National currency in France. France coins, franc - national currency. How much money you need to take with you to France

When planning a visit to financial institutions and currency exchange offices, keep in mind that the average bank is open from 10:00 to 17:00, and exchange offices are usually open from 9:00 to 18:00. Changing currency in France is less profitable than in the Russian Federation, so you should think about the exchange in advance and take euros with you, not dollars or rubles. The most profitable are French exchangers with a “nocommission” sign, but they are not common.

When entering the country, large amounts of cash, over 10 thousand euros, are subject to mandatory declaration. This amount includes not only banknotes, but also bills, traveler's checks, shares and other securities.

You can pay with a credit card in a store, in a restaurant, at a gas station and even in a taxi. You can’t do without cash except when buying from your hands, for example, at a flea market.

It is best to take a card with the main currency euro. When paying with ruble and dollar cards, money is lost on conversion and commissions.

Almost any card, credit or debit, in dollars, euros or rubles is suitable for payments. But there may be problems with structurally and morally obsolete bank cards with a magnetic stripe. Not all stores will be able to pay with such cards; problems may arise both with payment at an automatic gas station and with cash withdrawals from an ATM.

French commemorative coins

By 2016, about 250 different two-euro commemorative coins had been issued by the EU countries. France was not left out. General form coins, with the exception of the image in the central part of the obverse, is unified. All of them are minted with a diameter of 25.75 mm, a thickness of 2.2 mm and a weight of 8.5 grams. The rim and the inner part of the banknote are made of different materials.

The outer part, with EU stars, is made of copper-nickel alloy (75% copper, 25% nickel), the inner part, with the main image, is made of nickel brass, with the addition of zinc (75% copper, 20% zinc, 5 % - nickel). The rim is "silver", and the core is "gold", since zinc gives the alloy a golden color.

Commemorative coins should not be confused with commemorative ones. If the latter are minted using precious metals (silver, gold and platinum), are made in small quantities and initially have both a higher cost and a significantly higher sale value, then commemorative coins are issued in significant quantities and get to numismatists and souvenir hunters for more modest price, from face value to 5-6 euros maximum.

The circulation of commemorative banknotes usually ranges from one million to 20 million copies. This indicator does not significantly affect the price of coins. It is conditionally possible to divide all coins into “specialized”, local French and pan-European or global.

"Local" banknotes, as a rule, are issued in smaller editions. So, 2 euros for the centenary of the birth of Abbé Pierre or 150 years since the birth of Pierre de Coubertin were issued in the amount of one million copies. The circulation of coins for the tenth anniversary of the economic and monetary European Union, the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome and the tenth anniversary of the cash circulation of the euro is 10 million copies. The remaining banknotes dedicated to pan-European and global events and anniversaries are also minted in quantities from 10 to 20 million.

Some of the coins are distinguished by the presence of a national component, but more global significance. This is 2 euros for the 70th anniversary of Charles de Gaulle's address "To all the French", 30 years of Music Day in France, 50 years of Franco-German friendship. All these coins were issued in circulations from 9,400,000 to 10,200,000.

Visually, the commemorative money of French minting looks quite attractive, from the image of the charismatic mustachioed Pierre de Coubertin or the bearded man Abbé Pierre, to the usual inscription, without drawing, on the 2008 coin "French Presidency of the EU" and a sketchy image of a man next to the euro sign on the coin in honoring the decade of the monetary union of European countries.

The historical features of the formation of France as a state had a significant impact on the history of the development of French money and coins. Until the middle of the XIV century, France did not have its own monetary unit, and the monetary system was based on the circulation of denarii - Roman gold coins.

Ancient French coins: history of occurrence

After the fall of Rome in the fifth century and the formation of the state of the Franks, the Roman coin is gradually going out of circulation due to damage and erasure, and in France they begin to mint their own French coins: first silver, and soon gold.

After the monetary reform of Charlemagne in France, counting monetary units appear.

For large sums, the account of money was in livres, sous and denarii. The Frankish kings sought to centralize the minting of coins.

Gradually, the royal coinage fell into decay, and the specific kings switched to issuing their own coins.

Medieval coins of France

For the first time, a generally accepted state monetary unit appeared at the beginning of the Hundred Years War (1360). These were francs - gold coins with the image of the king and the Latin inscription FRANCORUM REX (from lat. king of the francs).

On the coin, the king was depicted on horseback, so the people called it the "horse" franc. When King Charles V began to mint a coin with the image of the king in his full growth, they began to call it the "foot" franc.

The gold franc was issued until the middle of the 15th century, and during the reign of Louis XI it was supplanted by the gold ecu.

In 1575-1586, they began to issue a silver franc weighing 14.188 g. The minting of francs from silver of the 833rd test continued until 1642.

The issue of coins was carried out and controlled by the cities of medieval France. At the same time, aristocrats began to mint their own coins. In the territories subject to England, the so-called Anglo-Gaulish coins appeared.

Coins of the 17th - 19th centuries

In the middle of the 17th century, the silver ecu temporarily took a leading position in the monetary circulation of France. Later, the monetary system of the "golden ecu" decimal system, when 1 franc was 10 desims (or 100 centimes). A five-gram coin with a face value of 1 franc contained 4.5 g of pure silver. Coins were issued in denominations of 5 francs, 2 francs, 1 franc, ½ and ¼ francs, which were later supplemented by gold coins in denominations of 100, 50, 40, 20, 10 and 5 francs.

During the First Republic, the Law of August 15, 1795 approved the national currency - the franc.

Bimetallism existed in France for almost the entire 19th century. The law provided for the free minting of gold and silver coins, having the force of the main means of payment. The value ratio of silver and gold is accepted as 1: 15.5, respectively.

In parallel, they began to print paper francs, which depreciated in three years, and hard currency was finally approved at the state level.

French gold and silver coins

In 1800, by order of Napoleon Bonaparte, the Bank of France was created, which had the exclusive right to issue money. After 65 years, the Paris Convention was signed, as a result of which the Latin Union was formed, uniting the monetary systems of France, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, and later Greece and Finland.

The basis for the creation of the Union was the recognition of the French franc as the cost standard for minting silver coins of the same mass and denomination by all participating countries. The monetary units of the countries of the Latin Union were characterized by the same metal content, which amounted to 0.29 g of pure gold and 4.5 g of silver.

Silver and gold coins were legally free to circulate as the main means of payment on the territory of all countries belonging to the Latin Union. At the same time, the monetary units of each country had their own name, but maintained equal parity. So, 1 French franc was equal to 1 Belgian franc and 1 Swiss franc.

The excessive issuance of paper money in France and Italy provoked the instability of the Union. There was a sharp decline in the market value of silver, and soon, when exchanging depreciated silver coins, the participating countries suffered losses of gold.

The minting of silver coins was discontinued, and in 1873-1926 the Latin Union existed in the regime of gold monometallism. During the First World War and in the post-war period, changes took place in the monetary policy of the countries participating in the Latin Union, which led to the collapse of the Union and the transition to a new stage in the development of the monetary system directly in France.

During the war, gold coins were replaced by banknotes to fund government military spending. The stabilization of the franc occurred only in 1926 after the monetary reform, the essence of which was the exchange of banknotes for bullion gold at face value.

In 1928, France switched to the gold bullion standard, which lasted until 1936.

During the Second World War, there was an increase in banknote emission, devaluation and denomination of the franc. From now on, the new franc received the content of 0.18 g of pure gold and was equal to 100 old.

Modern coins of France

The post-war period in France was characterized by numerous attempts to "improve" the economy to reduce inflation, which ultimately led to the emergence and development of a paper-credit monetary system.

The modern monetary system of France has gone through two stages of its development.

1. Circulation of the franc (until 2002).

During this period, the issue of money was carried out by: the Central Bank of France, some financial institutions, the Ministry of Finance. Responsibility for conducting a single monetary policy was assigned to the Central Bank of France.

There is a decrease in the number of banknotes and change coins in circulation and a simultaneous increase in demand deposits on current accounts, credit cards.

2. Transition to a single currency - the euro.

Since January 2002, the French franc has been withdrawn from circulation. There is a single European currency - the euro.

At the moment, France is a member of the European Economic Community, actively participating in all reforms.

The only legal tender is the euro.

Marianne - a symbol of free France - VIDEO

Marianne- the national symbol of France since 1972. Depicted as a young woman in a Phrygian cap. She is the personification of the French national motto "Liberty, equality, fraternity". Sculptural images of Marianne are an obligatory attribute of government institutions, courts, municipalities, and so on. Prior to the introduction of the euro, images of Marianne were placed on centimes and francs, at present they can be seen on euro cents (1, 2, 5) of French coinage.

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French franc from 1795 to 2002 - the main monetary unit of France. Already on February 17, 2002, the French franc ceased to exist, as, and was completely replaced by the euro.
There are 10 desims or 100 centimes in one franc.

Origin of the franc

The name of the monetary unit, unlike a number of other currencies, did not come from a measure of weight. From the beginning of 1360, the French franc already existed as a currency. Your name gold coin"Frank" received, thanks to the main enemy of France at that time - England. Translated from French"franc" means "free". This name was given in honor of the release of King John II from captivity during the Hundred Years War. At the same time, the currency was useful for giving a ransom to the British.

There is a second version of the origin of the word "franc". Scientists have found its roots in the Latin phrase "FRANCORVM REX", meaning "king of the Franks". Such a phrase was often applied to coins even before the appearance of a monetary unit.

History of the franc

The history of the currency of France dates back to the 14th century:

1360- The first gold franc was minted. The main impetus for the issuance of new money was the release of John the Good from English captivity. The coin was called the horse franc. On the obverse was an image of a king with a sword. The weight of the coin was 3.885 grams. One franc was equal to the Turkish lira and 240 denier.

1365- the minting of a new coin began - the “pedestrian franc”, on the obverse of which the king was depicted standing in one place. The weight of the new coin was less and amounted to about 3.8 grams.

1461- the end of the reign of Louis XI, after which the era of new coins began - gold ecu.

1575- minted French franc from silver. The weight of the new coin was 14.188 grams. For one such coin, one could get 240 dinés, 20 soles or one livre.

1586- The release of the silver franc was discontinued, but some coins continued to be minted until 1642.

By the middle of the 17th century The silver franc went out of circulation and was replaced by the silver ecu.

1799 Napoleon's rise to power. Worked under his guidance. Annual revenues to the treasury from taxes amounted to almost 660 million francs.

1801– managed to reduce the budget deficit to a minimum level and cover part of the public debt.

1803- The first new francs were issued, which held their price until 1914. The size of the gold content was 0.2903 grams. Simultaneously with the new franc, the old louis were replaced, which were replaced by an updated coin - the louis.

1848- the financial crisis, as a result of which the so-called "forced exchange rate" was introduced. From that moment on, banking institutions could refuse to exchange banknotes for coins. At the same time, the free one was replaced by the legal one, when individuals and financial institutions undertook to take paper notes as a means of making payments.

1850- "legitimate" and "forced" courses were abolished.

1865- Created Latin. The initiator is France. It includes four states - Switzerland, Italy, Belgium and France. It was agreed that the currencies are brought to the so-called "bimetallic" standard. Since that year, the ratio of silver to gold has become 15.5 to one, that is, 0.29 grams of gold accounted for 4.5 grams of silver.

1868- Accession to the union of Greece and Spain.

1869- accession to the union of San Marino, Serbia, Bulgaria and a number of other states.

1870- the beginning of the war. Both courses ("legal" and "compulsory" are reintroduced).

1873- The cost of silver fell, so the issue of silver coins had to be abandoned. In fact, there was a smooth transition to the gold standard.

1885- Russian imperial (15 rubles) was equal to 40 francs, and semi-imperial (7.5 rubles) - to 20 francs.

1906- 100 francs coin was issued.

1914- the first banknotes for five, ten and twenty francs appeared, the exchange for coins was prohibited.

1920– The Latin Monetary Union collapsed, but on paper it ceased to exist seven years later, in 1927.

1928- the exchange of paper francs resumed again.

1929 the beginning of the financial crisis. The financial system based on the gold standard was destroyed.

1936- completely stopped the exchange for gold.

1939- A monetary union (area of ​​the franc) was formed.

1942- the beginning of the issue of new coins, having from five centimes to five francs.

1944- new banknotes in denominations from two to five hundred francs are in circulation. The exchange rate to the dollar is 50 francs.

1948- the beginning of the implementation of the Marshall Plan. In the same year there was a franc.

1950- new coins with a face value of up to 100 francs and a banknote of 10,000 francs were put into circulation. An agreement was reached on the continuation of the activities of the “franc zone”.

1958- the franc against the dollar reached 420. A decision was made to carry out a new devaluation.

1960- introduced a stable franc. Laos, Guinea, Syria, Lebanon, Cambodia and a number of other countries left the franc zone.

1962 Mali left the franc zone.

1963- the monetary unit began to bear the name franc (without the prefix "new").

1968- the flight of capital from the country led to a sharp decrease in gold and foreign exchange reserves.

1969 - devaluation of the franc, depreciation from 4.9 to 5.55 francs per dollar.

1970- The European Community put into circulation a new international currency ECU, which played the role of a means of payment in parallel with the franc.

1973- Madagascar and Mauritania left the "franc zone".

Since 1962, various French coins have been issued, many of which remained in circulation until the last days.

Also, since 1960, banknotes have been issued in denominations from 5 to 500 euros.

1999 The euro was introduced into circulation. The new currency went in parallel with the euro.

2002 The French franc is out of circulation. At the same time, the ecu was exchanged for the euro.

Switching from the franc to the euro: consequences

Until 4:30 p.m. on February 17, 2012, everyone could change French francs that were out of circulation for euros. On February 18, 2012, France went out of circulation. French francs have become interesting only to collectors.

Official exchange rate at the time of transition– 6.55957 francs for 1 euro:
- for 20 francs - 3.05 euros;
- for 50 francs - 7.62 euros;
- for 100 francs - 15.24 euros;
- for 200 francs - 30.49 euros;
- for 500 francs - 76.22 euros.

All French francs withdrawn from circulation were collected, crushed by a press and burned.

On the first day, the country's ATMs and banks dispensed hundreds of millions of euros in cash. But the enthusiasm of the French was quickly replaced by disappointment. Food prices have increased significantly compared to the level of December 31 last year. But it was only a small fly in the ointment.

Consequences of switching to the euro:

Established the work of the European Central Bank, which pursued a single policy for all EU countries. But the activities of the ECB have been repeatedly criticized. In particular, a number of countries were required to raise interest rates (Portugal, Spain and Ireland). France was among those countries that were forced to lower the rate. As a result, business growth rates have fallen. Subsequently, the adoption of the euro led to an increase in the unemployment rate;

- fixed policy changed. Now the budget deficits of each of the countries were clearly regulated by an agreement between the countries (the Stability and Growth Pact). The task of the participants is to maintain a low level of the budget deficit. For France, this was a blow, because the growth of the budget deficit could stimulate the economy. In turn, the financiers calculated that reducing the budget deficit to 1% of GDP leads to a decrease in economic growth by almost two percent;

- Increased investment in stocks, which had a positive impact on the work of French companies and the general economic growth countries;

- increased French exports and against the background of investors' interest in the European currency;

-height public debt to GDP continued after the transition to the euro. The introduction of a single currency only exacerbated the situation;

- increased active inflow of funds into the country's banking system, which contributed to the growth of consumer spending. Thus, the transition from the French franc to the euro in some way saved the country from the recession in the economy of 2002;

More than doubled, decreased.

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From franc to louis d'or (1360-1640). The very first franc was a gold coin minted in France in 1360. On the front side of this coin was depicted the French king on horseback. The coin was minted from pure gold and weighed about 3.89 grams. This franc was equivalent to the Tourist livre, which consisted of 20 soles (sous) or 240 deniers. Although the introduction of the franc in 1360 was accompanied by an economic and political upsurge in France, it was produced in extremely small quantities during that period. But the coin remained in the memory of people, in the language and financial lexicon, which allowed the Convention, after several centuries, to make it the main monetary unit of the Republic without much effort.

Gold "equestrian" franc of Jean II the Good 1350-64

The gold franc ceased to be issued under Charles VI (1380-1422) and was replaced by the golden ecu. The resumption of the Hundred Years' War was accompanied by monetary turmoil, which escalated even more after the defeat at Agincourt in 1415. Four authorities simultaneously tried to influence the minting of French coins: the king of France, the king of England, the duke of Burgundy and the Dauphin (heir to the throne), who was hiding in Bourges.

Charles VII (1422-1461) reconquers french throne with the help of Joan of Arc, this allows him to restore his power and monetary policy. In 1423, the king minted a new "horse franc" in an attempt to restore full-fledged coins. However, the franc is again supplanted by the golden ecu, and as a coin disappears for the next 150 years.

It wasn't until 1575 that Henry III (1574-1589) issued a silver franc, called the "white franc", with the intention of adjusting the face value of the coins to their actual metal content, similar to the time of Charles V (1364-1380). However, the royal declaration of 1586 forbids the minting of these francs due to the fact that a coin weighing 14 grams was often filed along the edge! The gold ecu, worth three livres, is now the main monetary unit of the kingdom. But in addition to the whole franc, there were also its change shares: coins of half and a quarter of a franc, which, however, were minted extremely irregularly and were practically not used under Henry IV (1589-1610). With the beginning of a deep monetary reform at the end of the reign of Louis XIII (1610-1643), who invented the louis d'or, the next issue of half and quarter franc coins was made only in 1641. These coins were superseded by the écu-based series and were no longer issued until the end of the 18th century.

Silver franc Henri III 1577

During the Age of Enlightenment, the louis-ecu-liar monetary system was established. At that time, various French and foreign coins were in circulation in France, so in 1640 Louis XIII decides to reform in order to streamline the monetary system. In connection with the influx of Spanish gold and the depreciation of old coins, the king begins minting a gold coin, to which he gives his name - liudor (from French this word literally translates as "Louis of gold"). As a result, the main silver coin of Louis was called the ecu. Beginning in 1656, this coinage was supplemented by a copper coin called the liar (3 denier). Copper double and single denier are no longer minted.

The monetary units of this system correlated with each other as follows:

3 denier = 1 liar
4 liara = 1 salt (su)
20 soles (sou) = 1 livre
6 livres = 1 ecu
4 ecu = 1 louis

This monetary system partially resembled the classical British system of "pounds-shillings-pence", which was reflected not only in the ratios, but also in the origin of the names of some monetary units from one Latin word. In Britain: 1 pound (in Latin libra) = 20 shillings (lat. solidus) = 240 pence (lat. denarius). Accordingly, in the French version: 1 livre = 20 sol = 240 denier.

In this state, this monetary system successfully existed until the Revolution.

Louis XV double louis d'or 1764, gold

Frank Germinal (1793-1914). At this stage, the decimal monetary system and the gold standard were introduced in France, and the franc, which actually replaced the livre, eventually served as a model and standard for the monetary units of many states.

Completely eliminated from the French monetary system for almost 150 years, the franc returns to the stage in late XVIII century, in the context of the economic crisis and political revolution. The French monetary system restored to its former place the two most stable coins since 1726: the golden louis and the silver ecu. But since 1783 the general situation in the kingdom and the indebtedness of the monarchy have become such that the vast majority of the coins did not reach the royal treasury at all. By 1789, with the help of the National Assembly, the Revolution had inherited the debts of the monarchy: about five billion livres plus interest set at a particularly high level.

In order to overcome the shortage of cash, the Convention chose paper as the monetary material: first as discount notes, and then in the form of banknotes, which were backed by national valuables confiscated from the church. But the denominations of banknotes were too large, and the problem of a shortage of small money remained. Since the reserves of precious metals were small, gold, silver utensils and other items made of these metals were required, which were required to be handed over for remelting.

First they asked for voluntary donations, then they resorted to the "patriotic tax". The Army and Navy provided the copper. Church bells were also melted down. But the accumulation of metal was delayed, and new coins were still not minted. The Assembly decides to increase the issue of banknotes. Inflation has reached a point where prices expressed in coins and in paper banknotes began to differ. In 1793, the government tries to improve the situation by first forced borrowing, and then voluntary. Scarce metal was searched for and confiscated by the authorities to support the rate of banknotes; those who resisted were threatened with the guillotine. Terror was also carried out in the monetary and financial field until the fall of Robespierre.

Since 1795, the place of the livre in the monetary system of France has been occupied by the franc. And it was at this point that, in the interests of rationalization, the duodecimal monetary system (based on dozens) was abandoned in favor of the decimal system. Although the production of new coins from precious metals was delayed, the Convention in theoretical calculations predetermines the new coins of the Republic in terms of their gold and silver content as 9/10 parts of pure metal. The law of August 15, 1795 introduces the franc, consisting of 10 desims or 100 centimes, as the main monetary unit of the Republic, instead of coins bearing the name of the deposed king. For the franc, the content of pure gold (about 0.29 grams) and pure silver (4.5 grams) is set, very close to the gold and silver content of the livre in old coins. In fact, "franc" is the new name for the livre, introduced in connection with the overthrow of the old political regime and the transition to a decimal monetary system.

1 franc Napoleon I (1804-05), silver

In 1803 Consul Bonaparte called for a reform aimed at overcoming the anarchy in the circulation of money, formed from ecu, louis and revolutionary coins of various metals. The Acts of the Germinal (period 21/22 March - 19/20 April according to the new "republican" calendar) of 1803 confirmed a new monetary system based on the decimal franc, named "franc germinal" in honor of that same month. To replace the old royal coins still in circulation, gold coins of 20 francs (the famous "napoleondor" weighing about 6.45 grams 900/1000 fineness) and 40 francs (double "napoleondor") were issued, as well as silver coins of 5 francs, 2 francs and 1 franc. 500 million gold and about 900 million silver coins were minted. This was partly facilitated by a considerable influx of silver from Italy after the military campaigns of Napoleon. However, this was not enough. Paper money had to be reintroduced, and its issue was entrusted to the Bank of France, created not so long ago with a permanent metal reserve to maintain the exchange rate of banknotes. In this context, the new gold-backed paper money was better accepted and gradually gained recognition and distribution. Franck Germinal proved to be effective. It remained very stable despite the reshuffles political regimes and lasted until the First World War.

5 francs Napoleon III 1852, silver

By 1850, large gold reserves were discovered in California and Australia. Gold reserves remained impressive and stable, but the bimetallic system of the germinal was broken. In a number of countries, the fineness of silver coins was lowered from 900/1000 to 835/1000, which entailed the export of French coins with an unchanged fineness abroad. Thanks to the World Exhibition of 1865, France organized a currency conference that brought together Belgium, Italy, Switzerland and Greece. At a meeting in Paris on December 23, the Latin Monetary Union, the first international monetary organization, was born. Its main goal was to establish a homogeneous currency for the participating states. For gold coins of 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 francs, the fineness of the metal was 900/1000, for silver coins of 5 francs - 900/1000, and for silver coins of all smaller denominations - 835/1000. The amount of coinage was set at a level proportional to the population of each country.

100 francs 1885, gold

In 1867, Napoleon III convened a new currency conference, this time bringing together 20 states. According to the principle of the gold standard, a gold coin was chosen as the main one. In accordance with the Vienna agreement of 1868, the franc was chosen as the unit of international payments: the germinal franc became the single coin for a large part of Europe!

Thus, to late XIX century, in addition to France itself, many European states, including Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, the Vatican, Greece, Monaco, Luxembourg, Spain, Romania, Albania, Finland, Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, etc., as well as Venezuela in South America , had a monetary system based on the weight standard of the French franc, although in many of these states they themselves coins bore their local names. Frank also had the widest influence and circulated in a number of other states, including primarily the French and Belgian colonies in Africa. This influence did not bypass Russia, which had large debts to France: since 1886, Russian gold coins have been minted, as in the countries of the Latin Monetary Union, from 900/1000 gold (instead of 917/1000) and bring their weight in line with allied coins. A five-ruble Russian gold coin of 1886-96 (and since 1897 - a 7.5-ruble coin) exactly corresponds in terms of gold content to the “Napoleondor” (20 francs). Thus, from 1886 to 1896, one franc corresponds to exactly 25 Russian kopecks in gold, and since 1897, after the devaluation of the Russian gold ruble by one and a half times, to 37.5 kopecks in gold. Clear evidence of the French influence on the Russian monetary system is the "gift" coin with a double denomination of 37.5 rubles / 100 francs of 1902, which was originally conceived as a mass-issue coin for international settlements, but for some reason was minted only in very limited quantities and used in practice Russian emperor Nicholas II as a souvenir.

Russia. 37 rubles 50 kopecks/100 francs 1902, gold

Frank Poincaré (1914-1959). This period in the history of the French franc is characterized by the abandonment of the gold standard, the disappearance of first gold and then silver coins from circulation, multiple and significant devaluations, high inflation and the complete collapse of the Latin Monetary Union by 1927. Since about the middle of the 19th century, the franc has been the common standard currency for a number of European countries. He overcame six political regimes, the War of 1870 and the Paris Commune without interference. But the First and then the Second World Wars, combined with the Great Depression of the early 1930s, greatly undermined the French economy and led to the collapse of the entire French monetary model based on the Germinal franc.

From 1911, after the Anglo-German crisis in Agadir, conflict with Germany seemed inevitable. Both sides are actively preparing both militarily and financially. With very precise instructions, the Bank of France at the beginning of the First World War achieves support for the franc. However, the printing of new paper money was soon required, which caused inflation and their depreciation. Instead of raising taxes (the population has already been mobilized for the most part), the government relies on domestic state loans, as well as on British and American loans. According to estimates, the first World War cost France about 200 billion dollars, 80% of which was financed by borrowed money based on the belief that after their defeat in the war, the Germans "will pay the bills." But the economic collapse of the Weimar Republic and the complete collapse of the mark (1922-1923) put an end to the last French illusion. In fear of the political and social consequences for Europe, the UK and the US are supporting the recovery of the German economy. They did not approve of the French occupation of the Ruhr area and ordered France to revise downward its claims against Germany without writing off the debts of France itself.

Since 1919, England and the United States suspended the provision of loans to France and demanded repayment of loans taken earlier. Financial markets reacted immediately: the franc collapsed in London and became the object of all speculation. The election victory of the united "left" in May 1924 hastened its downfall: speculation doubled in response to taxes on capital; investors lose confidence - they are worried about rumors about the possible danger of an international conspiracy. The state is in danger of bankruptcy. In 1928, the Parliament returns Raymond Poincaré to power. The announcement of its return stabilized the franc for a while. If a miracle does not happen, "Poincaré-Confidence" is the right person to get out of this situation. He consistently uses devaluations, taking into account the costs. On June 25, Poincaré confirms the death of the franc germinal, a monetary unit that had retained in France by that time only a fifth of its original gold content, i.e. devaluation of the franc by 80%. Now this paper "franc for 4 sous" (in the mass consciousness of the people, the franc was still worth 20 sous) could only be exchanged for gold bars (and not for coins, as before) and moreover, in the amount of at least 215,000 francs, which now corresponded to 12 kilograms of gold.

With the outbreak of World War I, the actual disintegration of the Latin Monetary Union immediately began, although it officially ceased to exist in the second half of the 1920s. Now the currencies of its former members are no longer tied to the French currency. Since that time, they have depreciated and devalued each in its own way. The Swiss franc turned out to be the most stable and least devalued currency among the countries participating in the Latin Monetary Union (as well as among all the currencies of the world) according to the results of the entire 20th century. Switzerland, which suffered quite a bit from the two world wars and was one of the last in the world to abandon the gold standard in the 1930s, together with Liechtenstein is now the only region in the world where the “franc germinal” is still virtually preserved, not undergoing denominations or monetary reforms, as happened during the 20th century with the currencies of most of the other participants in this union due to their strong depreciation.

2 francs 1943 aluminum

In France, as in almost all other countries of the former monetary union, it was not possible to achieve a stable stabilization of the currency for a long time. The Great Depression of the 1930s leads to the worldwide collapse of the gold standard and the devaluation of the pound sterling, the dollar and the yen against gold. A deep recession in France is showing signs of deflation. The franc was again overvalued against other currencies, French exports fell into decline. In this connection, over time, the French franc devalues ​​again, like a number of currencies of other countries: between 1936 and 1940, it lost another 2/3 of its value.

5 francs 1949, aluminum

With the defeat of France in 1940, Germany introduces an exorbitant forced exchange rate (1 Reichsmark becomes equal to 20 francs), which allows the invaders to plunder the country. In addition, the government must pay 400 million francs daily to cover the costs of the occupation. In the so-called "overseas territories" of France, the "free franc" exists parallel to the "Vichy franc" in the territory of France itself occupied by the Germans, which is "nothing more than a paper of a certain value for a certain use," in the words of Marshal Göring.

100 francs 1936, gold

The provisional government introduces loans to curb the inflation caused by the years of war and German occupation. General de Gaulle refused to pursue a strict policy, as advised by Pierre Mendès-France. Thus, inflation rises, and the franc continues to depreciate throughout the entire IV Republic, destroyed by the war of independence. Since December 1945, France has maintained a new international monetary system. Defined by the parties to the Bretton Woods Treaty (July 22, 1944), the International Monetary System is still based on the official "gold content" of the dollar (1/35th of an ounce since the end of 1933) and other currencies. The official dollar exchange rate was 50 French francs in 1944 and ... 420 francs in 1958! After that, the franc falls under the care of the International Monetary Fund. But a large-scale monetary reform is still needed, and this will be the "new" denominated franc of 1960.

Despite the rather sad fate of the French franc and the Latin Monetary Union in this period, the influence and popularity of the franc in the former French colonies still remains. So, in the mid-1940s, a number of poor states in central and western Africa introduce their own currency (also called the franc), pegging its rate first to the French currency and then to the euro. And since these states did not follow the example of France, which held a denomination in 1960, it is quite possible to say that this region of the world still uses the “Poincaré franc”.

New franc (1960 - 2001). The abuse of numerous devaluations and the significant depreciation of the French franc over decades lead in the late 1950s to the idea of ​​a denomination. As a result, on January 1, 1960, the so-called "de Gaulle franc", or new franc, appears.

20 ("new") centimes 1963, aluminum bronze

De Gaulle carried out a major monetary reform - returning to power in 1958, he first decided to carry out a new devaluation (by 17.55%) and then announced the creation of a "heavy franc", which he entrusted to his finance minister Antoine Pinay and economist Jacques Roueff. The "new franc" was put into circulation eighteen months later: it costs 100 old francs. The depicted sower with a Phrygian cap on her head on many new coins resembles the franc, which was in circulation until 1914. De Gaulle wanted the new franc, which finally became official in 1963, to become a symbol of stability and power.

1 ("new") franc 1975, nickel

This period in the history of the franc is characterized by sufficient stability in the purchasing power of the French currency and, in general, moderate (compared to the previous period) inflation. Since the 1970s, as a result of the annulment of the Bretton Woods agreements of 1944, there has been a abandonment of the official rate of the franc, based on its "gold content", in favor of a freely floating market rate against other world currencies. However, over time, the monetary and monetary policy of France was subjected to more and more restrictions within the framework of European integration, which ended in the late 1990s with a tight peg of the franc to the ECU (euro) and the complete loss of independence by the Bank of France in matters of monetary policy, and also the subsequent complete abandonment of the franc in 2002.

10 ("new") francs 1995, bimetal

End of the franc (2002 -). According to the results of the European Conference in The Hague in 1969 and Werner's plan (1971), a course was taken to bring together the economic systems of the EEC (European Economic Commission) member countries in order to create a single European currency. The ECU, or European Currency Unit (ECU, European Currency Unit), has become a common "virtual" currency for non-cash payments in a number of European countries. It is a settlement synthetic monetary unit, created in 1976, taking into account the size, " specific gravity» and the importance of the economy and features of the monetary system of each of the participating countries. It is this ECU currency, later renamed the euro for political and linguistic reasons, that will finally replace the franc in 2002, which had existed unchanged for more than forty years.

The European Monetary System (EMS) is designed to mitigate and limit fluctuations in the exchange rates of member states and not upset the balance of trade within the EEC. Over time, each of the currencies of the participating countries began to have only limited fluctuations relative to the rate of the single European currency. Thus, since the late 1980s, the franc could fluctuate by only 4.5% against the ECU: by 2.25% up or down.

Adopted on December 10, 1991 and ratified by a referendum in France on September 20, 1992, the Maastricht Treaty provided for the subsequent rejection of their own national currencies and their monetary policy by the countries participating in the agreement and a complete transition to a common European monetary unit, including also cash circulation. The Maastricht Treaty establishes the mandatory criteria for the participating countries necessary for the existence of a truly single currency. In order to manage and regulate the system, the European Monetary Fund was created in 1994, which replaced the European Monetary Institute, into whose reserves the central banks of the participating countries transfer 20% of their dollar and gold assets, receiving in return assets denominated in ECU. The European Monetary Fund gets the opportunity to create a European Central Bank.

The name of the single European currency caused a lot of discussion. Some countries feared a negative psychological effect on the part of the population when abandoning their national currencies, and some did not accept the name "ECU" due to phonetics and language policy. At the end of 1995, an agreement was concluded on terms that were considered the most neutral and adapted to the various languages ​​​​of most of the nations of Europe. According to this agreement, it was decided to rename the ECU into "euro" from January 1, 1999 - the date on which the opening of the European Central Bank was scheduled.

Commemorative coin " Last year franc" with a face value of 655.957 francs (100 euros) 2001, gold

Simultaneously with the establishment of the European Central Bank (ECB), the franc virtually disappeared as an official currency: from January 1, 1999, it becomes nothing more than a bargaining chip for France under the single European currency ECU, which is now officially called the "euro" (euro). The final value of the euro was fixed on 31 December 1998 at 6.55957 French francs per euro. But cash denominated in euros was put into circulation only on January 1, 2002. And the euro became the only currency in circulation only after the transition period, which lasted until February 17, 2002.

50 (euro-) cents 1999, brass

Currently in circulation are coins of 2 and 1 euros, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1 (euro-) cents - these are euro change coins created after the EU summit in Verona. One side of the coin is common to all countries of the euro area (value on the reverse); the other side of the coins has a "national" image, which necessarily includes twelve stars - a symbol of united Europe. The architectural monuments of Europe make banknotes of 500, 200, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 euros in existing colors and sizes clearly distinguishable.

2 euro 1999, bimetal

Thus ended the long history of the French franc, which was once one of the most widespread coins in the world and had a huge impact on the monetary systems and economies of many countries, including Russia. A new money adventure has begun!

France is an independent country that, along with other states, is part of the Eurozone. Because of this union in France, today, euros are in circulation. What monetary units were involved in the country before?

History of French money

Until 2002, the franc was in the economic circulation of the French Republic. Since the 16th century, such money has been issued in the form of gold coins. Since 1795, the francs have acquired a banknote denomination.

Since the franc during the circulation period consisted of a decimal system, other countries, following the example of France, switched to the same monetary calculation..

At one time, one franc consisted of ten desims, and those, in turn, were divided into 100 centimes. In 1939, this currency began to form its own zone of influence. Thus, a monetary union was formed from 17 states, where the franc became the main monetary unit. With the transition of France to the euro, all countries of the union began to use this currency instead of the franc.

French euro today

It is well known that euro banknotes of different denominations are the same in all states of the union. However, each country retains the right to mint its own coins, which, by the way, are accepted for payment in other EU countries.

So on the back of euro cents it is possible to see the face of Marianne. This woman is considered a symbol of France. The image of the collective image of Marianne has existed in the French state since the revolution of 1792.

Marianne is depicted on 1, 2, and 5 euro cents. Coins of larger denominations are decorated with the image of a sower, which also became popular in France during the Second World War.

A tree is engraved on the front side of the euro cents, and you can also see the letters “R” and “F” there. These letters are interpreted as "Republic of France".

The subtleties of French money

Banks of the republic are open from 10 am to 5 pm. Exchangers work an hour longer. The course in France for tourists from the Russian Federation is not at all profitable. It is worth taking the euro with you from Russia, or find an exchanger in France with the inscription "nocommission".

When entering the country, you must declare the following:

• An amount over 10 thousand dollars;
• Bills;
• Securities;
• Stock;
• Traveler's checks.

You can pay by card in France almost everywhere, except for small spontaneous markets. The ideal situation with money would be when there are euros on the card, otherwise the tourist may lose a lot of money on commissions.

You can travel to the country with a card of any kind. The main thing is that the card is new, since old cards can cause problems when paying, because they have a magnetic strip that many new banking devices do not read.