After the transition of Europe to a single currency, many countries abandoned their currency in favor of the euro. But among the currencies were those whose history spanned several centuries and was closely connected with the history of Europe itself. There were, of course, those whose history is not so great, but for many nations associated with years of financial success and stability. One of the most striking currencies, having survived the ups and downs, undoubtedly, you can call the German brand.
The beginning of time
The history of the German brand originates at the end of the XIX century, after the moment of unification of the variegated German principalities into the German Empire. And to be more precise, the gold brand appeared in 1873, and the Germans, with their inherent pedantry, even calculated the transition from many disparate currencies to a single one. The course was as follows - three silver thalers per brand.
New Age
After the outbreak of World War I, Germany abandoned gold collateral for the currency and changed the gold mark to paper. This German brand is perhaps the most unfortunate of all during the existence of a single German currency. It was at this time that huge shocks fell on Germany, including the unprecedented inflation of the early 20s of the twentieth century. Banknotes of that time were in denominations of one, five, fifty million. German brands (photo below) and the entire German people experienced truly one of the most difficult economic crises of the 20th century. Indeed , the inflation rate was 25% per day, that is, prices doubled over 3 days. With this level of inflation, money was really nothing more than a piece of paper.
Photos of those years vividly testify to this. But back to the history of the German currency. In 1924, the Reichsmark was introduced in Germany (and tied to gold). So, the cost of the Reichsmark was one trillion paper stamps! It lasted until the end of World War II and continued its circulation during the years of occupation by the allied forces. The question of any reform, of course, did not interest any of the four allied countries that divided Germany into zones of responsibility. All this led to the emergence of a
black market in which more than half of all financial transactions took place, and unusual things served as bargaining chips, sometimes they were American cigarettes. How much is the German brand of those years? If you wish, you will find many offers, and the price will vary depending, of course, on the quality and rarity of the bill.
New life
This continued until June 1948, it was then that a new currency, the Deutschmark, was put into circulation on the territory of the Anglo-American zone. The monetary reform operation was being prepared in the strictest confidence, the banknotes themselves were printed in the USA, and they came to Germany through Spain. The transition to a new currency sharply depreciated the Reichsmarks, which were still used in the zone of responsibility of the Soviet Union. The answer was not long in coming - Berlin was blocked, and finally Germany was finally divided into two states. In fact, the division of Germany occurred as a result of the emergence of the Deutschmark. From this moment on, the German brand existed in both West and East Germany.
The Age of Stability
By the mid-1950s, the Deutschmark had become a model of stability. As studies conducted in the late 70s showed, in almost 30 years the purchasing power of the brand fell by half, which, however, was one of the best results in the world. For the dollar, this indicator fell by 60%, while the pound lost more than 80%. Following the country (in 1990), the German brand again became one. Moreover, the amount of up to 4 thousand oriental marks could be exchanged at a one-to-one exchange rate, which, by the way, became the reason for a rather serious scandal between the German government and the Federal Bank. At the same time, every resident of East Germany, who first visited the western part of the country, received one hundred Deutschmarks. However, even this did not shake the German brand. During the last decade of the twentieth century, the German mark - the deutsche mark - remained one of the most stable European currencies, successfully competing with the American dollar as a means of saving.
Goodbye brand
On January 1, 2002, the mark was replaced by the euro. By the way, the historical course is December 31, 2001: the German mark to the ruble - 13.54. Many Germans were reluctant to part with the national currency, and now a significant part of the German population is hoping for its return.
Surveys in 2010 showed that more than 50% of the Germans surveyed are ready to forget about the euro and return to the mark. And in connection with the recent wave of defaults that has swept across Europe, the question of abandoning the single currency is being raised in Germany more and more often. However, the numbers speak for the preservation of the euro. Thus, the inflation rate in Germany is 1.5% since 2002, against 2.6% before the transition to a single currency. The German government is categorically against the return to the brand, however, various options are still being discussed among different circles
of the German population.