Great Britain
The history of the British Royal Mint dates back to AD 886. For many centuries production was in London, initially at the Tower of London, and then at premises nearby in Tower Hill. In the 1970s production was transferred to South Wales. Established by Henry II in the 12th century and running until 1920, all silver coinage had a standard of 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper. Coins were originally hand-hammered — where two dies are struck together with a blank coin between them. Starting in 1558, milled coins, or machine-made, were produced during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603).
