In 1933, the Paris Mint issued a new five-franc coin, designed by Lucien Georges Bazor, the chief engraver of the Paris Mint. The coin was made of nickel, it weighed 6 grams and was only 23.7 mm in diameter. The French did not like that the size of the new coin is so small that it is inferior to the size of a two-franc coin. , inferior to a two-franc coin. For this reason, in the same year, 1933, the minting of nickel five-franc coins began, designed by the engraver André-Henri Lavrilier (weighing 12 grams and measuring 31 mm in diameter. The larger coin was well-received by the French public. However, the smaller five-franc coin, created by the chief engraver Lucien Georges Bazor, was discontinued. On April 30, 1937, it was removed from circulation. Among the French, the coin was nicknamed "Bédusette" after Albert Bédus, the Minister of Public Works.
In the first half of 1944, 50 million two-franc brass coins were minted in Philadelphia. These coins were later issued to soldiers of the anti-fascist coalition who fought in southern France. They were also used as a means of payment in Algeria. General Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Free French movement, was critical of the introduction of this coin, as it featured the word "France" instead of the traditional name of the country ("French Republic") on the obverse. This caused associations with the puppet pro-German State of France, also known as the Vichy regime, as well as with the times of the Bourbons. As a result, the coin circulated only in part of the country and was withdrawn from circulation on June 27, 1944.
France became a republic on September 21, 1792, and King Louis XVI was guillotined on January 21, 1793. However, coins with his image and the legend "Louis XVI, King of the French" continued to be minted in 1793.
French Indochina was the only French colony to issue coins with the symbolism of the Vichy regime (a pro-Nazi puppet state led by Marshal Philippe Pétain).
In 1922, tokens with a face value of 10 centimes were issued in the French city of Toulouse, bearing a double date: "1922" and "1927". The latter indicated that the bearer of the token could exchange it for an equivalent amount of government-issued coins in 1927. The exchange was guaranteed by the Toulouse Regional Committee. However, the exchange was never completed, and the tokens were withdrawn from circulation much earlier, without any conversion.
In 1708, during the War of the Spanish Succession, the English and Austrians besieged the city of Lille, where French troops under the command of Marshal Boufflers had taken refuge. The siege dragged on for a long time. The city was short on change, and the marshal ordered the minting of temporary coins worth 20 sols with the motto "For the Defense of the City and the Fatherland" for circulation among the soldiers of the garrison and the citizens during the defense period. These coins were issued and circulated for three months before Lille fell. Currently, such coins are considered rare.
P.S. Portrait of Marshal Louis-François de Boufflers.
In 1807, France established criminal liability for refusing to accept silver coins at their face value as a means of payment. I can assume that this was due to the fact that the value of silver fluctuated periodically, and theoretically, the value of the silver contained in a coin could be lower than the face value indicated on the coin.
One of the shortest-lived coins is the one-franc coin of the French commune of Evreux. It was introduced on August 28, 1922, but was banned on September 6 of the same year by the Minister of Commerce and Industry (due to its similarity to the national one-franc coin). The local authorities initially ignored the ban, but on November 1, 1922, they were forced to comply, and the coin lost its status as a local currency.
It is believed that the name of the ancient French coin liard comes from the nickname of the King of France Philippe III the Bold (Philippe III Le Hardi).
On April 7, 1795, France switched to a decimal coinage system. The national currency became the franc, which was equal to 100 centimes. However, due to long-standing habits, the French continued to refer to the new 5-centime coin as the old 1-sou coin. As a result, the 5-centime coin became known as the "sou." One sou was equivalent to 1/20 of a livre, while 5 centimes were equivalent to 1/20 of a franc.
Throughout the 19th century, the 5-franc silver coin was unofficially but universally referred to as the "écu" in France. By the early 20th century, the nickname had faded away.
In 1791, France faced a shortage of copper for minting small-denomination coins (12 deniers, 2 sols). To address the metal shortage, the Law of August 6, 1791 was passed. This law mandated the removal of church bells, their melting, and the mixing of the resulting alloy with regular copper. The resulting alloy was then used to mint coins. In addition to the law, on September 18, 1791, an instruction was issued for the mints, which detailed the process of melting bells and mixing the resulting metal with copper (with precise proportions specified). The resulting bell metal (metal de cloche) had a yellowish tint, which differed from the classic copper coins of the pre-revolutionary period.
The coins of French Indochina were traditionally minted at the Paris Mint. However, during the Second World War, when the French Republic transformed into the puppet pro-Hitler State of France, a problem arose with the delivery of coin products to this remote colony. Communications were stretched, so there was a high risk that the ship with the coins would be captured or sunk by the British. Therefore, it was decided to issue coins in 1943 on the spot - in Hanoi (Vietnam). The design was sloppy, the quality was poor, and the material was cheap (aluminum).
During the German occupation of France in 1940-44, the occupation administration forcibly removed 5, 10, and 25 centime coins from circulation, which were issued between 1920 and 1938. This was not due to their republican symbolism, but rather because of the nickel content in them. In contrast, the French actively hid these coins.
When designing the new silver coins of the French Republic in 1898, the medaiper Louis-Oscar Roty used a certain Rosalinde Pesquet as a model. A photograph of the model was taken during the process of designing the coins.
As you may know, the five-franc coin minted during the early years of the Third Republic (September 4, 1870 - July 10, 1940) featured a depiction of Heracles and two nymphs. However, what many may not know is that the lion's skin draped over the ancient hero's belt holds a special significance. It symbolizes the triumph of the Revolution and the downfall of imperial power. The right-hand nymph represents the Republic, while the left-hand nymph represents Justice. But the symbolism goes beyond that. The Republic nymph holds a construction triangle with a level in her hand, which is one of the symbols of Freemasonry (the organization of "freemasons" who worked hard to overthrow the French monarchy).
P.S. The subject composition was created by the French artist Augustin Dupré (1748-1833). Hercules tramples a crown with his foot.
The 1-cent coin of French Indochina features an image of two women. One of them is significantly taller and covers the other with a flag. The composition is deeply symbolic, representing the French Republic and French Indochina. The taller woman acts as a protector, shielding the other under the French flag.
In East Africa, on the territory of the modern state of Djibouti, there was once a colony called the French Coast of Somalia. This colony had a very peculiar monetary system. The British Indian rupee, the French franc, and the Maria Theresa thaler were all recognized as legal tender. There was a fixed exchange rate: one rupee was equal to two francs, and one thaler was equal to four francs and 20 centimes. This continued until 1948, when the cumbersome currency system was replaced by the French Somaliland franc, which was pegged to the US dollar at a fixed exchange rate of 214.392 francs per dollar. It was declared the sole currency of the French Somali Coast.
On January 1, 1960, France underwent a monetary reform, with 100 "old" francs being equal to 1 "new" franc. However, the old coins remained in circulation but were revalued. For example, the 100-franc coin from 1954-59 was now considered a 1-franc coin and continued to be used until August 3, 1966.
The name of the monetary unit of the Bailiwick of Henrsi is double, which is directly related to the ancient French coin double tournois, which was in circulation in France from the 13th century to 1647. The fact is that for centuries, French coins have been the basis of the Guernsey money supply. Accordingly, the choice of a name for the local currency was a kind of tribute to traditions.
In the first half of 1944, 50 million two-franc brass coins were minted in Philadelphia. These coins were later issued to soldiers of the anti-fascist coalition who fought in southern France. They were also used as a means of payment in Algeria. General Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Free French movement, was critical of the introduction of this coin, as it featured the word "France" instead of the traditional name of the country ("French Republic") on the obverse. This caused associations with the puppet pro-German State of France, also known as the Vichy regime, as well as with the times of the Bourbons. As a result, the coin circulated only in part of the country and was withdrawn from circulation on June 27, 1944.
Morning,
all info I can found is that it was legalized in 1945 and withdrawn in 1949.
where do you found reference for the 27th June 1944?
Dear Mr. King. I believe I am creating interesting content that attracts the attention of forum members. Is this a bad thing? No. However, I do not know how to create links to my posts in the coin catalog. No one has explained this to me.
In the first half of 1944, 50 million two-franc brass coins were minted in Philadelphia. These coins were later issued to soldiers of the anti-fascist coalition who fought in southern France. They were also used as a means of payment in Algeria. General Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Free French movement, was critical of the introduction of this coin, as it featured the word "France" instead of the traditional name of the country ("French Republic") on the obverse. This caused associations with the puppet pro-German State of France, also known as the Vichy regime, as well as with the times of the Bourbons. As a result, the coin circulated only in part of the country and was withdrawn from circulation on June 27, 1944.
Morning,
all info I can found is that it was legalized in 1945 and withdrawn in 1949.
where do you found reference for the 27th June 1944?
thanks
Hello. According to Wikipedia, “On June 27, 1944, General Charles de Gaulle, the head of the Provisional Government of the French Republic, decided to ban the circulation of the war franc”.
Dear Mr. King. I believe I am creating interesting content that attracts the attention of forum members. Is this a bad thing? No. However, I do not know how to create links to my posts in the coin catalog. No one has explained this to me.
Sincerely yours.
@Uncle Eugene Just go to the page of the coin you are talking about, copy the link and paste it where you need it.
Dear Mr. King. I believe I am creating interesting content that attracts the attention of forum members. Is this a bad thing? No. However, I do not know how to create links to my posts in the coin catalog. No one has explained this to me.
Sincerely yours.
I thought you knew, I thought you had started doing it but obviously it was just other members doing it for you.
How to create a link;
1. find the coin page
2. Copy the URL of the coin page (this is the web address in your browser, starts https://)
3 Paste the URL at the bottom of your comment about the coin
So interesting that you are able to post facts on an internet forum yet you are unable to create a link. One shows computer knowledge the other none. Are you a real member using your time and knowledge to write these posts or are you an automated AI bot spirting out facts you have access to?
„If your reply or post in the Forum stinks of AI, I will call you out! Knowledge comes from experience, the I in AI stands for incompetence.“
In the first half of 1944, 50 million two-franc brass coins were minted in Philadelphia. These coins were later issued to soldiers of the anti-fascist coalition who fought in southern France. They were also used as a means of payment in Algeria. General Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Free French movement, was critical of the introduction of this coin, as it featured the word "France" instead of the traditional name of the country ("French Republic") on the obverse. This caused associations with the puppet pro-German State of France, also known as the Vichy regime, as well as with the times of the Bourbons. As a result, the coin circulated only in part of the country and was withdrawn from circulation on June 27, 1944.
Morning,
all info I can found is that it was legalized in 1945 and withdrawn in 1949.
where do you found reference for the 27th June 1944?
thanks
Hello. According to Wikipedia, “On June 27, 1944, General Charles de Gaulle, the head of the Provisional Government of the French Republic, decided to ban the circulation of the war franc”.
Wikipedia can be edited by anyone! What Wikipedia says should not be viewed as fact in the first instance, the sources are numbered in little blue numbers in [] , then the sources are listed at the bottom of the page.
If you going to spend all this time writing these facts, please ensure their authenticity.
„If your reply or post in the Forum stinks of AI, I will call you out! Knowledge comes from experience, the I in AI stands for incompetence.“
