From Speculation: Undercurrents of Treachery:
“In the twilight of Henry VIII’s reign, England’s treasury lay empty, drained by war with France and Scotland. The King’s solution was as simple as it was devastating: debase the silver coinage by mixing the precious metal with copper, creating more coins from the same weight of silver. What began as Henry’s desperate gambit continued under his son Edward VI’s regents, who reduced silver content from sterling’s proud 92.5% to a mere 25% by 1548.
As genuine silver vanished into foreign markets and private hordes, a flood of copper-rich “testoons” bearing the monarch’s increasingly ruddy face, mockingly called “Old Coppernose”, circulated among the populace. Prices soared; bread that once cost a penny now commanded four or five. Merchants and landowners demanded more coin for their wares and rents, while wages stagnated. The Crown and mint officials grew temporarily rich, as did shrewd metal merchants who understood the alchemy of economic manipulation.
Meanwhile, common folk suffered. Labourers found their earnings almost worthless overnight. Craftsmen watched lifetimes of savings melt away. Widows with fixed incomes slid from modest comfort into grinding poverty. Throughout England, whispers of discontent grew into murmurs, then shouts, as the realm trembled on the precipice of rebellion.”
[Author’s note: If you read this book and were wondering whether it was a historical echo of modern-day hyper-inflation caused by our governments’ printing of fiat currency… you’re bang on the money (pun intended)]