In 2016 to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the First World War and the Army's contribution to victory, the Royal Mint released a very Limited Issue Piedfort
Army Pals Battalions£2 Two Pound Silver Proof Coin struck in solid .925 Sterling Silver.
In 1914, as Europe finally went to war, the call went out to enlist. The British Army, unlike the French and German armies, was made up exclusively of volunteers. 30,000 volunteers signed up each day, in response to Lord Kitchener’s famous recruitment drive. Those who enlisted together were permitted to serve together in ‘Pals Battalions’ with workmates, friends and neighbour's, standing side by side to defend their communities.
The debut of the Kitchener Army of volunteers turned into a massacre. As the British divisions advanced they were cut down by machine gun fire. Few communities remained untouched by the immense sacrifice paid as a result of this strategic failure.
The reverse designed by Tim Sharp depicts Army Soldiers Pals Battalions - Friends, Neighbours and workmates serving side by side shoulder to shoulder while the obverse has the stunning Fifth Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Jody Clark. 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 practice of striking piedforts is later and less frequent, but medieval and Tudor examples are known.
Limited Mintage of 931 Worldwide
Piedfort Double the Thickness and Weight of it's Standard Counterpart
Finished to Royal Mint's Proof Quality in Solid .925 Sterling Silver
Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the First World War - The Army
