German mark (1871)
 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
| Mark (German) | |
|---|---|
 German 20 mark banknote from 1914 | |
| Unit | |
| Plural | Mark |
| Symbol | ℳ︁ |
| Denominations | |
| Subunit | |
| 1⁄100 | Pfennig |
| Plural | |
| Pfennig | Pfennig |
| Symbol | |
| Pfennig | ₰ |
| Banknotes | 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 1000 Mark |
| Coins | 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 25 Pfennig 1⁄2, 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 20 Mark |
| Demographics | |
| User(s) |  German Empire•  German colonial empire |
| Issuance | |
| Central bank | Reichsbank |
| This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete. | |
The German mark (
After the fall of the Empire due to the
History
The introduction of the German mark in 1873 was the culmination of decades-long efforts to unify the various currencies used by the
Unification to this system proceeded further due to
Despite the Vereinsthaler being a silver standard currency, it remained unlimited legal tender for 3 gold marks until it was demonetized in 1908. The South German gulden of 4⁄7 Vereinsthaler was converted to 1+5⁄7 or 1.71 gold marks. The gold-based Bremen thaler was converted directly to the mark at a rate of 1 Thaler gold = 3+9⁄28 or 3.32 marks. The Hamburg mark courant or currency was converted at 1 mark = 1.2 Imperial marks, and the Hamburg mark banco of the Bank of Hamburg was converted at 1 mark banco = 1.5 Imperial marks.
From 1 January 1876 onwards, the mark and vereinsthaler became the only
World War I reparations owed by Germany were stated in gold reserves in 1921, 1929 and 1931; this was the victorious Allies' response to their fear that vanquished Germany might try to pay off the obligation in paper currency.[citation needed] The actual amount of reparations that Germany was obliged to pay out was not the 132 billion marks cited in the London Schedule of 1921 but rather the 50 billion marks stipulated in the A and B Bonds. The actual total payout from 1920 to 1931 (when payments were suspended indefinitely) was 20 billion German gold marks, worth about US$5 billion or £1 billion. Most of that money came from loans from New York bankers.[3]
Following the
Coins
Coins of denominations between 1 pfennig and 1 mark were issued in standard designs for the whole empire, whilst those above 1 mark were issued by the individual states, using a standard design for the reverses (the
Base metal coins
- 1 pfennig (copper: 1873–1916, aluminium: 1916–1918)
- 2 pfennig (copper: 1873–1916)
- 5 pfennig (cupro-nickel: 1873–1915, iron: 1915–1922)
- 10 pfennig (cupro-nickel: 1873–1916, iron and zinc: 1915–1922)
- 20 pfennig (cupro-nickel, 1887–1892)
- 25 pfennig (nickel, 1909–1912)
Silver coins
Subsidiary silver coins were minted in .900 fineness to a standard of 5 grams silver per mark. Production of 2 and 5 mark coins ceased in 1915 while 1-mark coins continued to be issued until 1916. A few 3 mark coins were minted until 1918, and 1⁄2 mark coins continued to be issued in silver until 1919.
- 20 pfennig, 1.1111 g (1 g silver), only until 1878
- 1⁄2 mark or 50 pfennig, 2.7778 g (2.5 g silver)
- 1 mark, 5.5555 g (5 g silver)
- 2 mark, 11.1111 g (10 g silver)
- 3 mark, 16.6667 g (15 g silver), from 1908 onwards
- 5 mark, 27.7778 g (25 g silver)
These silver coins are token or subsidiary currency for the gold mark and are therefore legal tender only up to 20 marks. However, all silver 3-mark Vereinsthalers issued before 1871 enjoyed unlimited legal tender status even after the switch-over to the gold standard. This ended with the demonetization of the Vereinsthaler in 1908 and the introduction of the new subsidiary 3-mark coins.
The 5-mark coin, however, was significantly closer in value to older thalers (and other such crown-sized coins).
Gold coins
Gold coins were minted in .900 fineness to a standard of 2,790 mark = 1 kilogram of gold (a mark was therefore about 0.3584 g of gold; a troy ounce of gold was worth 86.78 ℳ︁). Gold coin production ceased in 1915. 5-mark gold coins were minted only in 1877 and 1878.
- 5 mark, 1.9912 g (1.7921 g gold)
- 10 mark, 3.9825 g (3.5842 g gold)
- 20 mark, 7.965 g (7.1685 g gold)
Gold marks are a popular choice for Latin Currency Union coin collectors. The 20 mark is the most seen and offers a variety of different types that were mass-produced and therefore can be purchased at a low premium above each coin’s melt value. However, some designs are extremely elusive given that they were struck in very low mintages. The rarest type features Adolph Friedrich V with just 1,160 pieces issued by the Berlin Mint.[5]
Banknotes
Banknotes were issued by the Imperial Treasury (known as "Reichskassenschein") and the
Currency signs
In Unicode, the Mark sign is U+2133 ℳ SCRIPT CAPITAL M. The Pfennig is U+20B0 ₰ GERMAN PENNY SIGN.
Notes
- ^ <Krause>
- ^ a b Shaw, William Arthur (1896). The History of Currency, 1252-1894: Being an Account of the Gold and Silver Moneys and Monetary Standards of Europe and America, Together with an Examination of the Effects of Currency and Exchange Phenonmena on Commercial and National Progress and Well-being. Putnam.
- S2CID 144072556.
- ^ "Germany to Settle WWI Debt After 92 Years". ABC News. 2010-09-29. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
- ^ "Rare gold German 20 Marks". Auronum, (n.d)
References
- Krause, Chester L.; Clifford Mishler (1991). ISBN 0873411501.
- Pick, Albert (1994). ISBN 0-87341-207-9.
| Preceded by: Vereinsthaler Location: many German states Reason: German unification Ratio: 1 Mark = 1⁄3 Vereinsthaler |
Currency of Germany 1871 – 1914 |
Succeeded by: German Papiermark Ratio: at par |
| Preceded by: German unification Ratio: 1 Mark = 7⁄12 Gulden | ||
| Preceded by: German unification Ratio: 1 Mark = 28⁄93 Thaler, or 3 9⁄28 Mark = 1 Thaler | ||
| Preceded by: German unification Ratio: 1 new Mark = 5⁄6 Hamburg Mark | ||
| Preceded by: German unification Ratio: 0.81 Mark = 1 French Franc |
