Pounds shillings and pence

[BarrelOfOtters]

im in my 50s, too young to remember decimilisation in 1971 but I know about pounds, Guineas, sixpence etc. 20 shillings = 1 pound. Pence (d) – 12 pence = 1 shilling. 240 pence = 1 pound.

colleague in his 20s had never heard of this. I mean surely mos5 people have seen it in a film or read a book set in the 60s?

or am I really just old.

I worked with someone recently who never knew we used to have a half pence coin

The joy of running to the shop with 10p knowing you could choose 20 1/2 p sweeties

In that case most of history is irrelevant.

It’s worth noting that many books have been updated in modern reprints: I knew about pre-decimalisation currency from childhood through Enid Blyton, Jill and her ponies books etc; by the time my brother, ten years ra my junior, was reading similar books they’d been updated with decimal currency. I’ve read adult novels which have been similarly updated. I can easily see how somebody younger might be unaware, unless they’re into historical non fiction.

Also ignorant just means you don't know something. If he/she doesn't know it they are ignorant.

Even if you've never lived during decimalisation yourself, you'd learn about it by talking to older relatives, who still talk about things costing '5 bob', continued use of old coins (shilling and two shilling coins were in use as 5 and 10 p coins for decades after decimalisation), in books and films/TV, museum visits (there are at least two museums in my city that I'd say just about everyone is taken to on school trips), coin collecting, looking in antique shop windows, that sort of thing.

But some people don't seem to take much notice or interest in the world around them, so things that are assumed to be common knowledge can pass them by.

I even remember farthings so yes I'm ancient.

@CaptainMyCaptain if you say so

Farthings
Tanners
Thrupenny bits
A Bob

Those were the days...

Oh yes, my local sweet shop had a penny tray and a half pence tray and if you were flush there was even a 2p tray. I don't know how they had the patience as we studied the half pence tray for ages and then handed over 2 pence or something.

I'm in my 40s, I know about pounds shilling and pence and decimilisation but no idea on values. Why would I need to?

Yes!

Dare I say this? Some people are bright and curious and have parents who talk to them and answer their questions. Some don't. As you grow older you find out more and more about what went on earlier so you can't wonder that young people don't know everything.

(On the radio Richard Mason said he'd never heard about Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret slipping out of the palace on VE night and mingling, no doubt with their security men, with the crowds, but he knows now and no doubt he knows lots of bits of history that I don't know.)

Aye ye was considered wealthy if ye had a ten bob note in ye pocket 😉

Curmudgeonly old biddy that I am, I think it was good for all of our brains, from a maths point of view, to have to deal with pounds and ounces and shillings and pence. It kept us working with 12 and 14 and 16 etc.

112 lbs = 1 cwt
20 cwt = 1 ton (no, not tonne!)
2240 lbs = 1 ton !!!! yes, from memory

A greengocer in town sells proper paper bags of taties, but I suppose they're marked up in kilos.

A florin = 2s = two shillings = 24d

When decimalisation was introduced, it was said that now children hadn’t got to bother with £sd sums etc., they’d soon be much better at maths.

I wonder whether that’s been proved right. I grew up with £sd and well remember mental arithmetic tests - e.g. the cost of a dozen articles at tuppence three farthings etc. - easier than it sounds since we were taught short cuts - 12 pennies in a shilling, so a dozen x 2d = 2 shillings, and 3 farthings = 3/4 of a penny, and 3/4 of a shilling is ninepence.

I’m glad dds and Gdcs will never have needed to do these, though!

By coincidence, I came across a handwritten shopping list on the internet yesterday with prices shown against the items in £sd. I looked at it and looked at it and could not remember how to work out the total. And I was good at ‘sums’ at school.

Half crowns (2/6d) were a lovely thing to be given when I was a kid - a big heavy coin that would buy you 5 Mars Bars!

“But some people don't seem to take much notice or interest in the world around them, so things that are assumed to be common knowledge can pass them by.”

The OP’s colleague needs a break, not knowing about a system of currency made redundant almost 50 years before they were born is no indication as to whether they take an interest in the world about them. Probably more interested in stuff that is more personally relevant, just, I guess, most posters on this thread were at that age.

One thing that has arisen since decimalisation is the misuse of the word pence.

You can only have two or more pence. It’s the plural of penny.

Why was pence marked as d?

I wouldn't be shocked by a 20 year old not knowing about decimalisation. It's of little significance today - my parents in their 70s don't even talk about it unless they're having a good old reminisce about their own parents.

I had to tell a young lass about that recent event (not) Chernobyl. As someone said, young people will pick up on things as they go through life and not everyone has an enquiring mind or family who talk to them about these things.

As per my post above, Lira, Solidi and Denarii were the Latin units, and we kept their initials.

Ah I hadn't seen that, Wednesday. Fair enough.

My Nan never “got” new money. She would have to break a pound note every time she went to the shops. Then my mom and aunt would count up the mountains of change every Saturday and give her pound notes back and it would start again.

I was 4 when decimalisation happened. I have a reasonable grasp of the value of old money from reading and watching films.

I struggle to imagine the size of any item given to me in metric, it makes more sense to my mind to go back to feet and inches.

WeatherVane1 I still have a thrupenny bit in my jewellery box.

I am in my 60s and can remember the song we sung at school to help us learn decimals. My DC know about the previous system, maybe not in detail but in a general way from reading, conversation etc

Decimalisation is different to metrication.

The Americans have a decimalised currency but use feet and inches (mostly).