Information
The world’s longest reigning living monarch — celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday
Marking her Platinum Jubilee in 2022, today she also celebrates her 96th birthday.
Her Majesty ascended to the throne on 6th February 1952 and has since reigned as a constitutional monarch through years of significant change. She sees public and voluntary service as one of the most important elements of her work, having links with over 600 charities, military associations, professional bodies and public service organisations.
During her lifetime many coins have been issued in celebration of her birthday, of which she has two — her actual birthday on 21st April and her official birthday on (usually) the second Saturday in June.
Let’s take a look at some of the different coins released over the years in celebration of Her Majesty’s birthdays below.
2021 UK Queen Elizabeth II 95th Birthday BU £5
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 95th birthday in 2021. This major event, making her the first ever ruling monarch in British history to reach this milestone, was commemorated on a UK £5 coin.
The extraordinary 95th anniversary year is highlighted on this detailed £5 coin, designed by heraldic artist Timothy Noad. It features the date of the Queen’s birth and the year 2021 visible on the reverse. The Royal Cypher takes centre stage, with the quote “MY HEART AND MY DEVOTION” surrounding it along the edge. Ninety-five mills are found on this coin’s ‘waved’ milled edge, celebrating one for each year of the Queen’s life.
Traditionally, UK £5 coins are reserved for the most important Royal and Historical anniversaries, and there are few Royal events which are as important as Her Majesty’s birthday.
QEII 95th Birthday BU 50p
In 2021, 10,000 of these 95th Birthday 50ps were released into circulation on the Isle of Man. Fully approved by Buckingham Palace, this design features specially commissioned artwork by sculptor Luigi Badia.
Badia has impressively created over twenty-five portraits of the Queen and this QEII 95th Birthday Brilliant Uncirculated 50p features a recently designed portrait of Her Majesty. His process of sketching a new portrait of the Queen starts with collecting lots of reliable references, combining them to make a unique portrait.
When Badia sketches a portrait to feature specifically on a coin, he usually chooses a profile portrait for a more traditional design. He uses the sketch just as a guide for then producing the plaster model, which he crafts himself over a few weeks to ensure the final coins depict his version exactly.
British Isles 50p coins like this rarely turn up in your change in the UK, making these 50p coins some of the most sought-after circulating coins around.
UK 2021 Queen Elizabeth II’s Official Birthday Silver
DateStamp™ Issue
This special DateStamp™ issue features JUST 500 hand-selected UK 2021 Royal Coat of Arms 1oz Silver Coins, protectively encapsulated and stamped with the official Royal Mail one-day-only postmark of 12th June 2021 – the official date of Her Majesty’s 95th birthday.
This 1oz coin is impeccably struck from 99.9% Pure Silver to The Royal Mint’s Bullion finish. The reverse design by Timothy Noad depicts the official Coat of Arms of HRH Queen Elizabeth II, with the historic design celebrating centuries of British Royal lineage — The Royal Arms is the official coat of Arms of the ruling monarch.
The UK Royal Coat of Arms 1oz Silver Coin has a maximum mintage of 100,000 coins but considering JUST 500 of these limited DateStamp™ issues were available upon initial release, it makes this particular presentation incredibly sought-after.
Visible within the reverse design are the national flowers for each country within the UK: the Tudor rose of England, the Leek for Wales, the Shamrock for Northern Ireland, and the Thistle for Scotland. Featuring on the obverse is Jody Clark’s definitive coinage portrait of Her Majesty the Queen.
2006 UK 80th Birthday £5 Coin
In 2006 a special £5 coin was released, which has since been announced as the fourth rarest £5 coin issued (as of the latest mintage update in 2013)! This £5 coin celebrates the Queen’s 80th birthday, with the dates 1926 and 2006 inscribed as Her Majesty was born in 1926.
This £5 coin is very popular with collectors, which is not surprising when you see its beautiful design. Three trumpets with trumpet banners display on the reverse, accompanied by the inscription “VIVAT REGINA”, the Latin phrase for ‘long live the Queen’. Danuta Solowiej-Wedderburn designed the reverse whilst the obverse features Ian Rank-Broadley’s (FRBS) portrait of HRH Queen Elizabeth II.
One such event that took place for Her Majesty’s 80th birthday included an informal walkabout in which the Queen spent roughly forty-five minutes interacting with more than 20,000 well-wishers who lined the streets outside Windsor Castle. She was accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh and crowds waved Union flags, as well as carried colourful celebratory bouquets.
Did you know that due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the Trooping the Colour ceremony which traditionally marks Her Majesty’s official birthday, could not follow its long-established format in 2021.
Coins that have an interesting back-story, such as these, can be particularly sought-after with collectors!
Explore our range of coins in celebration of the Queen’s previous birthday’s by clicking here >>
HMS Endurance discovered: Sir Ernest Shackleton’s lost ship found in Antarctic
You might have already seen the news that the HMS Endurance has been discovered more than 3,000 metres below the Antarctic Ocean.
It’s a fascinating discovery – in fact, the team that discovered the lost ship said that it’s ‘by far the finest wooden shipwreck’ they’ve ever seen.
If you don’t know why this story has captured everybody’s imagination, I’m going to explain to you why Sir Ernest Shackleton’s expedition on his ship HMS Endurance is one of the most enthralling stories in British maritime history…
The story of Endurance…
Sir Ernest Shackleton’s expeditions to the Antarctic captured my imagination as a young man, and even inspired the likes of Sir Edmund Hillary.
His most famous voyage was on the HMS Endurance – the very ship that’s discovery was announced this week. It’s this journey that produced one of the greatest stories of heroism in British exploration history.
Shackleton’s attempt to complete a Trans-Antarctic voyage left him and his crew stranded on the ice for 6 months with no prospect of rescue after the Endurance was crushed and sank in the place where it’s since remained for more than a century.
With the pack ice breaking apart underneath their feet, Shackleton and the crew of the Endurance had to make a decision and fast.
Using three small fishing boats the crew sailed 800 miles through the treacherous Southern Ocean, battling against hurricane force winds and icy water to cross South Georgia’s uncharted glaciers.
During this tortuous journey, Shackleton’s main concern was for his men. At one point, Shackleton handed over his precious mittens to a member of the crew who lost his at sea, suffering frostbite as a result.
When rescue finally arrived, the crew of the Endurance returned home to find that the First World War had broken out in their absence.
Shackleton’s immense journey, his bravery, and his endurance firmly secured him a place amongst Britain’s greatest.
The Discovery of the Endurance
Now, more than 100 years since it was last seen, the HMS Endurance has finally been discovered!
Dr John Shears, the expedition leader of Endurance22, said the search for Endurance had made “polar history” by completing what he called “the world’s most challenging shipwreck search”.
In memory of the famous explorer and his ship the HMS Endurance, you have the chance to own a collection of coins that celebrate the famous explorer.
View our range of Sir Ernest Shackleton commemorative coins here >>
4 monumental aircraft to the Royal Air Force’s history
The birth of the Royal Air Force (RAF) in 1918 was the first time there had been a separate and independent air force established in any country.
It soon became among the most dominant air forces globally.
The 1930’s saw public interest in aircraft increase dramatically and following World War Two (WWII), the demand for the number of aircraft to be built grew quickly in a very short space of time.
Throughout its life, the RAF has monitored the advances in aircraft for military use, and today displays some of the greatest developments in aircraft technology.
For nearly a decade we’ve worked in partnership with the RAF. In that time, we’ve preserved and celebrated over 100 years of history on official commemorative releases.
Let me tell you about 4 aircraft monumental during their existence.
The Sopwith F1 Camel
This Biplane fighter had only one seat and was given the nickname Camel after one squadron commented on its hump like appearance. A comment that would influence its official name.
Carelessness would get you killed in this aircraft.
Pilots had to be skilled to fly it, attentive and observant.
The Camel thrived in daylight but also succeeded at night.
The aircrafts actual nickname?
The King of the Air Fighters.
The Avro Lancaster
The Lancaster proved vital towards the end of WWII for Bomber Command. The aircraft helped Britain successfully undermine Nazi Germany from the air.
Lancaster crews risked their lives every time they took to the air in these bombers.
They showed tremendous bravery.
On average they carried out 21 missions before they were lost.
The Eurofighter Typhoon
A vision of the future.
This is how the RAF describe this 21st century Eurofighter Typhoon.
Did you know this aircraft can travel two times faster than the speed of sound? It uses cutting edge technology and has many advanced features.
The UK, Germany, and Italy all worked collaboratively on this aircraft, as they have done also with the tornado project for over several decades.
The Spitfire
The Spitfire is by far the most famous British fighter aircraft in history. It was designed by Reginald J Mitchell for the Second World War and there are many reasons why pilots fell in love with it.
It was a symbol of freedom.
The early Mark II could reach speeds of up to 360 mph.
The Spitfires sleek lines and elliptical shaped wings make it perhaps the most graceful fighter ever created.
Did you know that Mitchell’s first attempt to answer the British Air Ministry’s call for an all-metal land-based fighter aircraft was rejected?
It had a cooling system issue.
So, his team tried again.
And boy, did they triumph.
The new design had retractable landing gear, an enclosed cockpit and of course, the thin wing shape.
After the first flight of the prototype in 1936 only a few changes were made and by early June, the Air Ministry had ordered 310 Spitfires. By the outbreak of the Second World War, 306 Spitfires were in service with the RAF, along with 71 waiting and 2,000 in the pipeline.
If you’re interested…
The aircraft I have spoken about are intricately illustrated on our collection of commemoratives celebrating the History of the RAF.
The first one in the collection I hear you ask.
Well of course it must be the Spitfire.
Bill Dady, the renowned aviation artist, has designed this one.
Click here to start the History of the RAF Collection by securing your Spitfire Commemorative
for FREE >>
