The Hazelbury Hoard Photos & Text Steven Simmons November 2023
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The earliest coin found in the hoard is dated to James I Second coinage Unite 1605-1606
I was granted permission to metal detect the land at Hazelbury by the owners in 2020, although the general opinion was nothing would be found after the extensive work of George Jardine Kidston a century earlier. The number of finds that I made has been quite remarkable, bringing new life to the history of the area and the people who lived here. Perhaps the most remarkable find was fourteen gold coins covering the period of James I and Charles I and dated between 1605 and 1643.[1] The coins were buried between six and twelve inches below the surface, clustered together, along the trackway called Wyres Lane from Hazelbury to Box Mill. One of the coins had remnants of a leather purse or pouch on its surfaces, suggesting that the coins previously had been held as a single group.
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Two coins dated to James I third coinage 1619-1620. Above a half-laurel indicated by "X" meaning 10 shillings and below a full laurel "XX" 20 shillings.
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Troubled Times
The dating of the deposit of about 1643 is significant. The Speke family had bought the old medieval mansion of John Bonham and restored and improved it after Hugh Speke became lord of the manors of Box and Hazelbury in 1602. The estate passed to his son George Speke from 1624 to 1656 and the deposit seems to coincide with this tenure. The Civil War which broke out in England in 1642 was primarily a dispute between the authority of Parliament and the monarch concerning the rights of each following the dissolution of parliament and the personal rule of the king during the 1630s. Under pressure to raise money to quell an uprising in Scotland, Charles recalled Parliament in 1640 which then enabled the Parliamentarians to raise their grievances. Charles fled from London and took refuge in the north of England and then the Midlands.
The dating of the deposit of about 1643 is significant. The Speke family had bought the old medieval mansion of John Bonham and restored and improved it after Hugh Speke became lord of the manors of Box and Hazelbury in 1602. The estate passed to his son George Speke from 1624 to 1656 and the deposit seems to coincide with this tenure. The Civil War which broke out in England in 1642 was primarily a dispute between the authority of Parliament and the monarch concerning the rights of each following the dissolution of parliament and the personal rule of the king during the 1630s. Under pressure to raise money to quell an uprising in Scotland, Charles recalled Parliament in 1640 which then enabled the Parliamentarians to raise their grievances. Charles fled from London and took refuge in the north of England and then the Midlands.
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Above Left: James I third coinage Half-Laurel 1624 and Right: James I third coinage Laurel 1624
Below: James I third coinage Laurel 1624
Below: James I third coinage Laurel 1624
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Ordinary people became involved in the stand-off, declaring their allegiance and often forming local militia groups called Clubmen, to protect their areas. Many viewed the conflict on religious grounds, Queen Henrietta Maria being a Roman Catholic French princess and the Puritans who wished to move the English Church further non-Conformist. Often local issues determined opinion and George Speke’s wife and daughter were known to be recusant (Catholic supporters).
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Above and below left: Charles I Double Crown 1625 and below right: a unite coin with value of 20 shillings ("XX").
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Types of Coins
Some explanation of the terms 'Unite', 'Laurel' and 'Double Crown', and the inscriptions upon the coins, provides some additional context.[2] Sovereigns (gold coins worth £1) were first issued during the reign of Henry VII. The word 'Unite' was the name given to the initial issues of sovereigns at the beginning of the reign of James I which commemorated the union of the crowns of England and Scotland. The Laurel refers to the later issues of James which show a laurel wreath around the monarch's head. Under Charles I the design reverted to a crowned head, and the coins are again referred to as 'Unites'.
On both the Unites and Laurels of James I the reverses bear the inscription FACIAM EOS GENTEM VNAM ("I have made one people of them"); a quotation from the Latin Vulgate bible from Ezekiel 37.23. The half-laurels were worth 10 shillings.
These coins bore the legend HENRICVS ROSAS REGNA JACOBVS ("Henry [united] the roses, James the kingdoms") on the reverse, the Henry in question being Henry VII, whose accession to the throne after the battle of Bosworth in 1485 brought the wars of the roses to a conclusion (but it is worth noting that James's eldest son, who died early in his reign, was also called Henry.) This secular and overtly political legend was of James's own invention, reflecting James's concern that the association of the two crowns should lead to an association of the two countries themselves[3].
Charles I's Unites within the Hazelbury Hoard bear the legend FLORENT CONCORDIA REGNA ("Harmonious Kingdoms flourish"; a somewhat ironic assertion in the light of the civil war which enveloped the country during his reign) and CVLTORES SVI DEVS PROTEGIT ("God protects his worshippers") on the Double Crowns, which like the half-laurels of the previous reign were worth 10 shillings.
Who Deposited the Coins?
We can theorise why the coins were deposited. They were placed at a significant point on Wyres Lane trackway, a considerable distance from Hazelbury Manor. This would seem to suggest that they were not casually dropped, nor buried by the Speke family or its household. It is improbable that the hoard was deposited by a member of the Speke family.[4] Their wills indicate that much of their portable wealth was in the form of plate. Had they been burying valuables, they would have presumably buried both plate and coins. The coins are for the most part relatively unworn, suggesting that they had been taken out of circulation shortly after minting, being accumulated over a long period before being deposited (or lost) in a single episode. One of the half laurels is pierced, suggesting that it had been worn, perhaps as a 'lucky charm'. The king's touch was believed to cure illnesses, particularly that known as scrofula, and part of the 'touching' ritual involved the monarch hanging a coin around the neck of the infected person. The value of the hoard at the time of its deposition was £10. The conveniently-rounded figure and the absence of any silver coins might perhaps indicate that the coins represent some form of transaction.
By July 1643 the Civil War was taking place locally with an attempt by supporters of the King to capture Bath. The Royalists took Bradford-on-Avon, swept through Claverton and Batheaston before confronting Parliamentary forces at Lansdown Hill, Bath on 5 July. The Royalists were defeated and they retreated to Devizes where the Battle of Roundway Down was fought on 13 July, when the Royalists were successful.
Whether the depositor was a soldier we shall never know. A foot-soldier's pay was 6d per day, rising to 4 to 6 shillings per week, whilst the cavalry were paid (in theory) 17s 6d, from which they had to feed their mounts, and the colonel of an infantry regiment £15 15s a week.[5] In actuality these amounts were rarely paid in full: often soldiers were paid months in arrears, and the irregular payments were a frequent source of discontent amongst the armies of both sets of protagonists. The war also provided opportunities for plunder, so it is not entirely inconceivable that a soldier might be carrying a sum of this magnitude. Of course the money need not have belonged to a soldier; some of the wealthier yeoman kept significant sums of cash in the house; amongst mid-seventeenth century examples of probate inventories from Box and Ditteridge are Peter Webb (died 1630) whose inventory included £60 in ready money in the house, and John Pinnel of Hill House (died 1638) who had £56.[6]
Some explanation of the terms 'Unite', 'Laurel' and 'Double Crown', and the inscriptions upon the coins, provides some additional context.[2] Sovereigns (gold coins worth £1) were first issued during the reign of Henry VII. The word 'Unite' was the name given to the initial issues of sovereigns at the beginning of the reign of James I which commemorated the union of the crowns of England and Scotland. The Laurel refers to the later issues of James which show a laurel wreath around the monarch's head. Under Charles I the design reverted to a crowned head, and the coins are again referred to as 'Unites'.
On both the Unites and Laurels of James I the reverses bear the inscription FACIAM EOS GENTEM VNAM ("I have made one people of them"); a quotation from the Latin Vulgate bible from Ezekiel 37.23. The half-laurels were worth 10 shillings.
These coins bore the legend HENRICVS ROSAS REGNA JACOBVS ("Henry [united] the roses, James the kingdoms") on the reverse, the Henry in question being Henry VII, whose accession to the throne after the battle of Bosworth in 1485 brought the wars of the roses to a conclusion (but it is worth noting that James's eldest son, who died early in his reign, was also called Henry.) This secular and overtly political legend was of James's own invention, reflecting James's concern that the association of the two crowns should lead to an association of the two countries themselves[3].
Charles I's Unites within the Hazelbury Hoard bear the legend FLORENT CONCORDIA REGNA ("Harmonious Kingdoms flourish"; a somewhat ironic assertion in the light of the civil war which enveloped the country during his reign) and CVLTORES SVI DEVS PROTEGIT ("God protects his worshippers") on the Double Crowns, which like the half-laurels of the previous reign were worth 10 shillings.
Who Deposited the Coins?
We can theorise why the coins were deposited. They were placed at a significant point on Wyres Lane trackway, a considerable distance from Hazelbury Manor. This would seem to suggest that they were not casually dropped, nor buried by the Speke family or its household. It is improbable that the hoard was deposited by a member of the Speke family.[4] Their wills indicate that much of their portable wealth was in the form of plate. Had they been burying valuables, they would have presumably buried both plate and coins. The coins are for the most part relatively unworn, suggesting that they had been taken out of circulation shortly after minting, being accumulated over a long period before being deposited (or lost) in a single episode. One of the half laurels is pierced, suggesting that it had been worn, perhaps as a 'lucky charm'. The king's touch was believed to cure illnesses, particularly that known as scrofula, and part of the 'touching' ritual involved the monarch hanging a coin around the neck of the infected person. The value of the hoard at the time of its deposition was £10. The conveniently-rounded figure and the absence of any silver coins might perhaps indicate that the coins represent some form of transaction.
By July 1643 the Civil War was taking place locally with an attempt by supporters of the King to capture Bath. The Royalists took Bradford-on-Avon, swept through Claverton and Batheaston before confronting Parliamentary forces at Lansdown Hill, Bath on 5 July. The Royalists were defeated and they retreated to Devizes where the Battle of Roundway Down was fought on 13 July, when the Royalists were successful.
Whether the depositor was a soldier we shall never know. A foot-soldier's pay was 6d per day, rising to 4 to 6 shillings per week, whilst the cavalry were paid (in theory) 17s 6d, from which they had to feed their mounts, and the colonel of an infantry regiment £15 15s a week.[5] In actuality these amounts were rarely paid in full: often soldiers were paid months in arrears, and the irregular payments were a frequent source of discontent amongst the armies of both sets of protagonists. The war also provided opportunities for plunder, so it is not entirely inconceivable that a soldier might be carrying a sum of this magnitude. Of course the money need not have belonged to a soldier; some of the wealthier yeoman kept significant sums of cash in the house; amongst mid-seventeenth century examples of probate inventories from Box and Ditteridge are Peter Webb (died 1630) whose inventory included £60 in ready money in the house, and John Pinnel of Hill House (died 1638) who had £56.[6]
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Above Left: Charles I Unite 1625; Above Right: Charles I Unite 1631-1632
Below Left: Charles I Double Crown 1639-1640; Below Right: Charles I Double Crown 1641-1643
Below Left: Charles I Double Crown 1639-1640; Below Right: Charles I Double Crown 1641-1643
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It is possible that the deposit was made by a solider who fought in these battles, burying the hoard for safety, and intending to return to collect it. Possibly the owner was prevented from doing so by injury or in the melee which followed a defeated army’s retreat.
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Above: Reverse and obverse of Charles I Double Crown 1629-1630
Significance of the Deposit
Several similar coin deposits have been discovered relating to the Civil War period. What makes this find significant is that it is one of the few coin deposits at Hazelbury and rare in comprising only gold coins. Could it have been left by a wealthy soldier? Was it a theft by an ordinary person? Or was it intended to be used to pay other troops? We can only speculate.
Several similar coin deposits have been discovered relating to the Civil War period. What makes this find significant is that it is one of the few coin deposits at Hazelbury and rare in comprising only gold coins. Could it have been left by a wealthy soldier? Was it a theft by an ordinary person? Or was it intended to be used to pay other troops? We can only speculate.
The Hazelbury Hoard in situ
Reference
[1] The find was properly reported through the Portable Antiquities Scheme, see www.finds.org.uk, this particular item being reference WILT - 0CB2A3.
[2] This section is indebted to Jonathan Parkhouse.
[3] CHV Sutherland (1973), English Coinage 600 - 1900, (Batsford), p 163
[4] We are most grateful Jonathan Parkhouse who has contributed several sections in this part of the article
[5] C Carlton (1992) Going to the Wars: the experience of the British civil wars 1638-1651, (Routledge, London), pp77, 94
[6] Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre P1/W/139 and P3/P/222
[1] The find was properly reported through the Portable Antiquities Scheme, see www.finds.org.uk, this particular item being reference WILT - 0CB2A3.
[2] This section is indebted to Jonathan Parkhouse.
[3] CHV Sutherland (1973), English Coinage 600 - 1900, (Batsford), p 163
[4] We are most grateful Jonathan Parkhouse who has contributed several sections in this part of the article
[5] C Carlton (1992) Going to the Wars: the experience of the British civil wars 1638-1651, (Routledge, London), pp77, 94
[6] Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre P1/W/139 and P3/P/222