Danzig gulden

Danzig gulden
20 gulden (1937) 10 pfennig coin
Denominations
Subunit
1⁄100	pfennig
Plural
pfennig	pfennige
Banknotes	10, 20, 25, 50, 100, 500, 1000 gulden
Coins	1, 2, 5, 10 pfennige  1⁄2, 1, 2, 5, 10, 25 gulden
Demographics
User(s)	Free City of Danzig
Issuance
Central bank	Bank of Danzig
This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete.

The gulden was the currency of the Free City of Danzig between 1923 and 1939. It was divided into 100 pfennige.

History

Until 1923, Danzig used the German papiermark and issued several local 'emergency notes'. Inflation during 1922–23 averaged roughly 2440% per month.^[1] In July 1923 it was announced that a new and independent currency (the gulden) was being established with the approval of the League of Nations finance committee to replace the German mark.^[2] The gulden was introduced at a value of 25 gulden = 1 pound sterling.^[2][3]

Incorporation into Nazi Germany

Danzig was annexed by Nazi Germany on 1 September 1939, the day the invasion of Poland had begun^[4] On the same day reichsmark coins and notes were declared legal tender alongside the Danzig gulden, with 1 gulden being equal to 0.70 reichsmark.^[5] This was a favourable exchange rate for inhabitants of Danzig, since the actual exchange rate was around 0.47 reichsmark per gulden. To prevent abuse on 7 September the import of gulden coins and notes into the territory of the former free city was prohibited.^[6] Bank assets were however converted at the market rate of 0.47 reichsmark per gulden.^[7]

With effect on 7 September 1939, coins of 1 and 2 pfennige became legal tender throughout Nazi Germany as 1 and 2 reichspfennige, and would remain in circulation until November 1940. On 30 September the reichsmark became the sole currency on the territory of the former free city. Notes and coins of 5 and 10 gulden were withdrawn that day and could be exchanged for reichsmarks until 15 October. Coins of 5 and 10 pfennig and  ¹⁄₂ and 1 gulden remained in circulation until 25 June 1940 and were redeemed until 25 July.

Coins

A first series of coins was issued in 1923, followed by a second in 1932. Coins were issued in denominations of 1, 2, 5 and 10 pfennige and  ¹⁄₂, 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 gulden.

The 25-gulden coins were minted in gold. Produced in very small numbers in 1923 (1,000) and 1930 (4,000), the latter date's issue was only released as a few presentation pieces. As part of the 1923 are 200 proof coins and, while available to collectors, are very expensive.^[8] The 1930 issue was essentially unobtainable until a large number appeared in the 1990s, apparently released from a Russian treasury where they had been stored since their capture at the end of World War II.^[9]

First series (1923)[10]
Image	Value	Technical parameters			Description				Date of
		Diameter	Mass	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse	quantity minted	minting	issue	withdrawal	lapse
	1 pfennig	17 mm	1.67 g	95% Cu, 4% Sn, 1% Zn	Plain	Value, country name “Danzig”	Year, Danzig coat of arms	11,500,000	1923–1937	18 December 1923[11]	1 November 1940[12]	30 November 1940[12]
	2 pfennige	19.5 mm	2.5 g					3,250,000	1923–1937
	5 pfennige	17.5 mm	2.0 g	75% Cu, 25% Ni	Plain	Value, country name “Danzig”	Year, Danzig coat of arms	4,000,000	1923, 1928	18 December 1923[11]	1 October 1932[11]	?
	10 pfennige	21.5 mm	4.0 g			Value, country name “Freie Stadt Danzig”		5,000,000	1923
	1⁄2 gulden	19.5 mm	2.5 g	75% Ag, 25% Cu	?	Value, country name “Freie Stadt Danzig”, coat of arms	cog	1,400,000	1923, 1927		1 April 1932[11]
	1 gulden	23.5 mm	5.0 g			Value, country name “Freie Stadt Danzig”, cog	Coat of arms held by two lions	3,500,500	1923
	2 gulden	26.5 mm	10.0 g					1,250,000
	5 gulden	35.0 mm	25.0 g			Value, country name “Freie Stadt Danzig”, St. Mary's Church		860,500	1923, 1927
These images are to scale at 2.5 pixels per millimetre. For table standards, see the coin specification table.

Banknotes

The first Danzig gulden banknotes were issued by the Danzig Central Finance Department and dated 22 October 1923 with a second issue dated 1 November 1923.^[13] Denominations for both series included 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, and 50-pfennige notes,^[13] as well as 1, 2, and 5 gulden.^[13] In addition, the first issue contained 10 and 25-gulden notes,^[14] and the second issue contained 50 and 100-gulden notes.^[15] The Bank of Danzig was capitalized with £300,000 on 5 February 1924 and officially opened on 17 March 1924.^[3] The Bank of Danzig issued four series of gulden (1924, 1928–30, 1931–32, and 1937–38) with an initial issue date of 10 February 1924.^[15]

Banknotes of Danzig

Issued by	Issue	Value	Image	Comments
Danzig Central Finance Department	1923 first series	1 pfennig
		2 pfennige
		5 pfennige
		10 pfennige
		25 pfennige
		50 pfennige
		1 gulden
		2 gulden
		5 gulden
		10 gulden
		25 gulden
	1923 second series	1 pfennig
		2 pfennige
		5 pfennige
		10 pfennige
		25 pfennige
		50 pfennige
		1 gulden
		2 gulden
		5 gulden
		50 gulden
		100 gulden
Bank of Danzig	1924	10 gulden
		25 gulden
		100 gulden
		500 gulden		Zeughaus (arsenal)
		1,000 gulden		City Hall
	1928–30	10 gulden		Artushof
		25 gulden
	1931–32	20 gulden		Stockturm (local tower) part of Golden Gate (Gdańsk) Neptune
		25 gulden		St. Mary’s Church
		100 gulden		Motława River dock scene
	1937–38	20 gulden
		50 gulden		Vorlaubenhaus

References

Notes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Money of the Free City of Danzig.

Sources

• Cuhaj, George S., ed. (2010). Standard Catalog of World Paper Money General Issues (1368-1960) (13 ed.). Krause. ISBN 978-1-4402-1293-2. 
• Mason, John B. (1946). The Danzig Dilemma – A Study in Peacemaking by Compromise. Stanford University Press. 
• McGuire, Shayne (2013). The Silver Bull Market: Investing in the Other Gold. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-118-61514-0.