On what date did the United Kingdom replace pounds, shillings and pence with decimal currency?

The United Kingdom replaced pounds, shillings and pence with decimal currency on 15 February 1971, a date known as Decimal Day. The change ended the old system of 12 pence to a shilling and 20 shillings to a pound.

After decimalisation, one pound was divided into 100 new pence. The new coins included the halfpenny, penny, two pence, five pence, 10 pence, and 50 pence, with further denominations introduced later.

The transition required public education, price conversion, cash-register changes, and new coin designs. Shops displayed both old and new prices, and many people continued using familiar pre-decimal terms for years.

The United Kingdom was relatively late among major economies to decimalise. Ireland made its own change in 1971, while Australia and New Zealand had decimalised earlier in the 1960s.