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Sale 37
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Lot 4265
Great Britain. Newark Siege Halfcrown, 1646. S.3140A. Charles I, 1625-1649. Large double arched crown between C R. Value XXX (Pence) below. Reverse: OBS. (short for obsessum or 'besieged' in Latin) NEWARK 1646 in three lines. One of the best quality examples of this historically important coin. Razor sharp edge with crisp detail and an old blue-grey cabinet tone. This is far superior to the Spink catalogue plate coin. A truly incredible specimen, and certainly one of the finest known examples. Irreplaceable. NGC graded EF-45.
** During the English Civil War there were approximately 300 sieges, some lasting only a few days while others were major incidents involving soldiers and civilians together. With Newark declaring to be 'for the King' at the start of the Civil War, the siege at Newark (on Trent) was such a point in history. Already assaulted by the forces of Parliament on two prior occasions, the siege of 1645-6 was about to be the backdrop of history changing events.
By late 1645 the Royalist cause was at a low ebb. On the 14th June 1645 the King's army had suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of Parliament's 'New Model Army' at Naseby. In the following months, one by one the Royalist garrisons were besieged, surrendered or overwhelmed. But the King remained defiant.
Newark was a strategic 'north Midlands' town which inevitably attracted the attention of Parliamentary forces.
On hearing the news, while he was at Newark in October 1645, that the King's nephew Prince Rupert had surrendered the town of Bristol., King Charles summoned Rupert to Newark to explain himself. There was a confrontation at the Governor's house in Newar's market square and the Prince left with 300 of his most loyal supporters - and never fought in the war again. Parliament attacked Newark in November 1645 and the King fled to the relative safety of Oxford- the makeshift Royalist capital. On 26th November the Scots Army under General Alexander Leslie advanced on Newark and sealed off the approaches to the town from the north and west. At the same time the Parliamentary forces garrisoned their soldiers in the villages to the south and east of Newark. The encirclement was effective but slow.
At this time, Lord John Belasyse, whom the King had installed as Governor of Newark, took the opportunity to provision the town, and in addition, to overcome the shortage of coinage he minted siege pieces from silver plate donated by wealthy citizens. These coins were made in the familiarly unique diamond shape, and the halfcrown was the largest denomination. Shillings, ninepences and sixpences were also produced. All are rare, and especially so in good condition.
In March and April 1646 the Parliamentary commanders realized that they needed to increase the size of the siege forces to achieve good results, and eventually they pushed slowly further towards the town's center. General Poyntz, the Parliamentary commander had a strategy which was clearly to bombard the town into submission, and as malnutrition and disease plagued the defenders, matters became grim. At this time a forlorn King Charles decided to ride north and surrender himself to the mercies of the Scottish Army. Eventually, on 6th May 1646, the King ordered Newark's Governor Belasyse to surrender. With the fall of Newark the English Civil war was effectively at an end. today, with intensive ploughing, expansion of the town and increased industrialization, most of the evidence of the famous siege has been lost to history. But a few of the diamond shaped coins still remain as important historic relics.
Estimated Value $7,000 - 8,000.
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| Realized $7,820 |
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