Royal Mint was historically part of a series of mints that became centralised to produce coins for the Kingdom of England, all of Great Britain and eventually most of the British Empire. The original London mint from which the Royal Mint is the successor, was established in 886 AD and operated within the Tower of London for approximately 800 years before moving to what is now called Royal Mint Court where it remained until the 1960s. As Britain followed the rest of the world in decimalising its currency, the Mint moved from London to a new plant in Llantrisant, Wales where it
Royal Mint established in London. Control of Britain's mints alternated as different tribes battled over territory. In 886 AD Alfred the Great recaptured London from the Danelaw and began issuing silver pennies bearing his portrait; this is regarded as the start of the continuous history of the Royal Mint. In 1279, the country's numerous mints were unified under a single system whereby control was centralised to the mint within the Tower of London, mints outside of London were reduced with only a few local and episcopals continuing to operate. Pipe rolls detailing the financial records of the London mint show an expenditure