Monarchy's money in the face of the queen's death
Not long ago, news of the death of Queen Elizabeth II circulated the world. She was the longest reigning queen (just over 70 years). She assumed the throne on February 6, 1952.
D why is it so important? Well, with her death, the images of not only the coins of the UK, but also of several other countries, will change. Changes will include, among others, the famous Canadian maple leaf bullion coins. In our country, the custom of putting images of people on coins includes only dead people. The exception is the Pope as head of the Catholic Church. However, we must know that the custom of placing images of living rulers actually existed from the beginning of the existence of money. Placing the image of his lordship on the coin was supposed to be a guarantee of the coin's quality, and woe betide anyone who would dare to counterfeit such a coin by also placing the image of the ruler on it (to his horror). This not only harmed the interests of the state, but above all tarnished the good name of the reigning. For this there could only be one punishment, but lest it be too light, the condemned had to endure many more torments in this world before he gave up the ghost. Already skilled executioners did their best to make him suffer to atone for his guilt, and public executions were intended to deter other amateurs of easy money from similar transgressions. So we can see how much importance was attached to the image of the ruler on the coin. To this day, in some countries you can get arrested for deliberately trampling money with the king's image on it. So the penalties are no longer as draconian as in past centuries, but still the placement of the ruler's image raises the prestige of the money.
First-born son Charles
To this day, all monarchies issue money with images of their rulers. The UK is no exception. Even among the eurozone countries, coins issued by these countries bear the image of the king. Just look at the Belgian euro coins, for example. But why is it that the death of the British queen has also so shaken the numismatic world? Well, in addition to Britain, Elizabeth II was the head of 14 other countries, which include Canada, Australia or New Zealand. It is a remnant of Britain's overseas colonies.
Well, collectively, these 15 countries known as the Commonwealth of Nations recognize the British monarch as their own ruler, and the prime minister of each of these countries is also an advisor to the king.
Now, after the death of Elizabeth II, the throne was taken over by her first-born son Charles, who took the royal name of Charles III. Admittedly, nowadays the king's role in governing the country is reduced to a representative form, but the tradition is preserved. In connection with it, Britain is already preparing to change all money to those with the image of the new king. King Charles III will adorn with his likeness not only the money of the United Kingdom, but also of other Commonwealth countries. Thus, we will soon see on bullion coins (such as the canadian maple leaf or australian kangaroo) image of Charles III.
Time for change
Will this affect the value of previous issues of these coins with the image of Elizabeth II? Time will tell, but we can predict that there will be no spectacular changes. The slight increase in the price of old coins can only be attributed to the desire of collectors to supplement their collections with missing currencies. After all, let's not forget that these coins have primarily an investment value and are produced for such a purpose. The additional numismatic value resulting from the fact that these bullions are in the form of coins will certainly contribute to their value in the future. However, I would not expect sudden changes in the prices of these assets. The basis of their quotation is primarily the bullion they contain, and it is initially the primary measure of the value of these coins.
