The noble was the first English gold coin produced in quantity, introduced during the second coinage (1344–1346) of King Edward III. It was preceded by the gold penny and the florin, minted during the reign of King Henry III and the beginning of the reign of King Edward III; these saw little circulation. The derivatives of the noble, the half noble and quarter noble, on the other hand, were produced in quantity and were very popular.
Edward III: AV noble. 1354–1355. Pre-treaty period, series E, London mint
Noble of Richard II, 1377, London mint, National Museum in Warsaw. Ornate cross with lis at ends, R in center, surrounded by crowns and lions, saltire cross mintmark
A noble of Henry V
Image: Ryal 1467 701259
The Battle of Sluys, also called the Battle of l'Écluse, was a naval battle fought on 24 June 1340 between England and France. It took place in the roadstead of the port of Sluys, on a since silted-up inlet between Zeeland and West Flanders. The English fleet of 120–150 ships was led by Edward III of England and the 230-strong French fleet by the Breton knight Hugues Quiéret, Admiral of France, and Nicolas Béhuchet, Constable of France. The battle was one of the opening engagements of the Hundred Years' War.
A miniature of the battle from Jean Froissart's Chronicles, 15th century
Edward III A portrait from the 18th century
Hugues Quiéret, Admiral of France, who was beheaded by the English after the battle, shown here in a 19th-century depiction
In 1962 a well-preserved wreck of a cog dated to 1380 was found near Bremen, Germany. This is a full-size reproduction. Merchant vessels such as these, hastily converted to makeshift warships, formed the bulk of both sides' ships.
