Economy of England during the Middle Ages
pounds, shillings and pence were the basic currency of Britain throughout the period covered by the Proceedings
Having a consistent relationship of 12 pence to the shilling and 20 shillings to the pound
Values are generally expressed as £.s.d or I.s.d as in
£12 (12 pounds)
10s (10 shillings)
6d (sixpence)
the pounds sign stands for Libra, a pound weight in Latin
The s is an abbreviation for shillings in English
The d stands for Denarius in Denarii (a Roman coin)
Five, two, one and half guinea coins were made of gold and were introduced after the recoinage of 1619
Half crowns
six pence
Crowns
were all made of sliver as were all pennies and two pence pieces until the introduction of machine milled one and two pence copper coins in 1797
The last silver English penny was minted in 1820
Farthings and halfpence were made from copper
Wages
Female domesticated servants earned less than men
Wages for eighteenth-century women could range from the £2 or so mentioned about between £6 and £8 for a housemaid
and up to £15 per annum for skilled housekeeper
By contrast a footman could expect £8 per year and a coachman anywhere between £12 and £26
Because they provide their own food, logging and clothing, independent artisans needed to earn substantially more than this