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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;johnmilton, post: 3400476, member: 101855&quot;]Henry I, who ruled from 1100 to 1135 is generally regarded as a good king. He was nicknamed “Beauclerc” (the good scholar) for his studies in Latin and English law. He was also an able administrator and diplomat. </p><p><br /></p><p>One thing he didn’t get right was his coins. They were terrible. During his reign people thought that they were debased which lead a lot of the public to clip and test them. After they were clipped the coins became hard to pass. Henry noticed this and started the practice of having a “snick” cut into the coins before they left the mint. Therefore, with all of the coins defaced, that was all the public had to use.</p><p><br /></p><p>Henry came down hard on some moneyers who were said to be debasing their products. One Christmas, he invited a number of them to London. Their “Christmas present” as the story goes, was that “they are taken thither and deprived of their right hand and the parts beneath …“ if you follow my drift. This gives true meaning to the modern phrase, “I’m going to get medieval on your … butt.” In medieval times and even up to the 19th century, cruel and unusual punishments were not unusual, which is why our founding fathers included language about that in the constitution.</p><p><br /></p><p>Most all Henry I pennies are terrible. I have a rule of thumb. I won’t pay high prices for terrible coins. I filled my Henry coin slot with this piece. It’s obviously a ground salvage piece, and it would probably fall apart if I didn’t keep it in a coin cap, but it’s immediately identifiable. In this case I purchased the cheapest terrible and attributable coin that I could find.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]902979[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]902981[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Henry I had one son, William. In 1120 William, age 17, was going to sail back to England from France in “The Great White Ship.” Everyone was on board was rip-roaring drunk. As they sailed out of the harbor, the ship hit a rock and sank. All but one person on board was killed, including William. This left Henry without a male heir. This would cause problems in the next chapter of our story.</p><p><br /></p><p>Henry really like lampreys, a blood sucking eel that was considered to be a great delicacy in the Middle Ages. Henry’s doctor warned him not to eat them, but he decided to enjoy a big plate of them anyway. After his meal, the king took sick and died within several days.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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