Napoleonic Coinage and the LMU
The coinage of the Latin Monetary Union (“LMU”), established in 1865, matches the Napoleonic franc. The franc, and its counterpart Italian lira and other matching coins, were in circulation in certain countries from 1803 through the 1960s.
Napoleon 20 Francs
In 1803, Napoleon rationalized French coinage defining the franc as 5 grams of 0.9 fine silver. Owing to the long-standing silver to gold ratio of 15.5 to 1, the 20 francs was 6.45 grams of 0.9 fine gold (link).
The first French 20 francs was minted 1803 (AN 11, or AN XI, under the French Republican calendar), while Napoleon was Consul of the French Republic.
The Marengo
One gold coin preceded the French version — the 20 francs of Subalpine Gaul in Piedmont. It was minted in commemorating Napoleon’s victory at the Battle of Marengo, with the obverse stating “Italy was Freed in Marengo.” The coin became known as the “Marengo” and is now used to refer to any gold 20 francs.
Though it displays French currency, the coin was the first decimalized coin minted in Italy. Decimalization (that is, 1 francs subdivided into 100 centimes) is our modern monetary system. Previously, coinage was not evenly divisible (1 livre = 20 sous = 12 deniers).
Napoleon 5 Francs
The silver 5 francs, at 25 grams of 0.9 fine silver (22.5 grams silver), was similar to the British crown (26.2 grams silver) and the Spanish 8 reales (24.4 grams silver) of the 19th century, both of which were influenced by the thaler of the Holy Roman Empire (23.4 grams silver), which had been used in world trade since the 1740s. These types of coins are collectively referred to as Crown-sized coins
The French currency system was exported through Napoleon’s conquests throughout Europe where he installed relatives as rulers: Naples and Westphalia. Or himself, as in the Kingdom of Italy.
The exceptions are the Netherlands under Napoleon’s brother Louis and the Spanish under his other brother Joseph did not adopt the standard. Louis’ ducats and Joseph’s 20 pesetas and 80 reales were similar to LMU denominations, but do not match.
Napoleon’s fall did not end his influence in coinage. The many French governments in the 19th century maintained the coinage. Trade relations led Belgium to adopt the parallel franc in 1832 and Switzerland in 1850. The Italian States also unified under the parallel lire — Sardinia in 1816, revolutionary Lombardy and Venice in 1848 — until their political unification as Italy in 1861.
Monetary Convention and Treaties
After 150 years of relative stability in the gold-silver ratio, France sought to formalize the bimetallic currency standard already in use by its neighbors (Belgium, Switzerland, and Italy) and to expand that further. This became known as a the Latin Monetary Union
In the lead up the formation of the LMU, small differences in the silver content of coins among France’s neighbor led to export across borders and the loss of coins for circulation. This led to adjustment (i.e., Switzerland reducing the silver content from 0.9 fine to 0.8 fine) and a desire for coordination (Willis, 1901).
International Monetary Conventions were held in Paris in 1867, 1878, and 1881. Greece joined the LMU in 1867 and was the only formal additional member. The LMU had structural weaknesses (ignoring paper currency, which was rising in prominence), but was also subject to adverse macroeconomic developments. After 150 years of relative stability in the silver-gold ratio, the value of silver fell dramatically beginning in the early 1870s. France’s defeat in 1870 in the Franco-Prussian war also reduced the influence of the LMU’s driving force.
Dual-Denomination Pattern Coins
(Images: Heritage May 2023, Aug 2015)
The United States participated in the international monetary conferences and considered coordinating its coins with the franc at a US$5 to 25 francs ratio, consistent with the LMU denomination. Pattern coins were minted but did not progress. The later between known Stella pattern coins (1879-1880) were another effort to unify coinage — though the Stella was a compromise coin that would not have matched the LMU denomination.
In 1873, the U.S. adopted the French franc for its silver coinage at a 1 to 5 ratio (10 cents equal to 50 French decimes), which it continued to use until the 1960s. This was an unusual choice given it applied to small everyday coins, not trade coins.
The French and U.S. influence also spread this to silver coinage throughout Latin America in the 19th and 20th century at the same 1 to 5 ratio. European colonial influence also spread it to many other countries, from Tunisia to the Philippines.
Members and Related States
Five nations were formal members of the LMU: Belgium, France, Greece, Italy, and Switzerland.
Austria-Hungary, Finland, Spain, Russia, Venezuela, and others adopted matching coinage for trade purposes and were de facto interchangable, but they maintained different denominations internally. Germany, the Scandinavian nations, and the British Empire remained outside the influence.
Central and South America coinage was a mix of LMU, Spanish, and British influence. Venezuela was most closely tied to the LMU, reinforced by its partial adoption by the U.S., where Venezuelan coins were minted. Post-colonial Latin American coinage was often pegged to the French franc.
Ultimately, about 40 countries adopted gold coinage according to the Latin Monetary Union denominations, and 60 adopted silver coinage, making it arguably the most geographically expansive coinage standard of the 19th and 20th centuries.
A full list of coinage matching LMU denominations for gold and for silver here.
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