The History of Currency, 1252 to 1896 Part 30

GOLD RIJDER.

Weight (gross), 207.2 azen (= 9.95 grs.).

" (of fine gold), 187.77 azen (= 9.11 grs.).

Standard, 22 carat (= .9167).

(Equivalence = 10 fl. 2 st.).

GOLD DUCAT.

Weight (gross), 72-1/2 azen (= 3.494 grs.).

" (of fine gold), 71.43 azen (=3.432 grs.).

Standard = 23 carat 8 grs. (= .9826).

(Equivalence = 3 fl. 16 st.).

By Article 23 of this same ordinance of 1606, the further minting of billon money was forbidden, and at the same time it was enacted, with regard to the lower denominations of silver coins (schillings and smaller pieces), that not more than one-tenth of any total settlement should be tenderable in them, in case of sums exceeding 100 guldens.

The succeeding experience of the effect of these tariffs, involving, as they did, the almost total disappearance of the great silver coins, even already by the year 1638, led in 1659 to the inst.i.tution of two new silver coins--(1) the silver ducat, .868 fine, and containing 507 azen fine silver; and (2) the silver rijder, .937 fine; and containing 634.75 azen fine silver.

By the plakkaat of 25th December 1681, the states of Holland and West Friezland prescribed the minting of the gulden piece, thus at last making the gulden, so long simply an ideal money or money of account, a real coin, and laying the basis of a truer national currency system.

By subsequent proclamations and resolutions of the States-General of the 17th March 1694, and 31st December 1699, this was adopted for all the United Provinces.

The single gulden piece was to be of the standard of 10 pf. 22-1/2 grs., and to contain 200 azen fine silver.

This coin remained the mint coin of the Dutch system, without any further alteration of tariff, or any need of it till 1806.

With regard to the development of a specific law of tender, the legislation of the United Provinces was peculiarly involved. The first declaration of a wide nature was that of the 26th September 1686, which reduced certain coins,--the silver ducat and two others--to the position of trade money merely. This was repeated in the declaration of the States-General of the 7th August 1691. The declaration of the 1st August 1749 ascribed a similarly restricted character, of trade money merely, to all gold coins except the gold rijder and its half. These latter were fixed at an equivalence of 14 and 7-florin respectively. The gold ducats were not fixed, their course as trade money might fluctuate daily. They might be taken freely by weight, and at values determined by the course of trade.

The meaning of this provision can only be read in the light of the experience of the preceding half century. Up to this date (1749) there had existed, in theory, a silver standard with gold rated to it by each succeeding tariff. The fall of silver throughout the seventeenth century had acted adversely on gold, and for long the currency had consisted almost entirely of silver. This fall received some slight check in the earlier part of the eighteenth century, and the result was a reverse tendency. Gold came back into circulation, and the full weighted silver coins began to flow out and away. A bitter cry was accordingly raised in 1720 by the commercial community, and already in 1720 the Mint authorities had proposed the adoption of the gold rijder as standard, in order to stop the drain.

In 1749, however, the Mint officials felicitated themselves on the non-adoption of this proposal, and prayed that the ducat should be merely declared trade money (26th March 1749); and it was on this advice that the plakkaat of 31st March 1749 pa.s.sed. It proved insufficient to prevent the export of silver, and on the 1st August following, the States-General issued an order creating the gold rijder provisionally the standard. The right of coining it was reserved to the State, so that there was no standard in the modern sense.

The influence of this measure proved to be very slight, and 172 merchants of Amsterdam pet.i.tioned the States-General to declare the tenderableness of the ducat again. The result of a further communication from the Mint officials was the proclamation and ordinance of 1st May 1750, according to which only the gold rijder and half-rijder were declared standard, and all other gold species only trade money.

Gradually, however, what the Government had been unable to effect by legislation was accomplished by the mere force of a rise in gold or fall in silver. The gold rijders began to disappear, the complaints as to the disappearance of silver ceased, and the regulations of 1749 and 1750 were superseded. At the time of the French Revolution, therefore, the silver standard was actually in force. Nominally the gold rijder was still legal tender at 14 florins, but actually few specimens of it were in circulation.

In 1798 the establishment of the Batavian Republic necessitated the creation of a Batavian Mint, and on the 12th February 1800 the First Chamber was called upon to consider the coins.

It was not, however, until the year 1806, after the Republic had been superseded by the imposition of Louis Napoleon as King of Holland, that an effectual system was enunciated. By the resolution of 15th December 1806, a double standard was adopted.

GOLD STANDARD COINS.

_Gold Penning_ of 20 francs, 18 to the mark.

Alloy, 22 carats gold, 16 grs. silver.

Weight, 8 engels 28-4/9 azen.

Content of fine gold, 260-3/4 azen.

STANDARD SILVER COINS.

_Fifty-stuiver piece_--9-5953/17543 to the mark.

Weight, 17 engels 4-7/32 azens.

Standard, 10 pen. 22-3/4 grs.

_Gulden_--23-6111/17543 to the mark.

Weight, 6 engels 27-23/80 azens.

With the annihilation of the Napoleonic structure this scheme perished, and the law of 28th September 1816 erected a system in which elements of both those previously existing were combined.

The coinage was prescribed to consist of gold and silver standard pieces, and gold and silver trade pieces.

The standard coins were--

1. _The Silver Gulden_-- Weight = 7 engels (= 10.766 grms.).

Content of fine silver = 200 azen (= 9.613 grms.).

Standard = .893.

This was to be the unit, and divided decimally.

2. The gold piece of 10 _Gulden_ .900 fine.

Weight 140 azen (6.729 grms.).

TRADE COINS.

1. _Silver Dukaat_-- Weight 18 engels 8-2209/11200 azen (28.78 grs.).

Standard, 10 pen. 10 grs. (= .868).

2. _Silver Rijder_-- Weight, 21 engels 5-59/80 azen (= 52.574 grs.).

Standard, 11 pen. 5-3/4 grs. (= .937).

3. _Gold Dukaat_-- Weight, 2 engels 8-24/55 azen (= 3.494 grs.).

Standard, 23 kr. 7 grs. (= .983).

The trade money was only minted for private accompt. The unit gulden and the 3-gulden piece were also minted for private accompt, but the divisional silver money, the copper money, and the gold standard 10-gulden piece were only to be minted on Government account.

By Article 15 of this law the franc was adopted in the Southern provinces on a footing of

1 franc = 47-1/4 carats.

1 gulden = 2 francs 11-61/100 centimes.

Finally, by Article 18, the tender of copper was limited to 1 gulden, and that of the smaller silver denomination to one-fifth of the amount of settlement.

By the succeeding law of 22nd March 1839, the silver Netherland gulden was prescribed to be of the weight of 10 wigtje's or grms., and .945 fine.

This prescription was retained as to the gulden in the more important Act of 26th November 1847.

This Act definitely established the silver standard. The standard coins were declared to be the gulden (and its half) and the rijksdaalder (= 2-1/2 guldens). The gold _William_ and the gold _dukaat_ were declared to be trade money, and the minor or divisional silver coins (25 cents and under) were fixed at a fineness of .645. The gold William was to weigh 6.729 grms., .900 fine (content of pure gold, therefore, to be 6.056 grms.). The gold dukaat was to weigh 3.494 grms., .983 fine (therefore to contain 3.4345 grms. fine gold).

The coinage of standard silver coins, and of gold trade coins, was left free to individuals (Article 18). The trade money was expressly declared to be no legal tender (_geen wettig betaalmiddel_, Article 20).