Posts Tagged ‘Change Checker’
UK 50p commemorates the 80th Anniversary of D-Day
2024 marks 80 years since the day that turned the tide of the Second World War, and in commemoration, a UK 50p has been released to honour the D-Day landings.
Add the 2024 UK Day-Day 50p to your collection >>
A momentous day
On 6th June 1944, 156,000 Allied troops arrived in Normandy by land, sea and air to launch their assault on Nazi-occupied France. Codenamed Operation Neptune but commonly referred to as D-Day, it was the largest seaborne invasion in history.
Image Credit: SHAEF [Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces] Public Relations Division., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
With this year marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day, these events will soon move beyond living memory, so it’s now more important than ever to commemorate this incredibly poignant day in history.
“We shall fight on the beaches”
The design of the 2024 D-Day 50p, created by renowned sculptor David Lawrence in collaboration with Imperial War Museums, depicts brave Allied troops risking their lives on that fateful day. In the foreground, soldiers disembark a landing craft onto the beaches whilst planes fly overhead approaching by air.
The landings took place at five assault beaches along a 50 mile stretch of the Normandy coast, they were given the codenames Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword – all of which are inscribed along the bottom of the design.
Recreated in sand
To celebrate the unveiling of the 2024 UK D-Day 50p, the coin’s design was recreated in the sand on Gold beach in Normandy. The sand art measured 35 metres across and took more than 5 hours to create!
Image credit: The Royal Mint
French sand artist Jehan-Benjamin Tarain worked with fellow artist Sam Dougados to create the piece. Tarain said that is was ‘extremely special’ to be part of a project that “plays an important reminder of the united allied effort between French and British forces 80 years ago”.
Previous UK D-Day coins
This isn’t the first time that D-Day has been commemorated on a UK coin…
Most recently, the 2019 D-Day £2 coin was issued to mark 75 years since the landings. It featured a design by renowned Royal Mint engraver, Stephen Taylor, showing 5 arrows, each pointing across the English Channel to one of the Normandy beaches. Although this coin didn’t enter circulation, it was extremely popular with collectors.
A £2 coin that did enter circulation is the 2005 60th Anniversary of the end of World War Two £2, which was issued to mark 60 years since Winston Churchill announced VE Day – marking the end of World War Two. The reverse design features a depiction of St Paul’s Cathedral which survived the Blitz to become a great symbol of hope to a war-torn nation. The edge inscription reads – IN VICTORY: MAGNANIMITY, IN PEACE: GOODWILL – part of the famous maxim that prefaces Churchill’s history of the Second World War.
The 1994 D-Day 50p was issued to mark the 50th anniversary of the Normandy Landings. This coin was originally issued in the larger 50p specification, meaning you’re no longer able to find it in your change. It was later re-issued in 2019 in the smaller 50p specification, however this version didn’t enter circulation.
Interestingly, the 1994 D-Day 50p was voted the all time favourite 50p coin by Change Checkers, so I’m sure the 2024 D-Day 50p will prove just as popular with collectors.
Secure the 2024 UK D-Day 50p
As this will likely be the last milestone anniversary of D-Day to be observed by those who served, it’s hugely important to commemorate this moment in history.
Add the 2024 UK D-Day 50p to your collection for just £8.99 (+p&p) >>
The UK Coins that tell the story of Britain’s Warfare History
2024 marked the 80th anniversary of D-Day, and 2025 marks 80 years since VE Day, so we’re taking a look back at some of the UK coins that tell the story of Britain’s warfare history.
2025 Stories of the Second World War 50p
The Stories of the Second World War 50p, was issued as part of the 2025 Annual Coin Set, and will be individually issued later in the year to coincide with the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
The Second World War was a time when extraordinary courage and relentless effort came from all corners of the UK and the Commonwealth, forever shaping modern British society. From the battlefields to the home front, everyone played a role in the war effort—each story, a testament to resilience and unity.
The Stories of the Second World War 50p honours their service, depicting the medals awarded to millions who contributed to the cause. The medals featured include the 1939-45 Star, Defence Medal and War Medal, representing the countless unique experiences of the Second World War.
Can’t wait for the individual release? Secure it in the 2025 Annual Coin Set >>
2024 D-Day 50p
2024 marked 80 years since the day that turned the tide of the Second World War – D-Day. To honour this poignant anniversary, the 2024 UK D-Day 50p was issued.
On 6th June 1944, 156,000 Allied troops arrived in Normandy by land, sea and air to launch their assault on Nazi-occupied France. Codenamed Operation Neptune but commonly referred to as D-Day, it was the largest seaborne invasion in history.
The reverse design, created by renowned sculptor David Lawrence in collaboration with Imperial War Museums, depicts brave Allied troops risking their lives on that fateful day. In the foreground, soldiers disembark a landing craft onto the beaches whilst planes fly overhead approaching by air.
The landings took place at five assault beaches along a 50 mile stretch of the Normandy coast, they were given the codenames Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword – all of which are inscribed along the bottom of the design.
Secure the 2024 D-Day 50p for just £8.99 (p&p) >>
2020 Victory in Europe £2
In 2020, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of VE Day, The Royal Mint issued the Victory in Europe £2.
It features a woman holding a newspaper aloft in a crowd of celebrating people, set against a backdrop of the word VICTORY. Also inscribed on the coin’s reverse design are the years 1945-2020 and the words ‘VICTORY IN EUROPE DAY’. The edge inscription reads ‘JUST TRIUMPH AND PROUD SORROW’.
The coin, designed by Dominque Evans, was originally issued as part of the 2020 Annual Coin set, but was individually released later that year to coincide with the anniversary.
2019 D-Day £2
The Royal Mint issued a £2 coin in 2019, commemorating the 75th Anniversary of D-Day – the largest seaborne invasion in history. The invasion took place on the 6th June 1944 and began the liberation of German occupied France and laid the foundations for the Allied Victory.
Initially issued as part of the 2019 Annual Coin Set, the D-Day £2 was favoured among collectors for its innovative design by Stephen Taylor.
The reverse design features arrows pointing across the English Channel to Normandy; each arrow has one of the five code-names for the beaches where Allied Troops landed: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword.
2015 Battle of Britain 50p
The Battle of Britain was an intense air battle fought mainly throughout the summer of 1940 between Germany and Britain. To commemorate 75 years since the great battle, The Royal Mint issued this 50p in 2015.
Designed by sculptor Gary Breeze, this coin quickly gained interest from collectors due to the three different obverses when it was initially minted. Find out more about that here >>
This coin was re-issued in 2019 as part of the 50th Anniversary of the 50p celebrations in the Military History 50p Collection.
2005 St. Paul’s Cathedral £2
In 2005, The Royal Mint issued a £2 coin to commemorate 60 years since the end of the Second World War.
Interestingly, the reverse design depicts St. Paul’s Cathedral. This is because the cathedral was one of only a few structures which survived the Blitz to become a great symbol of hope to a war-torn nation.
The edge inscription reads ‘IN VICTORY: MAGNAMITY, IN PEACE: GOODWILL’ which is part of the famous maxim that prefaces Churchill’s history of the Second World War.
This coin has a staggeringly high mintage of 10,191,000, meaning it ranks as ‘Common’ on the Change Checker Scarcity Index.
1995 Dove £2
This old-style £2 was issued in 1995 to mark 50 years since the end of the Second World War. The reverse design, by John Mills, features a dove as a symbol of peace since the end of the war. The edge inscription reads ‘1945 IN PEACE GOODWILL 1995’, highlighting fifty years since the truce.
The Dove £2 was one of only seven commemorative £2 coins to be issued in the older specifications before the change in 1997.
1994 D-Day 50p
In 1994, a UK 50p was issued to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the D-Day landings – the final 50p issued in the older 50p specification.
With a mintage of 6,705,520 it’s the second rarest of the pre-1997 50p coins, and despite the larger 50p specification being withdrawn from circulation in 1998, they do sometimes still pop up in our change – as proven in our latest 50p coin hunt!
This coin was also re-issed in 2019 as part of the 50th Anniversary of the 50p celebrations, but interestingly, the 1994 D-Day 50p was voted Change Checkers’ ‘Favourite Ever’ 50p!
It’s fair to say the UK has a great history of celebrating important warfare anniversaries on our coinage, and they certainly are popular with our collectors!
Which of these coins is your favourite?
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A History of Queen Elizabeth II on Coins
From the post boxes on the street to the change in our pockets, each day we are reminded of our late monarch – Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (1926 – 2022).
And, with 29 billion individual coins in circulation in the UK – the majority of which carry an image of Her Majesty – her likeness will forever be etched in our memories and passed down for generations on our coinage.
These very coins offer a window into the past and retell the history of Her Majesty’s 70 year reign through the changing portraits seen on our coinage.
Portraits of the Queen
The Young Queen | 1953 – 67: Mary Gillick
The first coins of Queen Elizabeth’s reign featured Mary Gillick’s portrait of the young Queen, created especially for the new coins in 1953.
The “Decimal Queen” | 1968 – 84: Arnold Machin RA
With the decimalisation of the UK’s coinage on the horizon, it was decided to refresh the Queen’s portrait with Arnold Machin’s new effigy of the Queen. Commissioned in 1964, it first appeared in 1968 on the new 5p and 10p coins.
The Grandmother | 1985 – 97: Raphael Maklouf
Raphael Maklouf aimed “to create a symbol, regal and ageless” when he created the new effigy of Her Majesty. This coincided with the Queen’s early years as a grandmother and depicts Queen Elizabeth II wearing the royal diadem worn on the way to and from the State Opening of Parliament.
Millennium Queen | 1998 – 2014: Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS
As the Millennium approached, a fourth effigy was released onto our coinage, designed by Ian Rank-Broadley. Its larger size filled the full circle of the coin and was a deliberate response to the smaller 5p and 10p coins in circulation. This more mature portrayal of Her Majesty aimed to show the Queen with “poise and bearing”.
The Longest Reigning Monarch | 2015 – 2022: Jody Clark
The final portrait of Her Majesty was introduced in 2015 – the year that the Queen passed Victoria as our longest reigning monarch. It is, of course, that design that will continue to remind us of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for years to come, as her old currency continues to circulate long after her death.
Special Obverse Designs
Not only will the Queen be remembered for her portraits on coins, but for two very special obverse designs.
The first dates back to the very first coin released for Queen Elizabeth II – her Coronation Crown in 1953. The second was from the 2022 Platinum Jubilee coins.
Both picture the Queen on horseback, celebrating Her Majesty with her greatest love – horses. Surely there can be no better way to remember Her Majesty than through these two great designs. If you’re lucky enough to have either in your collection, let us know in the comments below!
Do you have a favourite coin portrait or obverse design on Her Majesty? Leave a comment to share yours.
Commemorate Her Majesty on Coins
As you can imagine, demand for QE II coinage is at an all-time high.
Don’t miss the chance to fill the gaps in your royalty coin collection here >>