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Boulton and Watt £50 Note
Effective from 2nd November 2011 the Bank of England issued a new-style £50 note into circulation. This is the first note that features not one but two historical figures on the reverse. It also incorporates a range of enhanced security features including a motion thread.
Who is on the £50 NoteThe new £50 note features, for the first time, two historical figures: 18th century entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt. Matthew Boulton 1728-1809Matthew Boulton was a leading entrepreneur of the Industrial Revolution. He became renowned in two main fields of activity: the development, production and sale of steam engines and the minting of high quality coins. He was the son of a Birmingham manufacturer of small metal products and, despite have no formal education in science, at the age of 17 he invented a technique for inlaying enamels in buckles that proved so popular that the buckles were exported to France, then reimported to Britain as the latest French developments. By the mid 1750s he was effectively running his father's business. His father retired when Boulton was 29 leaving him in full control. Boulton expanded the business and moved it to the new Soho Manufactory which he had had built near Birmingham. Although he had known James Watt for many years, his business association with him was as a result of a debt owed to him by Watt's business partner, John Roebuck. John Roebuck, being unable to pay the debt offered Boulton his 2/3rds share of the patent for James Watt's steam engine as settlement. Together Watt and Boulton developed the steam engine and began mass production. The firm installed hundreds of Boulton & Watt steam engines in Britain and abroad, initially in mines and then in factories. By 1778 Boulton built the steam-powered Soho Mint, a coining mill in which every process was automatic. He supplied the Bermudas, Sierra Leone, Madras, and even Revolutionary France with coins. He also supplied equipment to the mints of Russia, Denmark and Spain. Boulton sought to improve the poor state of Britain's coinage and to this end lobbied parliament. After many years of effort he finally obtained a contract in 1797 to produce the first British copper coinage in 25 years. His coins were well-designed and he hoped they would prove difficult to counterfeit. They included a thick rim around the edge giving them a cartwheel like appearance. Much to Boulton's chagrin copper covered lead imitations began to appear within 1 month of his new "cartwheel" penny being released. Upon the expiry of Watt's patent in 1800 both men retired handing the business over to their sons. Despite retirement, when a new Royal Mint was built on Tower Hill in 1805, Boulton was awarded the contract to equip it with modern machinery. James Watt 1736-1819James Watt, born in Greenock, Scotland, was the great improver of the steam engine. Watt also introduced the term 'horsepower' and the metric unit of power is named after him. James Watt qualified as an engineer and started work for the University of Glasgow. In 1763, he was asked to repair a Newcomen engine. Even after repair, he noticed that the engine was highly ineffective and produced barely any power. After much experimentation, Watt discovered that most of the heat of the steam was being wasted. Much of the engines energy was used heating the cylinder to produce steam then cold water was injected into the cylinder to condense the steam to reduce its pressure, the cylinder would then need to be heated again. Watt developed a modification which caused the steam to condense in a separate chamber apart from the piston, thereby maintaining the temperature of the cylinder at the same temperature as the injected steam. This meant that since the energy was not having to be used to reheat the cylinder on every cycle more steam pressure was available to provide mechanical force. Despite have a workable design he did not have sufficient capital to construct a full scale engine. He formed a partnership with John Roebuck, the founder of the Carron Iron Works, near Falkirk and together they attempted to machine the revised piston and the cylinder arrangement. The main problem they encountered was that iron workers of the day were more like blacksmiths than modern machinists and were unable to produce the components with sufficient precision. When Roebuck went bankrupt Matthew Boulton acquired his patent rights and through him Watt finally had access to some of the best iron workers in the world. Watt and Boulton formed a hugely successful partnership (Boulton and Watt), which lasted for the next twenty-five years. Relating to this renowned partnership Mervyn King, the Bank of England Governor, said: “The Bank is delighted to acknowledge the invaluable contribution that Boulton and Watt made to the advancement of engineering by featuring them on the new £50 banknote. Boulton and Watt’s steam engines and their many other innovations were essential factors in the nation’s Industrial Revolution. The partnership of an innovator and an entrepreneur created exactly the kind of commercial success that we will need in this country as we rebalance our economy over the years ahead.” Enhanced Security Features on the new £50 NoteMotion ThreadThe green motion thread is woven into the fabric of the note rather than printed on it. It comprises of 5 windows running vertically with each window containing both the number 50 and the £ symbol. When the note is tilted from side to side the images move up and down, but when it is tilted up and down the images move from side to side. Ultra-violet featureIf you look at the front of the new-style £50 note under a good quality ultra-violet light the number 50 appears in bright red and green, the five windows of the motion thread also appear in bright green and there are randomly spread bright red and green flecks visible on both the front and back of the note. MicroletteringWith the aid of magnifying glass you will be able to see the value of the note written in small letters and numbersbeneath the Queen's portrait on the new-style £50 note - you will see the value of the note written in small letter and numbers. See-through registerPrinted on the front and back of the note there are coloured irregular shapes which combine to form the £ symbol when held up to the light. Standard FeaturesOf course in addition to the new security features the notes are protected by the standard features that we are all familiar with from previous bank notes: Since bank notes are printed on special paper they have a unique feel to them. Some of the print is raised and can be felt by running your finger across the front. The metallic thread is embedded in the paper in every banknote. It is visible as silver dashes on the back of the £50 note. The new £50 note has an image of the Queen's portrait and a bright £50 symbol within the watermark which can be seen when held up to the light. The printing of all bank notes is very sharp, clear and free from smudges and blurred edges, the new £50 note is no exception.
Withdrawal of the old £50 NoteAs new-design banknotes are introduced so the notes they replace are withdrawn however the date that the old Houblon £50 note will cease to be legal tender has not yet been released. Please note that genuine Bank of England banknotes that have been withdrawn from circulation retain their face value for all time and can be exchanged directly with the Bank of England. This banknote is the first in circulation to be signed by Chris Salmon, who was appointed as the Bank's Executive Director - Banking Services and Chief Cashier in April 2011. Sources:
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