Forged Banknotes in the Regency Era

£1 Bank Note 1814 Loretta reports:

In researching Dukes Prefer Blondes , I spent some time looking up criminal cases. I was struck by the number of prosecutions for coining and forgery. That was why the short entry (shown below) in Hone’s Every-day Book  about forged notes caught my attention.

I found an explanation at The Proceedings of the Old Bailey, 1674-1913.
Forgeries 1818

“Between 1797 and 1821, the period known as the ‘restriction’, new, primarily copper coins and, most importantly, inexpensively produced £1 and £2 notes were brought into circulation. The poor quality of these notes led to a spate of forgeries, which in turn led to a high number of prosecutions led by the Bank [of England] itself, for both forgery and uttering forged notes.”

If you’re curious about what old bank notes looked like, you can scroll down this page .
Bank of England 1809
You can look at a forged note from 1936 here .

And the Old Bailey website also offers a history of money & what it bought .

Clicking on the caption will take you to the source, where you can learn more and enlarge images as needed.