Royal Mint avoids coin marking Battle of Bannockburn over fears of creating support for Scottish independence

  • Royal Mint didn’t create a Battle of Bannockburn commemorative coin in 2014
  • The 700th anniversary coin would have included picture of Robert the Bruce 
  • But bosses decided not to for fear of whipping up support for independence  

The Royal Mint avoided producing a commemorative coin to mark the Battle of Bannockburn for fear of whipping up support for Scottish independence.

Advisers decided it would not be ‘prudent’ to strike a coin celebrating Robert the Bruce’s famous victory over the army of Edward II to appear in March 2014, the 700th anniversary of the battle, but also the same year as the Scottish referendum.

Members of an advisory committee also scrapped plans for a coin to mark the 300th anniversary of the death of Queen Anne, during whose reign England and Scotland were unified as Great Britain.

The Royal Mint didn’t put pictures of Robert the Bruce on a commemorative coin in 2014 for fear of whipping up support for Scottish independence 


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Minutes from a 2012 meeting at Buckingham Palace state: ‘A crown piece to commemorate the death of Queen Anne had been proposed but, with the Act of Union being one of the main achievements of her reign and a referendum on devolution being planned for 2014, political concerns were raised.’

The minutes, obtained under Freedom of Information laws, show officials also hesitated about a coin to mark the 50th anniversary of England’s 1966 World Cup win saying ‘it was regarded as a negative rather than a positive statement about English football – that England has only won it once. 

The Battle of Hastings was recommended in its place.’

The committee on the design of coins, medals, seals and decorations eventually changed their minds and a World Cup commemorative coin was struck.

Advisers decided it would not be ‘prudent’ to strike a coin celebrating Robert the Bruce’s famous victory over the army of Edward II to appear in March 2014, the 700th anniversary of the battle, but also the same year as the Scottish referendum

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