Читать книгу The Inflation Myth and the Wonderful World of Deflation - Mark Mobius - Страница 19

Over a millennium later, the same mistakes were being made again, this time by Henry VIII, King of England between 1509 and 1547. In the latter part of his reign, financial problems led to the decision to debase the currency. The process began in Ireland in 1536, with silver coins minted with 90% of precious metal in comparison to earlier coins. This first debasement having passed relatively unnoticed, Henry and his successors tried the trick again – six times in total under Henry, six under his successor Edward VI, then two further mintings under Mary I and Elizabeth I, respectively. Between 1544 and 1551, under Henry and Edward, the process was the most advanced and became known as the Great Debasement. By the end of the process, the value of a silver coin had been reduced to just a quarter of its previous worth. Inflation, of course, continued to grow: in the 1530s and 1540s, it grew by about 29% in comparison to the 20 years before; in the two decades that followed, it grew to 91%. Once again, there is evidence of people holding on to their earlier non‐debased coins, as they knew they were of better value.