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20 Kwacha Abdication of King Edward VIII
| Issuer | Reserve Bank of Malawi |
|---|---|
| Year | 1998 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Milled |
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| Obverse description | The national coat of arms of Malawi displayed prominently in the centre of the field, featuring a shield supported by a lion rampant to the left and a leopard to the right, with a rising sun at the base of the shield and an African fish eagle displayed above. The motto ribbon below bears the legend UNITY AND FREEDOM. The inscription REPUBLIC OF MALAWI curves along the upper periphery, and the date 1998 appears in the lower field beneath the arms. |
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| Reverse description | A portrait of King Edward VIII seated at a table before a microphone, depicted in the act of delivering his abdication broadcast of December 1936. The king is shown in formal attire, rendered in high relief against a plain field. The legend ABDICATION OF KING EDWARD VIII 1936 appears within the surrounding inscription, accompanied by the denomination 20 KWACHA and the name QUEEN ELIZABETH THE QUEEN MOTHER. |
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| Additional information |
Edward VIII abdicated on December 11, 1936, after reigning for 326 days — never crowned, never appearing on a circulating British coin that reached the public. The Malawi commemorative was issued over sixty years after the event, part of a wave of 1990s silver rounds exploiting collector appetite for royal drama. Malawi had no historical connection to Edward's abdication; the Reserve Bank simply licensed the subject.
Edward subsequently became Duke of Windsor and spent much of the war under close Foreign Office surveillance amid concerns about his German sympathies.