King Charles’ £1 coin Featuring British Bees Buzzes into Circulation

The first £1 coin bearing His Majesty King Charles III’s official coin portrait enters circulation.
A total of 2.975 million £1 coins have been issued to Post Offices and Banks across the UK.
The £1 is part of His Majesty’s Definitive collection, inspired by the flora and fauna of the British Isles.

20^th August 2024: Coin collectors are encouraged to keep an eye on their change for a piece of history, as His Majesty King Charles III’s first £1 coin enters circulation this week.

The latest design, featuring British Bees, has been issued to UK Post Offices and banks, with a total of 2.975 million coins making their way into tills across the country.

The tribute to British Bees is one of eight new designs that will appear on the nation’s coins, from the 1p, to the £2, which feature animals such as the Hazel Dormouse, Puffin and the Atlantic Salmon – all species which are in active conservation programmes.

Revealed in October 2023, the new designs highlight His Majesty King Charles III’s passion for conservation. The number indicating the value of each coin has also been enlarged, to help children understand the value of money.

Unifying the new coins is a unique repeating pattern featuring three interlocking C’s. This aspect of the design takes its inspiration from history and the cypher of Charles II, while the flora and fauna look to the future and the importance of the natural world.

Following the reveal of the designs, production of the coins begun with several million struck by The Royal Mint in South Wales. The Atlantic Salmon 50p was the first of the eight designs to enter circulation at the end of 2023.

Rebecca Morgan Director of Commemorative Coin at The Royal Mint said, “The Royal Mint has made the circulating coinage of each of Britain’s monarchs since Alfred the Great and it is an honour to reveal that King Charles III’s £1 coin is now in circulation. We know there’ll be a buzz of excitement amongst collectors and the public to get this special piece of history in their change. We hope the designs across all denominations spark important conversations about the conservation of these important species.”

In a poll hosted by The Royal Mint, the £1 coin was crowned as the favourite among all eight-coin designs, with the 2p depicting the Red Squirrel following closely in second place. Close to 3,000 people cast their votes to crown their favourite design, with the £1 coming out on top with nearly 30% of the votes.

Commemorative sets of the definitive coins are also available from The Royal Mint’s website and are priced from £34 at www.royalmint.com. Each coin has been created with the support of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).

The new ‘definitive’ coins of the nation:

1p	Hazel Dormouse Small in stature, the hazel dormouse is a fitting presence on the UK 1p coin. Mostly found in southern England in the UK, the hazel dormouse population in the UK has halved since 2007. However, more than 1,000 have been reintroduced in 13 different counties across the country to reverse the hazel dormouse’s ongoing decline.
2p	Red Squirrel The red squirrel’s distinctive colouring blends perfectly with the reddish hue of the UK 2p coin.   With 75% of its UK population found in areas of Scotland, the red squirrel can also be found in Northern Ireland, the Isle of Wight, Brownsea Island, Anglesey, Cumbria, Kielder Forest and Formby. Conservation efforts are currently in place to manage the population in the UK to avoid it becoming extinct.
5p	Oak tree leaf The UK 5p coin displays a leaf taken from an oak tree, signifying its role as a rich habitat for biodiversity in British woodland areas. Supporting more life than any other native tree species in the UK, the oak tree has a long association with monarchies, as ancient kings of Britain and Roman Emperors wore crowns of oak leaves.
10p	Capercaillie Found in a small part of Scotland, the capercaillie is the world’s largest grouse and features on the reverse of the UK 10p coin. After becoming extinct once before, in the mid eighteenth century, the species is now at risk of becoming extinct for the second time.
20p	Puffin The unmistakable seabird features on the reverse of the new definitive UK 20p coin.  Striking in their appearance, around 10% of the worldwide puffin population breeds along the UK’s coastline. Classed as a Red List species, the population is predicted to severely regress over the next 30 years but there is hope for the puffin if action is taken to protect their nesting sites and food supply.
50p	Atlantic salmon A priority conservation species, the Atlantic salmon features on the UK 50p coin. Wild populations are low due to factors like river pollution, habitat loss, river heating and overfishing. They can be found in clean rivers in Scotland and Wales along with those in North and South West England.
£1	Bees The £1 features a depiction of a bee, symbolising the 250+ species which exist in Britain. Bumblebees, mason bees, mining bees and more - these industrious insects play a pivotal role in pollinating many plants and fruiting trees. They can be found all over the country, commonly in gardens, parks, woods, orchards and meadows, and now on the reverse of the UK £1 coin.
£2	National flowers The UK £2 features flora that symbolise the four nations of the country – a rose for England, a daffodil for Wales, a thistle for Scotland and a shamrock for Northern Ireland. Inspired by The King’s inaugural address on 9 September 2022 and personally approved by His Majesty, the edge inscription reads ‘IN SERVITIO OMNIUM’, which is Latin for ‘In the service of all’.

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