Do you know which commodity has arguably made Britain richer than any other over the past 300 years?

  • Coal 197 votes (39.5%)
  • Wool 159 votes (31.9%)
  • North Sea Oil 80 votes (16.0%)
  • Tin 63 votes (12.6%)

Total votes: 499

Answer: People instinctively think it’s coal or oil. But Britain’s wealth before the Industrial Revolution was built on wool. For centuries it was England’s biggest export, financed kings, paid for cathedrals, and helped create the capital that later fuelled industrialisation.