The Belgian franc was the

currency A currency is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general definition is that a currency is a ''system of money'' in common use within a specific envi ...

of the

Kingdom of Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southe ...

from 1832 until 2002 when the

euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

was introduced. It was subdivided into 100 subunits, each known as a in Dutch, or in French and German.

History

The ''gulden'' (guilder) of 20 ''

stuiver The stuiver was a coin used in the Netherlands, worth of a guilder (16 ''penning'' or 8 '' duit'', later 5 cents). It was also minted on the Lower Rhine region and the Dutch colonies. The word can still refer to the 5 euro cent coin, which ...

s'' was the currency of present-day

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

from the 15th to 19th centuries until its replacement in 1832 by the Belgian franc. Its value differed from the gulden of the Dutch Republic during the latter's separation from Belgium from 1581 to 1816. Standard coins issued in Belgium include: * From 1618: the ''patagon'' or ''Albertusthaler'' of 24.55 g fine silver, worth 2.4 gulden or 48 stuiver (or 10.23 g fine silver per gulden) * From 1754: the ''

kronenthaler The Kronenthaler was a silver coin first issued in 1755 in the Austrian Netherlands (see Austrian Netherlands kronenthaler, Austrian Netherlands Kronenthaler) and which became a popular trade coin in early 19th century Europe. Most examples show t ...

'' of 25.71 g fine silver, worth 3.15 gulden ''currency'' or 2.7 ''gulden of exchange'' (9.52 g silver per exchange gulden). The French silver écu of 26.67 g silver was also accepted for 2.8 exchange gulden. * From 1816 to 1832: the

Dutch guilder The guilder (, ) or florin was the currency of the Netherlands from 1434 until 2002, when it was replaced by the euro. The Dutch name was a Middle Dutch adjective meaning 'golden', and reflects the fact that, when first introduced in 1434, its ...

of 9.613 g silver of the

United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed from 1815 to 1839. The United Netherlands was created in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars through the fusion of territories t ...

. The

French franc The franc (; , ; currency sign, sign: F or Fr), also commonly distinguished as the (FF), was a currency of France. Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amoun ...

of 4.5 g silver arrived in Belgium following its occupation during the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. Its equivalence of 1 franc = 0.4725 gulden (or 9.52 g silver per exchange gulden, with the gulden currency abolished) doomed the rollout of the higher-valued Dutch guilder, since 20 francs can purchase 9.45 silver guilders which can be melted down to recover 90.84 g fine silver worth 20.19 francs. Following independence from the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the new Kingdom of Belgium abolished the gulden in 1832 in favor of the Belgian franc, which was equivalent to the

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

used both French and Belgian francs until it issued its own

Luxembourgish franc The Luxembourg franc (''F'' or ISO ''LUF'', ), subdivided into 100 centimes, was the currency of Luxembourg between 1854 and 2002, except from 1941 to 1944. From 1944 to 2002, its value was equal to that of the Belgian franc. The franc remained i ...

in 1854. Belgium was the first country to introduce coins made of

cupronickel Cupronickel or copper–nickel (CuNi) is an alloy of copper with nickel, usually along with small quantities of other metals added for strength, such as iron and manganese. The copper content typically varies from 60 to 90 percent. ( Monel is a n ...

in 1860. In 1865, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Italy created the

Latin Monetary Union The Monetary Convention of 23 December 1865 was a unified system of coinage that provided a degree of monetary integration among several European countries, initially Belgium, France, Italy and Switzerland, at a time when the circulation of bank ...

(to be joined by Greece in 1868): each would possess a national currency unit (franc, lira, drachma) worth 4.5 g of silver or 290.322 mg of fine

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

, all freely exchangeable at a rate of 1:1. In the 1870s the gold value was made the fixed standard, a situation which was to continue until 1914. In 1926, Belgium, as well as France, experienced depreciation and an abrupt collapse of confidence, leading to the introduction of a new gold currency for international transactions, the Belga worth 5 francs, and the country's withdrawal from the monetary union, which ceased to exist at the end of the year. The Belga was tied to sterling at a rate of 35 belgas (175 francs) = £1 stg and was thus put on a

gold standard A gold standard is a backed currency, monetary system in which the standard economics, economic unit of account is based on a fixed quantity of gold. The gold standard was the basis for the international monetary system from the 1870s to the ...

of 1 Belga = 209.211 mg fine gold. The 1921 monetary union of Belgium and

survived, however, forming the basis for full economic union in 1932. In 1935, the Belgian franc was devalued by 28% to 150.632 mg fine gold per Belga and the link between the Luxembourg and Belgian francs was revised to 1 Luxembourg franc = 1.25 Belgian francs. Following Belgium's occupation by Germany in May 1940, the franc was fixed at a value of 10 Reichspfennige, reduced to 8 Reichspfennige in July 1940. Following liberation in 1944, the franc entered into the

Bretton Woods system The Bretton Woods system of monetary management established the rules for commercial relations among 44 countries, including the United States, Canada, Western European countries, and Australia, after the 1944 Bretton Woods Agreement until the ...

, with an initial exchange rate of 43.77 francs =

US dollar The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

set on 5 October. This was changed to 43.8275 in 1946 and then to 50 following the devaluation of sterling in September 1949. The Belgian franc was devalued again in 1982. Like 10 other European currencies, the Belgian/Luxembourgish franc ceased to exist on 1 January 1999, when it became fixed at 1 EUR= 40.3399 BEF/LUF, thus a franc was worth €0.024789. Old franc coins and notes lost their

legal tender Legal tender is a form of money that Standard of deferred payment, courts of law are required to recognize as satisfactory payment in court for any monetary debt. Each jurisdiction determines what is legal tender, but essentially it is anything ...

status on 28 February 2002.

Language

Even though it is a country with three official languages, Belgian coins usually only show both French and Flemish Dutch text, and sometimes one or the other depending on the type or time period to represent which region the coin is meant to represent. In later 20th-century issues, the text is almost without exception divided between two types of coins, with Flemish issues reading and , and French issues reading and . Initially, the currency was monolingual in French. From 1886, some Belgian coins also carried Dutch legends. Some later coins featured inscriptions in both languages. When the two languages appeared on either side of the same face of a coin, two versions were still produced: one with Dutch to the left and French to the right, and one with the alternate arrangement. Banknotes became bilingual in 1887 and, from 1992, banknotes were introduced which were trilingual, with either French or Dutch on the obverse and German and the remaining language on the reverse. Some commemorative coins were issued with German inscriptions but none for circulation.

Historic exchange rates

The Franc's value compared to the

varied over the years. After 1971, its lowest mark was in February 1985, when one dollar would have bought 66.31 franc. Its highest standing was in July 1980, when it stood at 27.96 to the dollar. After 1 January 1999, the rates are calculated from the Francs fixed conversion rate to the Euro.

Coins

Between 1832 and 1834, copper 1, 2, 5 and 10 centime, silver , , 1, 2 and 5 franc, and gold 20 and 40 franc coins were introduced. Some of the early 1 and 2 centimes were struck over Dutch and 1 cent coins. The 40 franc was not issued after 1841, whilst silver francs and gold 10 and 25 francs were issued between 1848 and 1850. Silver 20 centimes replaced the franc in 1852. In 1860,

cupro-nickel Cupronickel or copper–nickel (CuNi) is an alloy of copper with nickel, usually along with small quantities of other metals added for strength, such as iron and manganese. The copper content typically varies from 60 to 90 percent. ( Monel is a ...

20 centimes were introduced, followed by cupro-nickel 5 and 10 centimes in 1861. The silver 5 franc was discontinued in 1876. Between 1901 and 1908, holed, cupro-nickel 5, 10 and 25 centime coins were introduced. In 1914, production of the 1 centime and all silver and gold coins ceased. Zinc 5, 10 and 25 centimes were introduced in the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

occupied zone, followed by holed, zinc 50 centimes in 1918. Production of 2 centimes ended in 1919. In 1922 and 1923, nickel 50 centime and 1 and 2 franc coins were introduced bearing the text ''Good For'' ( in French, in Dutch). These featured the god Mercury. Nickel-brass replaced cupro-nickel in the 5 and 10 centimes in 1930, followed by the 25 centime in 1938. Nickel 5 and 20 francs were introduced in 1930 and 1931, respectively, followed by silver 20 francs in 1933 and 50 francs in 1939. In 1938 the 5 franc was reduced in size and redesigned along with the 1 franc to depict a lion and heraldic arms. As a consequence of the German occupation in 1940, the silver coinage was discontinued. In 1941, zinc replaced all other metals in the 5, 10 and 25 centimes, and 1 and 5 francs. In 1944 the Allies minted 25 million 2 franc coins at the

Philadelphia Mint The Philadelphia Mint is a branch of the United States Mint in Philadelphia. It was built in 1792 following the Coinage Act of 1792, in order to establish a national identity and the needs of commerce in the United States, and is the first and ...

using leftover planchets for the 1943 steel cent. In 1948, cupro-nickel 5 francs and silver 50 and 100 francs were produced, followed by silver 20 francs in 1949 and cupro-nickel 1 franc in 1950. These coins depicted classical allegoric figures. Bronze 20 and 50 centimes featuring a miner and lantern were minted in 1952. Despite the widely varied dates these coins were issued into circulation only a few years apart as part of a broader currency reform. The silver coinage ceased production after 1955. Cupro-nickel 25 centime coins replaced the 20 centime in 1964. The 25 centime coins were later discontinued in 1975. Nickel 10 francs depicting King Baudouin were introduced in 1969 (only struck until 1979), followed by nickel-bronze 20 francs in 1980 and nickel 50 francs in 1987, all of which — bar the 10 Franc coin — replaced the corresponding banknotes. Aluminium-bronze replaced cupro-nickel in the 5 franc in 1986, whilst nickel-plated iron replaced cupro-nickel in the 1 franc in 1988, which was also significantly reduced in size. These changes coincided with a gradual modernization of the general coinage while older issues were gradually pulled from circulation, similar to what took place during the early postwar years. The new designs were also more identifiable to vending machines and the visually impaired. 1994 saw a redesign of all denominations but the 50 centimes, with a uniform design featuring King Albert II replacing the image of Baudouin. This series ceased production after 2000. Coins ceased to be convertible in 2004.

Coins under King Baudouin

Coins under King Albert II

Banknotes

Between 1835 and 1841, notes were issued by the , the , the , the Banque de Belgique, the Banque de Flandre and the Banque liègeoise et Caisse d'épargnes in denominations which included 5, 10, 20, 25, 50, 100, 250, 500 and 1000 francs. In 1851, the

National Bank of Belgium The National Bank of Belgium (NBB; , NBB; , BNB; , BNB) is the National central bank (Eurosystem), national central bank for Belgium within the Eurosystem. It was the Belgian central bank from 1850 until 1998, established by law of and issuin ...

began issuing paper money, in denominations of 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 francs. 1, 2 and 5 franc notes were introduced in 1914. The issued paper money in the German-occupied areas between 1915 and 1918 in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 20, 100 and 1000 francs. The treasury took over production of 5 and 20 franc notes in 1926. In 1927, notes were introduced by the National Bank with denominations given in both francs and belgas. These were 50, 100, 500, 1000 and 10,000 francs (10, 20, 100, 200 and 2000 belgas). In 1944, following liberation, new banknotes were introduced (dated 1943 and printed in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

) in denominations of 5, 10, 100, 500 and 1000 francs (1, 2, 20, 100 and 200 belgas). These were the last notes to bear denominations in belgas. Treasury notes for 50 francs were introduced in 1948, followed by 20 francs in 1950, whilst the National Bank continued to issue 100, 500 and 1000 francs. 5000 franc banknotes were introduced in 1971, with the 20 and 50 franc treasury notes replaced by coins in 1980 and 1987, respectively. 10,000 franc banknotes were introduced in 1992, the same year that production of the 5000 franc note ceased. 2000 franc notes were introduced in 1994, with 200-franc notes issued in 1996. While previous issues of Belgian notes were bilingual, starting with the 10000-franc notes in 1992, Belgian franc banknotes became trilingual, with the language appearing on the obverse being the main language spoken by the subject (French or Dutch) and the other two official languages (including German) on the reverse. Unlike coins, banknotes removed from circulation in 2002 (as well as all other banknotes with denominations of at least 100 francs of earlier series issued since 1944, and certain rare banknotes issued prior to 1944) may be exchanged into euros at the

for an indefinite period of time.

Penultimate series

Last series

References

Footnotes

External links

NBB.be
A brief history of Belgian banknotes and coins ( NBB)
NBB.be
Exchange of Belgian banknotes ( NBB)
NEWS.BBC.co.uk
Overview of Belgian franc from the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Historical banknotes of Belgium

Franc – currency
at

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{{Portal bar, Belgium, Europe, Money, Numismatics Economic history of Belgium Modern obsolete currencies Currencies replaced by the euro Currencies of Belgium 1832 establishments in Belgium 2002 disestablishments in Belgium