small crown. Hair often shown as a few simple lines.
• Edward II: fuller face, slightly broader; otherwise very similar to Edward I — this is the kingship boundary that most often defeats attribution.
• Edward III: heavier bust, broader face, more elaborate crown with the bifoliate spread. Florin-coinage portraits are the sharpest of the three.

Edward III coinages (1327–1377)

Edward III’s reign is the most complex of the three because wartime finance kept forcing reforms. The reign divides into four coinages:

The fourth coinage and the Treaty of Brétigny

Edward III claimed the French throne, then surrendered it under the 1361 Treaty of Brétigny in exchange for sovereignty over Aquitaine, then resumed the claim in 1369. The legend changed with each phase:

• Pre-treaty (1351–61): French title FRANC on the legend. Seven sub-types by lettering and initial mark.
• Treaty (1361–69): French title dropped; Aquitaine title appears on groats only. Distinctive letter X form.
• Post-treaty (1369–77): French title resumed; reversed F for ET(shows as Z on earlier issues); letter X drawn as a Saint Andrew’s cross with saltire stops.

The mint town legend

The reverse’s CIVITAS [city] formula is where you read the mint town. UK detector finds skew heavily to London, with Canterbury, York, Bristol, Durham (ecclesiastical) and Berwick (a northern frontier mint) all common. Less common: Newcastle, Exeter, Kingston-upon-Hull, Lincoln, Reading, Chester.

Edwardian halfpennies and farthings

Edward I’s 1279 reform reintroduced struck halfpennies and farthings for the first time since the Anglo-Saxon period. Before 1279, smaller change was made by cutting a penny in half or quarters (the cut halfpenny and cut farthing of the Short Cross and Long Cross series). After 1279 you start to see proper struck small change:

• Edwardian halfpenny: 13–14 mm, 0.6–0.7 g. Same crowned facing bust + solid long cross reverse as the penny, just scaled down.
• Edwardian farthing: 10–11 mm, 0.3–0.4 g. Tiny. Frequently catches detectorists out as “modern silver disc” until they realise.

The groat — 1351 onwards

The groat (4d) was introduced under Edward III’s fourth coinage in 1351 and became the dominant larger silver denomination for the rest of the medieval period. Diagnostic features that separate the groat from the penny:

• Tressure around the bust— a decorative arched border inside the inner circle. Pennies don’t have this.
• Module 25–27 mm, weight ~4.5 g. Categorically larger than the broad penny.
• Reverse: long cross with three pellets per angle and a double legend — inner with POSVI DEVM ADIVTOREM MEVM(“I have made God my helper”), outer with mint name.

Procedural identification

1. Confirm it’s Edwardian: solid long cross + three pellets per angle + no moneyer name on the reverse (mint town instead) = post-1279.
2. Check the crown. Trifoliate = Edward I (or earliest 10). Bifoliate = Edward II or III. Spread bifoliate with bushy hair = Edward III florin or fourth coinage.
3. Read the obverse legend wording. See the table above. Even a few surviving letters often pin the spelling variant.
4. Note any French / Aquitaine title contenton fourth-coinage Edward III — pinpoints to one of three phases around the Treaty of Brétigny.
5. Read the mint town from the reverse legend. Adds find-spot context and sometimes refines the date if the mint was only open in part of the period.