1412-1413 Groat – Henry IV – Light Coinage

Henry was born in April 1367 to John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and Blanche of Lancaster. When John of Gaunt died, his nephew King Richard II blocked Henry's inheritance and exiled him from the court. Henry fought back and usurped the throne, becoming King Henry IV on 30 September 1399, the first King of the House of Lancaster.

Henry IV fought many battles, including those against Owain Glynd?r (Owain ap Gruffydd 1354-1415), the last Welsh Prince of Wales.

When Henry IV died on 20 March 1413 his son succeeded him as Henry V.

Henry IV coins are usually classified into two groups. In 1412 the weights of both the Noble and the Penny were reduced, mainly because the King was short of money and bullion was scarce. So the period 1399-1412 is known as Heavy Coinage, and the period 1412-1413 is known as Light Coinage.
The Groat is an old coin worth four pence. It was found in England, Ireland and Scotland. The English Groat can be traced back to Edward I and was minted (not every year) up until Victoria although the fourpence coin is still minted today for use in Maundy sets.The Royal Mint is the designated place for the UK to mint coins. It dates back well over 1000 years and is a Government-owned company. 

Formed in the reign of Alfred the Great about the year 886, during the period 1279-1812 it was generally referred to as The Tower Mint as it was housed at the Tower of London. The Master of The Royal Mint has included famous figures such as Sir Isaac Newton.

Since 2010 it has operated as Royal Mint Ltd, a company owned by HM Treasury, under an exclusive contract to supply all coinage for the UK although it also produces medals and coins for other countries. It is currently located at Llantrisant, Wales.
The United Kingdom (UK) is the Union of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is often refered to as Great Britain (GBR). It has a long, rich history.

The orignal coinage was Pounds, Shillings and Pence but since decimalisation on 15 February 1971, it is £1 = 100p, that is One Pound = 100 pence. The coinage of the UK is also a long history, the Royal Mint being established as long ago as 886AD when coins were hammered. Today there is perhaps 30 billion coins in circulation, and many (numismatic) collectors coins and sets are issued frequently in gold, silver and other metals.