1483-1485 Groat – Richard III

King Richard III (King of England and Lord of Ireland) ruled between 26 June 1483 and 22 August 1485, they were turbulent years. Richard III was the last of the House of York, the last of the Plantagenets and his death at the Battle of Bosworth Field (aged 32) signified the end of the Middle Ages in England. He was the last English King to die in battle.

Richard III is a famous protagonist in one of Shakespeare's tragedies. In 2012 a skeleton was found in Leicester and is thought to be the body of former King.

The coins of Richard III are rare. Gold coins (Angel, Half-angel) are extremely expensive (maybe £20,000+) and the silver coins (Groat, Halfgroat, Penny, Halfpenny and Farthing) are often also £1,000+. The coins carry mintmarks but the dies seem to have been casually chosen and many coins are mules, some overpunched.
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.