AUGUST 2, 1100 – BEGINNING OF THE REIGN OF KING HENRY I OF ENGLAND

1100 – BEGINNING OF THE REIGN OF KING HENRY I OF ENGLAND
About 1100 AD, the King ordered the creation of a unique form of money. Made of wood, the currency was called “Tally Sticks.” They were polished sticks of wood declared by the Sovereign King to be good for the payment of taxes. The sticks were used as money by England for 726 years – included the period of the British Empire. It may be no coincidence that shortly after the Bank of England (a private entity) was established in 1694, it attacked the Tally Stick system. Nevertheless, the Sticks were accepted as money for another 150 years, until 1854.