英国央行:丘吉尔肖像将登新版英镑

  Luisa Baldini has a close-up look at the note design

Sir Winston Churchill will feature on the new design of a banknote which will enter circulation in 2016, the Bank of England has announced.

The wartime leader's image is planned to feature on the reverse of the new £5 note, together with one of his most celebrated quotations.

Churchill was chosen owing to his place as "a hero of the entire free world", said Bank governor Sir Mervyn King.

The current face of the £5 note is social reformer Elizabeth Fry.

'Truly great leader'

A wide range of historical characters appears on the reverse of Bank of England banknotes, with Elizabeth Fry the only woman among the current crop.

The Bank of England governor has the final say about who appears on a banknote, although the public can make suggestions. The latest addition has been announced by Sir Mervyn at Churchill's former home of Chartwell, in Westerham, Kent.

"Our banknotes acknowledge the life and work of great Britons. Sir Winston Churchill was a truly great British leader, orator and writer," Sir Mervyn said.

"Above that, he remains a hero of the entire free world. His energy, courage, eloquence, wit and public service are an inspiration to us all."

Current plans, which the Bank said might be reviewed, are for Churchill to appear on the new £5 note to be issued in 2016.

Security measures

The design includes a portrait of the former prime minister, adapted from a photograph taken by Yousuf Karsh on 30 December 1941. He is the only politician from the modern era to feature on a banknote.

The artwork will also include:

Churchill's declaration "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat" which came in a speech in the Commons on 13 May 1940

A view of Westminster and the Elizabeth Tower from the South Bank

The Great Clock showing three o'clock - the approximate time of the Commons speech

A background image of the Nobel Prize for literature, which he was awarded in 1953

Sir Mervyn said that this was an appropriate choice given the country's economic difficulties.

"We do not face the challenges faced by Churchill's generation. But we have our own," he said.

"The spirit of those words remains as relevant today as it was to my parents' generation who fought for the survival of our country and freedom under Churchill's leadership."

The Bank of England issues nearly a billion banknotes each year, and withdraws almost as many from circulation.

Notes are redesigned on a relatively frequent basis, in order to maintain security and prevent forgeries. Other security features include threads woven into the paper and microlettering.

The most recent new design from the Bank of England was the £50 note, which entered circulation in November. This features Matthew Boulton and James Watt who were most celebrated for bringing the steam engine into the textile manufacturing process.

While Bank of England notes are generally accepted throughout the UK, three banks in Scotland and four in Northern Ireland are authorised to issue banknotes.

Pharmacologist Sir Alexander Fleming, poet Robert Burns, and tyre inventor John Boyd Dunlop are among those who appear on these notes. One commemorative £5 note featuring football great George Best proved so popular that the limited edition of one million sold out in 10 days.

In May, a new five-euro note will be put into circulation by the European Central Bank.

It features an image of the Greek goddess Europa, which comes from a vase in the Louvre Museum in Paris.

History

The image of Churchill has featured on currency before. He was the first commoner to be shown on a British coin when he appeared on the 1965 crown, or five shilling piece.

Churchill, elected as a Conservative MP in 1900, served as chancellor in Stanley Baldwin's government.

He replaced Neville Chamberlain to become the wartime British prime minister in May 1940 until 1945. He returned to office in 1951, and retired in 1955, aged 80.

"The Bank is privileged to be able to celebrate the significant and enduring contribution Sir Winston Churchill made to the UK, and beyond," said Chris Salmon, chief cashier of the Bank of England, whose signature will also appear on the banknote.

Sir Nicholas Soames, Churchill's grandson and MP for Mid Sussex, said: "I think it is a wonderful tribute to him and an appropriate time. I can't think of any more marvellous thing that would have pleased him more."

He described the move as a great honour for the family.

英国中央银行英格兰银行宣布，英国前首相温斯顿·丘吉尔的肖像将登上2016年发行的新版英镑。

这位战时领袖的肖像，连同他的一句最著名语录将出现在5英镑钞票的背面。

银行行长默文·金表示，丘吉尔的入选源于他是“整个自由世界的英雄”。

这张面值5英镑的钞票目前使用的是社会改革家伊丽莎白·弗赖的肖像。

“真正伟大的领袖”

很多历史人物出现在英格兰银行纸币的背面，伊丽莎白·弗赖迄今为止是其中唯一的女性。

尽管公众可以提出建议，但谁出现在钞票上还是由英格兰银行行长最后说了算。默文在肯特郡韦斯特勒姆查特韦尔的丘吉尔故居宣布了使用其肖像的决定。

“我们的钞票表彰英国伟人的生活和工作。温斯顿·丘吉尔是一个真正伟大的英国领导人，演说家和作家，”默文说。

“不仅如此，他还是整个自由世界的英雄。他的精力、勇气、口才、智慧和公共服务是对我们所有人的激励。”

该银行表示或许还要重新审查，但按当前计划，丘吉尔将出现在2016年发行的新5英镑钞票上。

安全措施

设计包括前首相丘吉尔的一幅肖像，改编自优素福·卡什于1941年12月30日拍的一张照片。他是现代政治家中唯一出现在钞票上的人。

钞票样板还将包括：

丘吉尔的名言“我所能奉献的只有热血、辛劳、泪水和汗水”，选自1940年5月13日在下议院的一次演讲

从南岸看到威斯敏斯特和伊丽莎白塔的景色

大本钟显示3点-下议院演讲的大概时间

背景是一副诺贝尔文学奖的图像，他于1953年被授予该奖

默文说，考虑到英国的经济困难，这是一个恰如其分的选择。

“我们不必面对丘吉尔那一代人所面临的挑战。但是我们有自己的困难，”他说。

“今天，这句话的精神就跟对在丘吉尔领导下为我们国家生存和自由浴血奋战的我父母那一代人一样仍然具有重大意义。”

英格兰银行每年发行近10亿张钞票，从流通收回几乎同样数量。

为保持安全性，防止伪造，钞票需要相对频繁地重新设计。其它安全性功能包括在纸中编入防伪线和印上微缩字母。

英格兰银行最近的新设计是50英镑钞票，于去年11月进入流通领域。上面印有马修·博尔顿和詹姆斯·瓦特的肖像，他们以将蒸汽机引入纺织生产过程而驰名天下。

虽然在整个英国通行英格兰银行发行的纸币，但三家苏格兰银行和四家北爱尔兰也获授权发行纸币。

药理学家亚历山大·弗莱明爵士，诗人罗伯特·彭斯，轮胎发明家约翰·博伊德·邓禄普都出现在这些纸币上。一张印有足球巨星乔治·贝斯特的5英镑纪念钞如此受人欢迎，以至于100万限量版在10天内就全部卖光。

5月，欧洲央行将推出一张新的5欧元钞票进入流通领域。

上面印有希腊女神欧罗巴的肖像，选自巴黎卢浮宫博物馆的一个花瓶。

历史

丘吉尔的肖像之前也曾出现在货币上。他曾出现在1965年的5先令克朗硬币上，是英国硬币上出现的第一个平民百姓。

丘吉尔于1900年当选为保守党议员，在斯坦利·鲍德温政府中担任大臣。

1940年5月，他接替内维尔·张伯伦成为战时英国首相，一直到1945年。他于1951年重新执政，1955年退休，时年80岁。

“银行对于能庆祝温斯顿·丘吉尔爵士对英国乃至英国以外所做的重大和不朽贡献倍感荣幸，”英格兰银行的首席出纳克里斯·塞尔蒙

丘吉尔的孙子、中苏塞克斯郡议员尼古拉斯·索米斯说：“我认为这是对他最绝妙的赞美，合时合宜。我想不出还有什么更奇妙的事比这更能使他高兴的了。”

他将此举看成是家族的一个伟大荣誉。