Historical and Commemorative Medals
Collection of Benjamin Weiss

EMBARKATION OF CHARLES II AND HIS COURT AT SCHEVENINGEN ON HIS RESTORATION TO ENGLAND

ABEELE, Pieter van: England, 1660, Silver, 70 mm
Obv:
Bust of Charles II (r) CAROLUS. II. D[ei].G[ratia]. MAGNAE BRIT[anniae]. FRA[nciae]. ET. HIB[erniae]. REX. (Charles II, by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland)
Rev:
Fleet under sail; above, Fame with a trumpet and scroll inscribed, SOLI DEO GLORIA (To God Alone the Glory). Below, a shell inscribed, S[yne]. M[ajesteyt]. is uit Hollant van Scheveling agfevaren naer fyn Coninryken A[nn]. 1660 Juni 2. (His Majesty Departed from Holland by Scheveningen to His Own Kingdom, in the year 1660, 2 June). Legend: IN NOMINE MEO EXALTABITUR CORNU EIUS. PSAL[mo]. 89 (In My Name Shall His Horn Be Exalted; Psalms 89:240)
Signed: PVA (in monogram on rim) F.
Ref: Med Ill, i, 455/44; Van Loon II 462; Eimer 48/210; Scher (1997), 33/20; Nomos 27; Weiss BW410

Charles II (1630-1685) was King of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1660 to1685. After the execution of his father, Charles I, he fled to France but in 1650 was invited to Scotland and crowned king in 1651. Charles' attempted invasion of England was repulsed at the Battle of Worcester by Oliver Cromwell, and he was forced back into exile. In 1660 Charles issued the Declaration of Breda, in which he promised religious toleration and amnesty for his enemies. Parliament agreed to the Declaration, and Charles left Holland on June 2, 1660 and was crowned king in May 1660, ushering in the Restoration. Charles attempted to preserve royal power, accepting secret subsidies from Louis XIV of France in exchange for promoting Roman Catholicism. Charles' support of Louis led to the Dutch Wars (1672-74). Conflict was further fueled by strong anti-Catholic feeling, manifested in the "Popish Plot" rumor and the Exclusion Crisis (1679-81) when attempts were made to exclude Charles' brother, the Catholic Duke of York (later James II), from the succession.

This medal commemorates the event which on June 2, 1660, Charles II and his court embarked at Scheveningen following his restoration to the English throne. The King sailed on board the Naseby, which as a result of this journey was renamed the Royal Charles.

The medal consists of two embossed plates, chased and united by a broad rim.

 

LINK to Battle of Worcester (from British Civil Wars)

LINK to Declaration of Breda (from British Civil Wars)

LINK to Restoration of the Stuart Dynasty (from World History at KMLA)

LINK to Dutch Wars (from World History at  KMLA)

LINK to Popish Plot (from britannica.com)

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