In 1901 Edward VII became king following the death of Queen Victoria. The king only reigned for nine years, in contrast to his mother who held the title of Britain's longest-reigning monarch until Her Majesty The Queen surpassed the record in September 2015.

Although Edward became king in 1901, his first coins were not struck until 1902. This original Sovereign, struck in 1905, features Benedetto Pistrucci's St George and the dragon on the reverse. The obverse features the portrait of the king, by George William de Saulles.

This Sovereign was struck in the year that Edward VII was the first monarch to officially recognise the office of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and in which the first Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate bar was produced.