The Bank of England £10 note, also known informally as a tenner, is a
sterling banknote
A banknote or bank notealso called a bill (North American English) or simply a noteis a type of paper money that is made and distributed ("issued") by a bank of issue, payable to the bearer on demand. Banknotes were originally issued by commerc ...
. It is the second-lowest denomination of banknote issued by the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...
. The current
polymer
A polymer () is a chemical substance, substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeat unit, repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their br ...
notes, first issued on 5 June 2024, bears the images of
King Charles III
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms.
Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...
and the late
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
first issued on 14 September 2017 on the obverse, and the image of author
Jane Austen
Jane Austen ( ; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for #List of works, her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century ...
on the reverse. The final
cotton paper
Cotton paper, also known as rag paper or rag stock paper, is made using cotton linters (fine fibers which stick to the cotton seeds after processing) or cotton from used cloth (rags) as the primary material. Prior to the mid-19th century, cott ...
note featuring a portrait of naturalist
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...
, first issued in 2000, was withdrawn from circulation on 1 March 2018.
History
Ten pounds notes were introduced by the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...
for the first time in 1759 as a consequence of gold shortages caused by the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
. The earliest notes were handwritten, and were issued as needed to individuals. These notes were written on one side only and bore the name of the payee, the date, and the signature of the issuing cashier. With the exception of the
Restriction period between 1797 and 1821, when the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
and the
Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
caused a
bullion
Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes from ...
shortage, these notes could be exchanged in full, or in part, for an equivalent amount of gold when presented at the bank. If redeemed in part, the banknote would be signed to indicate the amount that had been redeemed. From 1853 printed notes replaced handwritten notes, with the declaration "I promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of ten pounds" replacing the name of the payee. This declaration remains on Bank of England banknotes to this day. A printed signature of one of three cashiers appeared on the printed notes, though this was replaced by the signature of the Chief Cashier from 1870 onwards.

The ability to redeem banknotes for gold ceased in 1931 when Britain stopped using the
gold standard
A gold standard is a backed currency, monetary system in which the standard economics, economic unit of account is based on a fixed quantity of gold. The gold standard was the basis for the international monetary system from the 1870s to the ...
.
The £10 note ceased to be produced by the Bank of England in 1943, and it was not until 1964 with the advent of the series C notes that the denomination was re-introduced. These brown notes were the first £10 notes to feature an image of the monarch on the front, and unlike the previous "White" notes they had a reverse; in this case featuring a lion. The C series was replaced by the D series beginning in 1975, with the new notes having a portrait of
Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale (; 12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was an English Reform movement, social reformer, statistician and the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale came to prominence while serving as a manager and trainer of nurses during th ...
on the back. The tradition of portraying historical British figures on the reverse continued with the E series, first issued in 1992, with an image of
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...
appearing. Series E notes are multicoloured, although they are predominantly orange-brown. From series E onward Bank of England £10 notes feature "windowed" metal thread; this thread appears as a dashed line, yet forms a single line when held up to the light.
The revised Series E £10 note was introduced in 2000. It featured a portrait of Charles Darwin on the back as well as an illustration of and images of various flora and fauna. The note featured a number of security features in addition to the metallic thread, including raised print, a watermark, microlettering, a hologram, and a number ten which only appears under
ultraviolet
Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of ...
light.
An F series £10 note was never issued.
Polymer note
In 2013,
Mark Carney
Mark Joseph Carney (born March 16, 1965) is a Canadian politician and economist who has served as the 24th and current Prime Minister of Canada, prime minister of Canada since 2025. He has served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, lead ...
, Governor of the Bank of England, announced that a newly designed £10 banknote, in polymer, rather than cotton paper, and featuring early 19th-century novelist
Jane Austen
Jane Austen ( ; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for #List of works, her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century ...
, would be issued.
The date of issue was subsequently confirmed as 14 September 2017.
The decision to replace Darwin with Austen followed a campaign to have a woman on the back of a Bank of England banknote when it was announced that the only woman to feature on the back of a note — prison reformer
Elizabeth Fry
Elizabeth Fry (née Gurney; 21 May 1780 – 12 October 1845), sometimes referred to as Betsy Fry, was an English prison reformer, social reformer, philanthropist and Quaker. Fry was a major driving force behind new legislation to improve the tr ...
on the
£5 note — was to be replaced by
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
.
Like the £5 note featuring Churchill, the new £10 note is made from
polymer
A polymer () is a chemical substance, substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeat unit, repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their br ...
rather than cotton paper.
It depicts:
* The quotation "I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!" from ''
Pride and Prejudice
''Pride and Prejudice'' is the second published novel (but third to be written) by English author Jane Austen, written when she was age 20-21, and later published in 1813.
A novel of manners, it follows the character development of Elizabe ...
'' (Miss Bingley, Chapter XI). Austen's character
Caroline Bingley, who says this in the novel, in fact has no interest in reading and is attempting to impress
Mr Darcy, the book's romantic hero.
* A portrait of Jane Austen, commissioned by James Edward Austen Leigh (Jane Austen's nephew) in 1870, which was adapted from an original sketch of Jane Austen drawn by her sister,
.
* An illustration of
Miss Elizabeth Bennet undertaking "the examination of all the letters which Jane had written to her"from a drawing by
Isabel Bishop
Isabel Bishop (March 3, 1902 – February 19, 1988) was an American painter and graphic artist. Bishop studied under Kenneth Hayes Miller at the Art Students League of New York, where she would later become an instructor. She was most notable fo ...
(1902–1988).
* An image of
Godmersham Park, the home of
Edward Austen Knight
Edward Austen Knight (born Edward Austen; 7 October 1767 – 19 November 1852) was the third eldest brother of Jane Austen, and provided their mother with the use of a cottage in Chawton where Jane lived for the last years of her life (now Jane ...
, Jane Austen's brother. Jane Austen visited the house often and it is believed that it was the inspiration for a number of her novels.
* Jane Austen's writing tablethe central design in the background is based on the twelve-sided writing table, and writing quills, used by Jane Austen at
Chawton Cottage.
Winchester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity,Historic England. "Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity (1095509)". ''National Heritage List for England''. Retrieved 8 September 2014. Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Swithun, commonly known as Winches ...
, where Austen is buried, is depicted in gold foil on the front of the note and silver on the back. The note with serial number AA01001817 was donated to Winchester Cathedral, marking the year of Austen's burial, 1817.
Designs
Source: Bank of England
See also
*
Bank of England note issues
The Bank of England, which is now the central bank of the United Kingdom, British Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories, has issued banknotes since 1694. In 1921 the Bank of England gained a legal monopoly on the issue of bankno ...
References
External links
Bank of England websitePolymer ten pound note website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bank of England 10 note
Banknotes of England
Ten-base-unit banknotes
Cultural depictions of Jane Austen
Cultural depictions of Elizabeth II
Cultural depictions of Charles Darwin
Cultural depictions of Charles Dickens
Cultural depictions of Florence Nightingale