1 Penny - James I 1st coinage

James I inherited a debased and fractured English coinage on Elizabeth I's death in 1603, and his first coinage — struck before the formal union of the English and Scottish crowns was legally enacted — retained the traditional English denominational structure rather than introducing the unified British series that would follow. The penny at this weight was already close to impractical for everyday exchange; halfgroats and groats did most of the actual transactional work.

The 1st coinage ran only until 1604, when revised royal titles reflecting the new kingdom of Great Britain required a complete reissue.