Sigtrygg III Silkbeard Olafsson (also Sihtric, Sitric and Sitrick in Irish texts; or Sigtryg and Sigtryggr in Scandinavian texts) was a Hiberno-Norse king of Dublin. The historical sources are a bit sketchy, given that some were written well after the 10th C, so they do not agree upon precise dates. Sihtric reigned from … possibly as early as…
Introduction By September 1689, James II’s so-called gunmoney continued to be produced in huge volumes at Capel Street in Dublin. A common misconception is that the coinage with 9r equates to September but it, in fact, refers to November – the 11th month of our modern (Gregorian) calendar but the 9th month of the old Julian…
Introduction: Realising that having an Irish currency equal to English standard weights resulted in a massive drain of silver out of Ireland and, consequently, reducing the amount of coinage in circulation + causing a recession, Edward IV moved towards remedying this by announcing a new (lower intrinsic value) coinage for Ireland in 1467: double-groats (eight…
In late 1397, with the Irish lords of both Ulster and Leinster once more at war, Richard was already planning to return. His second expedition, in June and July 1399, again brought a significant army to Ireland, albeit less than half the size of the force he brought with him on his previous visit. Richard II…
Less warlike than either his father or grandfather, he sought to bring an end to the Hundred Years’ War that Edward III had started. There was war in Connacht between the O’Connors, in 1384, and fierce hostility continued for years after between the families of the O’Connor Don (Brown) and the O’Connor Roe (Red) In…
Introduction: Edward IV was the King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was the first Yorkist King of England and most of the Irish Norman families (most notably, the Fitzgeralds of Desmond and Kildare) seem to have supported him, despite the Lancastrian…
Introduction: At a meeting of his Irish Parliament in Drogheda in 1460, Henry VI declared (via his Lord Lieutenant, Richard, Duke of York) that a separate currency (silver coins) be struck in Ireland at the castles of Dublin and Trim and that it would be known as Irlandes d’argent (Irish silver). He further declared that the…
In 1530 Catholic Irish owned 100% of the land in Ireland. By 1703 they only owned 14% of the land in Ireland. Whether Gaelic Irish/Old English-owned, or New English-owned, the tenants were mostly subsistence farmers who struggled to pay predatory rents. Since the Elizabethan and various Stuart plantations and, more recently, the Cromwellian and Williamite…
Anne was the Protestant full sister to Mary II, wife of William III, and she was crowned shortly after William’s death on 8 March 1702. Her marriage to Prince George of Denmark & Norway was arranged in the early 1680’s with a view to developing an Anglo-Danish alliance to contain Dutch maritime power. Her uncle (Charles…
Introduction: Sir Isaac Newton is, perhaps, best known as an English physicist and mathematician who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time and as a key figure in the scientific revolution. His book “Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy”, first published in 1687, laid the foundations for classical mechanics Newton made…
The Old Currency Exchange is a specialist dealer and valuer of Irish & GB coins, tokens and banknotes 