1965 Churchill Crown

Specifications

Denomination: 1 crown
Series: Churchill crown
Designer: Mary Gillick (obverse); Oscar Nemon (reverse)
Years of issue: 1965
Composition: 75% Copper, 25% Nickel
Weight: 28.28 g
Diameter: 38.61 mm
Edge: Reeded
KM: KM-910
Mintage: 9640000
Key mintages: One-year commemorative for the death of Sir Winston Churchill; first UK coin to depict a non-royal. Distributed through banks from September 1965. S-4144.

Melt value: $0.30copper $0.44/ozt · prices as of Sep 16, 2026

AI-generated illustration — not a photograph of a genuine coin.

Britain's 1965 crown for Sir Winston Churchill — a five-shilling memorial issue struck 19.64 million times.

History

Churchill died on 24 January 1965; Parliament approved the memorial crown on 16 March 1965, and the coin was released that September (Numismatic News, accessed 2026-09-16).
The crown was struck in cupro-nickel to a mintage of 19,640,000, with production beginning on 11 October 1965 and ending in summer 1966 (Wikipedia, accessed 2026-09-16).
The obverse carries Mary Gillick’s portrait of Elizabeth II; the reverse is Oscar Nemon’s portrait of Churchill; the edge is reeded, and the coin was legal tender for five shillings (Numismatic News, accessed 2026-09-16).
It was the first crown since 1902 to carry no denomination, and the first British coin to depict a commoner alongside the monarch since Oliver Cromwell in 1658 (Numismatic News, accessed 2026-09-16).
The coin weighs 28.28 g and measures 38.61 mm in diameter (GovMint, accessed 2026-09-16).

With 19,640,000 struck, this is a common, affordable type coin in circulated grades — don’t overpay for an ordinary example (Wikipedia, accessed 2026-09-16).
Verify weight (28.28 g) and diameter (38.61 mm) and the reeded edge against a genuine piece (GovMint; Numismatic News, accessed 2026-09-16).
No freely licensed photograph of a genuine 1965 Churchill crown was available, so no photo is attached rather than a mislabelled substitute (guidance).
Beware polished, colourised or novelty-packaged pieces sold at premiums — they trade as souvenirs, not collectible coins (guidance).
The ‘first commoner on a British coin since Cromwell’ significance applies to the memorial reverse by Oscar Nemon; the obverse still carries Mary Gillick’s portrait of Elizabeth II (Numismatic News, accessed 2026-09-16).