Trivia

Trivia about England, Great Britain and/or the United Kingdom: facts you might not know and, if you don't already know them, you probably don't want to anyway.

Trivial fact 1.

Ours is, I believe, the only country in the world that doesn't print its name on its postage stamps. Not even the words "Royal Mail" or "Postage". The only identifier is the monarch's head which is always there, even on commemorative issues. But whereabouts in the United Kingdom the stamp originated can be identified. Shown below are stamps from England (no mark at all), Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man also mark their stamps appropriately.



Trivial fact 2.

Bank notes used in England and Wales are all issued by the Bank of England. No other bank may issue notes. All Bank of England notes carry the words, "I promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of (whatever - five pounds, ten pounds etc)" and are signed by the Chief Cashier of the Bank. Well, his signature is printed on them.

The situation is different in Scotland and Northern Ireland (and Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man) where every major bank is permitted to issue its own notes. Strictly speaking, these Scottish and Irish etc notes are legal tender only in the country of issue but it is normal practice in areas of England bordering on Scotland for Scottish notes to be widely accepted. Banks in England are quite prepared to accept notes from other parts of the UK.

Trivial fact 3.

Coins of the realm bear an imprint of the monarch's head on the obverse (hence the "heads" call when tossing). Of course, this tradition dates back many centuries - even the Romans did it - but there is another, little known tradition in England. The direction in which the monarch is facing alternates between monarchs. Our current coins show the Queen facing to the right, ie showing her right profile. Her father, George VI, showed his left and when Prince Charles succeeds to the throne he too will show his left profile. This tradition apparently started with Charles II back in the 17th century. He regained the throne after a period known as the Commonwealth when the monarchy had been overthrown and Oliver Cromwell was Lord Protector. Charles insisted that he wanted to face the opposite way to Cromwell and, since then, the left and right profiles have alternated with the monarchs. With one exception. George V showed his left profile but his successor, Edward VIII, considered his left profile to be the better and the Royal Mint agreed to abandon the tradition. After Edward's abdication, George VI became king and the coinage showed his left profile as would have been the case if the tradition had been observed.

Not many people know that, and I only learned it a few days ago. I bet you're glad I told you.