Saxon Pound
240 silver Saxon pennies made up a Saxon Pound, being a pound in weight. This evolved into the standard for English currency. Many hoards of Saxon silver have been found, dating back to Saxon times.The currency changed over the years, with copper coins being used to represent the silver and gold reserves held at banks.
Most trading and market towns had their own banks, and to avoid the handling of gold or silver, the banks would issue a Promisary Note in place of the precious metal/coins. The notes carried the declaration of "I Promies to pay the bearer of this note, on demand, the sum of one pound, five pounds etc." The idea being that the note could be exchanged at any time at any bank for the value, in silver or gold, of the promised amount.
When banking was nationalised during the early 20th century, the Bank Of England took control of the nation's currency, and the Pound Sterling became the nation's official currency.