Norman coinage: William I to Henry I and Stephen

The Norman silver penny (1066–1154) inherits the broad-flan Anglo-Saxon penny standard and then runs through dozens of catalogued types in less than ninety years, recoinaged every two to four years by Norman finance. The B.M.C. type system (Brooke 1916) is the standard for attribution — eight types under William I, five under William II, fifteen under Henry I, and a chaotic baronial period under Stephen.

William I — the eight types

William I’s reign saw eight catalogued types, struck in sequence to a recoinage cycle that aimed to replace the entire currency every couple of years. The eighth, PAXS, is the most-encountered William I find:

The PAXS type takes its name from the reverse: a short cross with the letters P, A, X, S, one in each angle, spelling pax (peace) with an extra S. PAXS pennies turn up regularly on productive Norman sites and are usually the first William I penny any detectorist actually digs.

William II (1087–1099) — five types

William Rufus carried on the recoinage cycle but on a smaller scale. Five catalogued types:

• Profile bust (Type I)
• Cross in quatrefoil (Type II) — distinctive reverse
• Voided cross (Type III)
• Cross pattee and fleury (Type IV)
• Cross fleury and piles (Type V)

William II pennies are scarcer than his father’s in detector finds, partly because the reign is shorter and partly because the long-running PAXS issue accidentally dominates the surviving William I output.

Henry I (1100–1135) — fifteen types

Henry I’s reign is by some way the most prolific Norman period for detector finds, partly because it’s long (35 years) and partly because Type XV (Quadrilateral on cross fleury) was struck for around eleven years and produced enormous quantities. Type XV accounts for the majority of Henry I pennies any UK detectorist will encounter.

Stephen (1135–1154) — civil war and baronial issues

Stephen’s reign coincided with the Anarchy — a twenty-year civil war between his faction and the supporters of Matilda. Royal coinage continued, but baronial issues proliferated from regional mints under various noble factions. The royal issues are catalogued in seven types; the most-encountered are:

• Type 1(Watford / cross moline) — first issue. Watford hoard provenance; characteristic reverse cross with fish-tail terminals.
• Type 7(Awbridge / cross pommee) — last royal type. Continued in use under early Henry II until 1158.

Baronial issues are highly variable and often crudely cut. They carry names other than the king’s — Eustace fitzJohn, Robert of Stuteville, William of Aumale — or sometimes Matilda’s name (rare). PAS records them as “civil war issue” with the moneyer / faction noted.

The end of the Norman system

Henry I’s frequent recoinages were expensive and unpopular. From around 1124 he stopped renewing types every two to four years and let Type XV run for a decade. The system fully collapsed during Stephen’s reign, and was replaced in 1158 by the Tealby (Cross-Crosslet) coinage of Henry II — a single design held in place for twenty-two years. The Short Cross issue (1180–1247) then carried the immobilised legend principle through four kings.

Procedural identification

1. Confirm Norman periodby the broad penny module (18–22 mm), bright silver, and a short-cross-with-motifs reverse rather than a long-cross-and-pellets pattern.
2. Look at the bust. Profile vs facing. Bust accessories (sceptre, sword, bonnet) are often type-diagnostic.
3. Read the reverse motif. The reverse cross often carries a distinctive in-angle device (annulet, pile, fleur, quatrefoil, PAXS letters) that names the type directly.
4. Read the moneyer + mint if visible. Confirms attribution and gives find-spot context.
5. Match to a published type. Brooke’s 1916 B.M.C. catalogue is the standard reference; Spink’s Coins of England reproduces the type numbers and illustrations.