In 2006 to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Victoria Cross, the Royal Mint released a very Limited Edition Piedfort 50p Fifty Pence Silver Proof Coin struck in solid .925 Sterling Silver.
The Victoria Cross is the highest award for gallentry in the face of the enemy. All who have received it have shown conspicous bravery many at the cost of their own lives.
The original idea for the Victoria Cross was proposed by the Duke of Newcastle in 1854 and the Royal Warrant for the creation of the medal was eventually signed by Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace on 29th January 1856. The first investiture took place in June 1857 in Hyde Park, where crowds gathered to witness the Queen, mounted on horseback, presenting medals to sailors and soldiers.
The reverse depicts a soldier carrying a wounded colleague against a silhouette of the Victoria Cross designed by Clive Duncan and the obverse is a portrait of Elizabeth II designed by Ian Rank Broadley FRBS, FSNAD.
These legal tender coins have been struck to proof quality using specially prepared dies and highly polished blanks.
Piedforts are coins which have been specially struck on thicker than normal blanks. As their name suggests they are closely associated with France, where from the twelfth century they were apparently issued by the Kings as presentation pieces. In Britain the practise of striking piedforts is later and less frequent, but medieval and Tudor examples are known.
Limited Mintage Worldwide
Piedfort Double the Thickness and Weight of its Standard Counterpart
