Austro-Hungarian gulden
Encyclopedia
The Gulden or forint was the currency
of the Austrian Empire
and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire
between 1754 and 1892 when it was replaced by the Krone/korona
as part of the introduction of the gold standard
. In Austria
, the Gulden was initially divided into 60 Kreuzer
, and in Hungary
, the forint was divided into 60 krajczár. The currency was decimalized in 1857, using the same names for the unit and subunit.
n banknote
s and on the German
side of the post-1867 banknotes. In southern Germany, the word Gulden
was the standard word for a major currency unit. The name Florin was used on Austrian coin
s and forint was used on the Hungarian
side of the post-1867 banknotes and on Hungarian coins. It comes from the city of Florence
, Italy
where the first florins
were minted.
in 1754, the Gulden was defined as half a Conventionsthaler, equivalent to 1/20 of a Cologne mark
of silver
and subdivided into 60 Kreuzer. The Gulden became the standard unit of account in the Habsburg Empire
and remained so until 1892.
In 1857, the Vereinsthaler
was introduced across Germany
and Austria-Hungary, with a silver content of 16⅔ gram
s. This was slightly less than 1.5 times the silver content of the Gulden. Consequently, Austria-Hungary adopted a new standard for the Gulden, containing two-thirds as much silver as the Vereinsthaler. This involved a debasement
of the currency of 4.97%. Austria-Hungary also decimalized
at the same time, resulting in a new currency system of 100 Kreuzer (krajczár) = 1 Gulden (forint) and 1½ Gulden = 1 Vereinsthaler.
The Austro-Hungarian Gulden was replaced by the Krone
in 1892 at a rate of 2 Krone (korona) = 1 Gulden.
When the Gulden was decimalized in 1857, new coins were issued in denominations of ½ (actually written 5/10), 1 and 4 Kreuzer in copper, with silver coins of 5, 10 and 20 Kreuzer, ¼, 1 and 2 Florin and 1 and 2 Vereinsthaler and gold coins of 4 and 8 Florin or 10 and 20 francs. Vereinsthaler issues ceased in 1867.
Vereinsthaler = 1½ Florins
From 1866, the K. K. Staats Central Casse ("Imperial and Royal State Central Cashier") issued banknotes, followed from 1881 by the K. K. Reichs Central Casse which issued the last Gulden banknotes dates 1888
Currency
In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...
of the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
between 1754 and 1892 when it was replaced by the Krone/korona
Austro-Hungarian krone
The Krone or korona was the official currency of the Austro-Hungarian Empire from 1892 until the dissolution of the empire in 1918...
as part of the introduction of the gold standard
Gold standard
The gold standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed mass of gold. There are distinct kinds of gold standard...
. In Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, the Gulden was initially divided into 60 Kreuzer
Kreuzer
The Kreuzer, in English usually kreutzer, was a silver coin and unit of currency existing in the southern German states prior to the unification of Germany, and in Austria.-Early history:...
, and in Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
, the forint was divided into 60 krajczár. The currency was decimalized in 1857, using the same names for the unit and subunit.
Name
The name Gulden was used on the pre-1867 AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n banknote
Banknote
A banknote is a kind of negotiable instrument, a promissory note made by a bank payable to the bearer on demand, used as money, and in many jurisdictions is legal tender. In addition to coins, banknotes make up the cash or bearer forms of all modern fiat money...
s and on the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
side of the post-1867 banknotes. In southern Germany, the word Gulden
South German gulden
The Gulden was the currency of the states of southern Germany between 1754 and 1873. These states included Bavaria, Baden, Württemberg, Frankfurt and Hohenzollern....
was the standard word for a major currency unit. The name Florin was used on Austrian coin
Coin
A coin is a piece of hard material that is standardized in weight, is produced in large quantities in order to facilitate trade, and primarily can be used as a legal tender token for commerce in the designated country, region, or territory....
s and forint was used on the Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
side of the post-1867 banknotes and on Hungarian coins. It comes from the city of Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
where the first florins
Italian coin florin
The Italian florin was a coin struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard. It had 54 grains of nominally pure gold worth approximately 200 modern US Dollars...
were minted.
History
With the introduction of the ConventionsthalerConventionsthaler
The Conventionstaler was a standard silver coin of the Holy Roman Empire. It was introduced in 1754 and contained one tenth of a Cologne mark of silver ....
in 1754, the Gulden was defined as half a Conventionsthaler, equivalent to 1/20 of a Cologne mark
Cologne mark
The Cologne Mark was a unit of weight equivalent to 233.856 grams. It was introduced by the Danish King Hans in the late 15th century and was used as a standard for weighing metals...
of silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
and subdivided into 60 Kreuzer. The Gulden became the standard unit of account in the Habsburg Empire
Habsburg Monarchy
The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg , and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine , between 1526 and 1867/1918. The Imperial capital was Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was moved to Prague...
and remained so until 1892.
In 1857, the Vereinsthaler
Vereinsthaler
The Vereinsthaler was a standard silver coin used in most German states and the Austrian Empire in the years prior to German unification.- Introduction :...
was introduced across Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Austria-Hungary, with a silver content of 16⅔ gram
Gram
The gram is a metric system unit of mass....
s. This was slightly less than 1.5 times the silver content of the Gulden. Consequently, Austria-Hungary adopted a new standard for the Gulden, containing two-thirds as much silver as the Vereinsthaler. This involved a debasement
Debasement
Debasement is the practice of lowering the value of currency. It is particularly used in connection with commodity money such as gold or silver coins...
of the currency of 4.97%. Austria-Hungary also decimalized
Decimalisation
Decimal currency is the term used to describe any currency that is based on one basic unit of currency and a sub-unit which is a power of 10, most commonly 100....
at the same time, resulting in a new currency system of 100 Kreuzer (krajczár) = 1 Gulden (forint) and 1½ Gulden = 1 Vereinsthaler.
The Austro-Hungarian Gulden was replaced by the Krone
Austro-Hungarian krone
The Krone or korona was the official currency of the Austro-Hungarian Empire from 1892 until the dissolution of the empire in 1918...
in 1892 at a rate of 2 Krone (korona) = 1 Gulden.
Austria
Copper coins were initially issued in denominations of 1 Heller (⅛ Kreuzer) up to 1 Kreuzer, with silver coins in denominations from 3 Kreuzer up to 1 Conventionsthaler. The Turkish and Napoleonic Wars lead to token issues in various denominations. These included a 12 Kreuzer coin which only contained 6 Kreuzer worth of silver and was later overstruck to produce a 7 Kreuzer coin. In 1807, copper coins were issued in denominations of 15 and 30 Kreuzer by the Wiener Stadt Banco. These issues were tied in value to the bank's paper money (see below). The coinage returned to its prewar state after 1814.When the Gulden was decimalized in 1857, new coins were issued in denominations of ½ (actually written 5/10), 1 and 4 Kreuzer in copper, with silver coins of 5, 10 and 20 Kreuzer, ¼, 1 and 2 Florin and 1 and 2 Vereinsthaler and gold coins of 4 and 8 Florin or 10 and 20 francs. Vereinsthaler issues ceased in 1867.
Vereinsthaler = 1½ Florins
Hungary
Following the forint's introduction, Hungary issued relatively few coins compared to Austria, but the Kingdom of Hungary started minting its own golden coins called, depending on the language, florins/forints, zlatkas, Guldens, in 1329. The only copper coin was a poltura worth 1½ krajczár, whilst there were silver 3, 5, 10, 20 and 30 krajczár and ½ and 1 Conventionsthaler. All issues ceased in 1794 and did not resume until 1830, when silver coins of 20 krajczár and above were issued. Only in 1868, following the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, did a full issue of coins for Hungary begin. Denominations were fewer than in Austria, with copper ½, 1 and 4 krajczár, silver 10 and 20 krajczár and 1 forint and gold 4 and 8 forint.Paper Money
Between 1759 and 1811, the Wiener Stadt Banco issued paper money denominated in Gulden. However, the banknotes were not tied to the coinage and their values floated relative to one another. Although the notes did have a slight premium over coins early on, in later years, the notes fell in value relative to the coins until their value was fixed in 1811 at one fifth of their face value in coins. That year, the Priviligirte Vereinigte Einlösungs und Tilgungs Deputation ("Privileged United Redemption and Repayment Deputation") began issuing paper money valued at par with the coinage, followed by the "Austrian National Note Bank" in 1816 and the "Privileged Austrian National Bank" between 1825 and 1863. In 1858, new notes were issued denominated in "Austrian Currency" rather than "Convention Currency".From 1866, the K. K. Staats Central Casse ("Imperial and Royal State Central Cashier") issued banknotes, followed from 1881 by the K. K. Reichs Central Casse which issued the last Gulden banknotes dates 1888