51-627: (Redirected from Archer-Shee ) Archer Shee or Archer-Shee may refer to the following: George Archer-Shee (1895–1914), the Naval Cadet whose false accusation of theft inspired the play (and subsequent films) The Winslow Boy Martin Archer-Shee (1873–1935), a British army officer and Conservative party politician Martin Archer Shee (1769–1850), portrait painter and president of
102-631: A British cause célèbre , was the inspiration for the 1946 Terence Rattigan play The Winslow Boy , which has been the basis of two films. Following his acquittal, the boy's family were paid compensation in July 1911. Archer-Shee was commissioned in the British Army in 1913, and killed aged 19, at the First Battle of Ypres on 31 October 1914. George Archer-Shee was the son of Martin Archer-Shee and his second wife Helen Treloar. His father
153-525: A petition of right against the Crown to bring the matter before the courts. The case eventually came to the High Court of Justice on 26 July 1910. The Solicitor-General , Sir Rufus Isaacs , appeared for the Crown and Carson, himself a former Solicitor-General, for Archer-Shee. Carson's opening remarks set the tone of the case: A boy 13 years old has been labelled and ticketed for all his future life as
204-554: A booklet presenting their side of the case. On 6 April, the Archer-Shee case was raised in the Commons during a Naval Estimates debate. As most MPs supported compensation, the Admiralty was forced to concede to a judicial hearing to decide the matter, otherwise the business would be "lost" (a parliamentary term meaning postponed, not dismissed, to a future day). Following the hearing, John Charles Bigham, 1st Viscount Mersey agreed
255-520: A complete justification of the statement of the boy and the evidence he has given before the court." Following the trial, the Archer-Shee family began to press the Admiralty to pay restitution. On 16 March 1911 the First Lord of the Admiralty , Reginald McKenna , said that he thought the House of Commons would think it inappropriate. Nevertheless, the family continued to press their claim, circulating
306-414: A crowned Royal Cypher . Those minted prior to 1949 feature a more angular font than those minted later. These later coins do not bear the abbreviation IND IMP , since the king was no longer Emperor of India . The final change in the design of the sixpence came in 1953 when a new reverse was designed for the sixpences of Elizabeth II . These coins feature a floral design by Edgar Fuller and Cecil Thomas on
357-669: A custom dating back to the Second World War . The archaic slang "bender" for a sixpence emerged when the coin had a high silver content and could easily be bent, sometimes deliberately to create a love token . The Royal Mint website claims that the expression "going on a bender" (to indulge in a binge drinking session) derives from this meaning when one could drink all day in taverns for six pence. In Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (Act 4, Scene 2), we learn that by his absence (ensorcelled in Titania's bower) Bottom
408-486: A design of six oak sprigs divided by six acorns. Only a handful of Edward VIII sixpences were ever minted, and none of these entered circulation. These feature a reverse that is different again, composed of six interlinked rings, with the inscription SIXPENCE below and part of the monarch's style inscribed above. Unusually, the profile of Edward VIII on coins faces the same way as that of his predecessor. George VI sixpences feature two different reverses, both featuring
459-408: A result of the debasement of silver coinage in the 1540s, in particular the silver testoon , which fell in value from 12d to 6d. The debased testoon was likely useful in everyday transactions, and it was decided that new coinage should be introduced with the express denomination of six pence. The testoon decreased in value because, unlike today, the value of coins was determined by the market value of
510-558: A street carman about taking his travel box to a coach office in London: "I told him mine, which was down that street there, and which I wanted him to take to the Dover coach office for sixpence", then he replying: "Done with you for a tanner!" The sixpence also features in other works of British popular culture and literature. It appears in the title of the writer W. Somerset Maugham 's 1919 novel, The Moon and Sixpence , and appears in both
561-417: A thief and a forger. Gentlemen, I protest against the injustice to a child, without communication with his parents, without his case ever being put, or an opportunity of its ever being put forward by those on his behalf. That little boy from the day that he was first charged, up to this moment, whether in the ordeal of being called in before his Commander and his Captain, or whether under the softer influences of
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#1732775635597612-501: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages George Archer-Shee George Archer-Shee (6 May 1895 – 31 October 1914) was a Royal Navy cadet whose case of whether he stole a five shilling postal order was decided in the High Court of Justice in 1910. Archer-Shee was successfully defended by barrister and politician Sir Edward Carson . The trial, which became
663-481: Is shared with the half-sovereign , and since the two are of a similar size, a problem arose with people passing off sixpences as half-sovereigns. The government agreed to remove the coin from circulation in November 1887 and change the reverse. The reverse of George V sixpences minted prior to 1926 feature an alternative reverse design composed of a crown surmounted by a lion, with those minted after 1926 featuring
714-492: The Royal Mint as commemorative issues; these coins have been produced for each year since then, and are minted in sterling silver . They are not intended for circulation as tender, but just like older mintages, these coins continue to have uses in especially Christmas and wedding traditions; cf. § Cultural significance , below. The first sixpences were minted in 1551, during the reign of Edward VI . They came about as
765-854: The Wall Street firm of Fisk & Robinson in New York. Having been a cadet sergeant in the Officers' Training Corps at Stonyhurst, he joined the British Army Special Reserve of Officers in 1913. With the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, Archer-Shee returned to Britain and served as a lieutenant in the 3rd ( Militia ) Battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment . It
816-476: The Christmas season. These coins are heavier than the pre-1970 sixpence (3.35 grams instead of 2.83 grams), and have a denomination of six new pence (6p) instead of six old pence (6d). The new reverse was designed by John Bergdahl. Sixpences issued during the reign of Edward VI features a portrait of the king on the obverse, with a Tudor rose to the left, and the denomination VI to the right. Surrounding
867-563: The Order of the British Empire in 1944 and died in 1968. References Sources Sixpence (British coin) The British sixpence ( / ˈ s ɪ k s p ən s / ) piece , sometimes known as a tanner or sixpenny bit , was a denomination of sterling coinage worth 1 ⁄ 40 of one pound or half of one shilling . It was first minted in 1551, during the reign of Edward VI , and circulated until 1980. The coin
918-532: The Royal Academy Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Archer Shee . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Archer_Shee&oldid=720943233 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
969-582: The Royal Mint, and it has been suggested that this is the origin of the nickname "tanner", which was a popular name for the coin until decimalisation. An alternative explanation for the nickname is that it comes from the Angloromani word tawno meaning small thing . The Royal Mint undertook a massive recoinage programme in 1816 , with large quantities of gold and silver coin being minted. Previous issues of silver coinage had been irregular, and
1020-578: The Weaver will forgo sixpence a day for life from Theseus the Duke of Athens. In Elizabethan times, six pence was roughly a day's wage for rustic labour in the provinces. With it, one might buy two dinners, six performances of Hamlet among the groundlings at the Globe Theatre , or an unbound copy of the play itself. In David Copperfield , Charles Dickens describes how its protagonist dealt with
1071-460: The background in banking meant all the sons had been brought up to regard misuse of money as sinful. Martin Archer-Shee contacted several lawyers to help clear his son's name. He also contacted his son Major Martin Archer-Shee , the half brother of George, who was active in politics (in 1910 he became Member of Parliament for Finsbury Central in North London). Major Archer-Shee obtained
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#17327756355971122-466: The bride wearing " Something old , something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a silver sixpence in her shoe". A silver sixpence in the bride's shoe is a traditional wedding gesture for good luck; customarily the father of the bride places the sixpence, as a token of him wishing her prosperity, love and happiness in her marriage. They are also used as a good luck charm by Royal Air Force aircrew who have them sewn behind their wings or brevets,
1173-412: The coin was believed to grant good luck. Prepared on Stir-up Sunday , the last Sunday before the start of Advent , the coin would be placed into the mixture, then the mixture was stirred by every member of the family. When it came to eating the pudding on Christmas Day , whoever found the sixpence in their slice would receive good luck in the year to come. In Britain, there is a well-known tradition of
1224-489: The costs of the Second World War . New "silver" coinage was instead minted in cupronickel , an alloy of copper and nickel containing no silver at all. Beginning with Lord Wrottesley 's proposals in the 1820s, there were various attempts to decimalise the pound sterling over the next century and a half. These attempts came to nothing significant until the 1960s, when the need for a currency more suited to simple monetary calculations became pressing. The decision to decimalise
1275-585: The escutcheon of the Royal Arms of England , surrounded by the inscription POSVI DEVM ADIVTORE MEVM , or a variant, meaning " I have made God my helper ". Starting with Elizabeth, the coins have the year of minting stamped on the reverse. Unusually, the sixpences minted in 1561 and 1562 were milled, i.e. produced by machine rather than by hand, with the press of the Frenchman Eloy Mestrelle , who had been granted authority to mint coins by
1326-575: The family should be paid £4,120 to cover their costs, and £3,000 compensation "in full settlement of all demands" (equivalent to £920,000 in 2023). All monies were paid in July 1911. After his expulsion as a naval cadet in 1908, Archer-Shee returned to the Roman Catholic Stonyhurst College in Lancashire , where he had been educated before going to Osborne Naval College. After completing his studies, he went to work at
1377-425: The inscription ANNO followed by the year of minting below. William IV sixpences have a simpler reverse, composed of the words SIX PENCE in the middle, with a crown above, the date below, and a wreath surrounding. With the exception of a withdrawn 1887 issue, Victoria and Edward VII sixpences share this reverse. The reverse of the 1887 issue is broadly the same as the post-1816 George III coins. This reverse
1428-512: The inscription GOD WITH VS . In 1656 the minting of milled coinage resumed, this time with the press of the Frenchman Peter Blondeau . The obverse of Cromwell's milled coinage features a portrait in the manner of a Roman emperor, surrounded by an inscription similar to those on the coins of earlier monarchs. With the exception of a handful of early examples, Charles II sixpences continued to be machine-struck, and continued
1479-594: The late Queen Victoria , educated and trained 14- to 16-year-olds in their first two years of officer training for a career in the Royal Navy. Further studies then continued at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth , in Devon . The theft occurred on 7 October 1908, shortly after the start of the autumn term, when a cadet named Terence Hugh Back received a postal order from a relative for five shillings. On
1530-488: The metal they contained, and during the reign of Henry VIII the purity of silver in coinage had fallen significantly. Sixpences were minted during the reign of every British monarch after Edward VI, as well as during the Commonwealth , with a vast number of variations and alterations over the years. During the reign of George II a number of issues were designed by John Sigismund Tanner , who became Chief Engraver of
1581-407: The obverse. Early sixpences of James I feature the alternative reverse inscription EXVRGAT DEVS DISSIPENTVR INIMICI , meaning " Let God arise and His enemies be scattered ", becoming QVAE DEVS CONIVNXIT NEMO SEPARET , meaning " What God hath put together let no man put asunder " after 1604. Charles I sixpences follow the usual design, except that coins minted after 1630 do not bear a date, and
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1632-559: The persuasion of his own loving parents, has never faltered in the statement that he is innocent. Carson soon proved that the grounds on which the Admiralty had dismissed Archer-Shee were unsubstantiated. The barrister successfully proved that the elderly postmistress, Miss Tucker, could easily have been mistaken. She admitted in court that all of the cadets looked alike, conceding that in the course of dealing with one cadet and her various other tasks and duties, another boy could have entered without her noticing. The court also heard Miss Tucker
1683-506: The portrait is the inscription EDWARD VI D G AGL FRA Z HIB REX , or similar, meaning " Edward VI, by the Grace of God, King of England, France and Ireland ". All sixpences minted under subsequent kings and queens bear a similar inscription on the obverse identifying the monarch (or Lord Protector during the Commonwealth ), with the portrait usually alternating from left-facing to right-facing, or vice versa, between monarchs. The reverse features
1734-407: The previous issue, minted in 1787, had done little to alleviate the chronic shortage of silver coinage in general circulation. New silver coinage was to be of .925 ( sterling ) standard, with silver coins to be minted at 66 shillings to the pound weight. Hence, newly minted sixpences weighed 1 ⁄ 11 troy ounce , equivalent to 43.636 grains or 2.828 grams . The Royal Mint debased
1785-511: The queen. Although of higher quality than hammered coins, Mestrelle's sixpences were more expensive to produce, and machine-struck coinage ceased to be minted in 1572. The coins remained in circulation for over a hundred years, but it took until the reign of Charles II for milled coins of the pound sterling to be minted again. Sixpences minted after the Tudor period no longer bear the Tudor rose on
1836-567: The reign of George III . Those coins minted after the great recoinage of 1816 bear the royal coat of arms on the reverse, surrounded by the Garter , which bears the words HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE , Middle French for " Shame on him who thinks ill of it ". George IV sixpences are similar to those of his predecessor, but on some issues the Garter surrounding the shield is replaced by floral emblems representing England, Scotland and Ireland, with
1887-415: The reverse inscription reads CHRISTO AVSPICE REGNO , meaning " I reign under the auspices of Christ ". During the beginning of Oliver Cromwell 's Protectorship there was no portrait minted on the obverse – instead there is a wreathed shield featuring St George's Cross , surrounded by the inscription THE COMMONWEALTH OF ENGLAND . The reverse features the combined arms of England and Ireland, surrounded by
1938-461: The reverse, consisting of a rose, thistle, shamrock and leek, representing the four Home Nations . As the supply of silver threepence coins slowly disappeared, Royal Mint sixpences replaced them as the coins traditionally put into Christmas puddings . From the Victorian era onwards, it became tradition to mix a threepence or sixpence into the ingredients when preparing a Christmas pudding, as
1989-534: The same afternoon, Archer-Shee had been given permission to go to a post office outside the college grounds to buy a postal order and a stamp because he wanted to buy a model train costing fifteen shillings and sixpence (15s 6d). On returning to the college, he discovered that Back had reported that his postal order had been stolen. Miss Tucker, the elderly clerk at Osborne Post Office, was contacted. She produced Back's cashed postal order and stated that only two cadets had visited her that afternoon. However, she claimed
2040-439: The same cadet who had bought a postal order for 15s 6d was also the one who cashed the 5s order. When the Admiralty wrote to Archer-Shee's father telling him that his son was being expelled for theft, his father instantly responded that "Nothing will make me believe the boy guilty of this charge, which shall be sifted by independent experts". The father's reaction reflected the family's values. They were devout Roman Catholics and
2091-524: The services of Sir Edward Carson , regarded as one of the United Kingdom 's best barristers of the age, who had a son at Osborne. Several problems prevented Carson from taking the case straight to court. Firstly as Archer-Shee was a naval cadet at the time, this excluded him from the jurisdiction of a civil court . Secondly as he was not enlisted in the Royal Navy, he was not entitled to a court-martial . In order to help his client, Carson brought
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2142-400: The silver coinage in 1920 from 92.5% silver to 50% silver. Sixpences of both alloys were minted that year. This debasement was done because of the rising price of silver around the world, and followed the global trend of elimination, or reduction in purity, of the silver in coinage. The minting of silver coinage of the pound sterling ceased completely in 1946 for similar reasons, exacerbated by
2193-614: The title and as a plot device in Michael Paraskos 's novel In Search of Sixpence . The sixpence appears in the English nursery rhyme " Sing a Song of Sixpence " published in London in 1744. Half a Sixpence is the title of the 1963 West End stage musical, and the subsequent 1967 musical film version, of H. G. Wells 's novel Kipps . "I've Got Sixpence" is a song dating from at least 1810. An elaborated version
2244-402: The usual practice of having a portrait of the monarch on the obverse. The reverse features a new design consisting of four shields arranged in a cross, with the inscription detailing the style of the monarch split across both sides of the coin. With minor changes, such as the device at the centre of the shields, and the designs between the shields, this basic design continued to be minted through
2295-628: The wall at the front of the Roman Catholic church of St Mary on the Quay , Bristol. Robinson was killed four days before Archer-Shee on 27 October. Both their names are recorded on tablet 35 of the Menin Gate in Ypres, as neither has a known grave. Terence Back, the cadet whose postal order for five shillings was taken, served in the Royal Navy in both World Wars. He was made a Commander of
2346-471: Was published in 1941 , words and music by Elton Box & Desmond Cox. the singer tells the tale of spending twopence (per verse) until he has "no-pence to send home to my wife – poor wife." Some guitarists prefer the rigidity of a coin to the flexibility of a more traditional plastic plectrum ; among them are Brian May of Queen and Ian Bairnson of The Alan Parsons Project . May at some time even had sixpence-sized coins featuring his own head struck by
2397-564: Was an official at the Bank of England in Bristol and grandson of the painter Sir Martin Archer Shee . His half-brother was Martin Archer-Shee , an army officer and Member of Parliament. Actor Robert Bathurst is his great nephew. In January 1908 Archer-Shee became a cadet at the Royal Naval College, Osborne , at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight . The college, which was part of the estate of
2448-422: Was announced in 1966, with the pound to be divided into 100, rather than 240, pence. Decimal Day was set as 15 February 1971, and a whole range of new coins were introduced. Sixpences continued to be legal tender , with a value of 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 new pence, until 30 June 1980. In 2016, the Royal Mint began minting legal tender decimal sixpence coins in sterling silver, intended as commemorative coins for
2499-570: Was made from silver from its introduction in 1551 until 1947, and thereafter in cupronickel . Before Decimal Day in 1971, sterling used the Carolingian monetary system ( £sd ), under which the largest unit was a pound (£), divisible into 20 shillings (s), each worth 12 pence (d), the value of two pre-decimal sixpence coins. Following decimalisation, the old sixpence had a value of 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 new pence (£0.025). In 2016, new decimal sixpences (face value £0.06) began being minted by
2550-600: Was the same regiment that Sir Edward Carson's nephew Francis Robinson had joined shortly before. Archer-Shee was killed, aged 19, at the First Battle of Ypres in October 1914 while attached to the 1st Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment. His name is inscribed on the war memorial in the village of North Woodchester in Gloucestershire, where his parents lived. His name also appears on the roll of honour of "the men of St Mary’s school and congregation" displayed on
2601-513: Was unable to identify Archer-Shee among the other cadets when given the opportunity to do so. On the fourth day of the trial, the Solicitor-General accepted the statement that George Archer-Shee did not cash the postal order "and consequently that he is innocent of the charge. I say further, in order that there may be no misapprehension about it, that I make that statement without any reserve of any description, intending that it shall be
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