Money today is an integral part of human life. We are used to using coins or banknotes everywhere: in a store, on a trip, in a bank. We are used to the rustling of paper and the sound of metal. It’s even hard to imagine life without them. But throughout history there have been various events that have changed the history of money. How did the money come about? When did paper money appear in Russia? How was their development?
From the history of money
The history of the emergence of money goes far deep into the existence of mankind. Before their appearance, people used various materials and products, even food and animals. But it was not very convenient and did not always have the correct ratio in equivalent. And then the need arose to create money.
Coins appeared in the 7th century BC and spread widely due to their small weight and size. After a while, they begin to use gold and silver in the manufacture of coins. And at the beginning of the X century, the first paper money appeared in China. In Russia, the first own coins appeared at the end of the X century, when they began to mint gold and silver coins. But when did the first paper money appear in Russia? Let's trace the history of their occurrence.
The times of Catherine the Great
The first to start paper money production was Peter III. But his plan did not materialize, because Peter was overthrown by his wife. The need for the production of paper money arose due to the acute shortage of silver. And in Russia, trade was actively developing. In addition, huge funds were needed for weapons and the army. Copper did not solve the problem because it was very heavy. The tax authorities had to carry the cart, as a thousand copper rubles weighed about one ton. The only way out was to start the production of banknotes. Therefore, paper money first appeared in Russia under Catherine II. This happened in 1769.
They began to issue banknotes in denominations of 25, 50, 75, 100 rubles, which each holder could freely exchange for copper coins. At the same time, two banks were opened for exchange - in Moscow and St. Petersburg. But I had to refuse a 75-ruble banknote, because the craftsmen could freely remake the 25-ruble banknotes into 75-ruble ones. Since 1786, 5 and 10 rubles have appeared in the production of paper money. Then they were blue and red respectively. However, as in the Soviet Union. Now it’s clear why paper money appeared in Russia. To facilitate the work, after all, silver was not enough, and copper weighed too much. But what happened next?
Pavlovsk times
Paul I and his mother Catherine had a very complicated relationship. Paul hated his mother and everything that she accepted and accomplished during her reign. Naturally, the production of paper money was also hated for him. At this time, there was a drop in the rate of money out of paper - for one paper ruble they gave about 75 kopecks with silver, which the country lacked so much. Then Emperor Paul comes to a simple decision - to collect all the paper money in the country and burn it in a fire. As Prince Kurakin noted then, on Palace Square it was necessary to publicly burn 6 million rubles, which had not yet been released, and the rest - as they entered. And this is another 12 million. As you can see, the amounts are huge! Thus, the period of Catherine is the time when paper money appeared in Russia, and the period of Paul is the time when they were burned.
Further events of the time of Paul
What did Emperor Paul see a way out of the predicament of? He decided on the next action, which can hardly be called correct and sound. Paul ordered to take all the family silver utensils and re-melt them to make silver coins. As the emperor put it, he was ready to eat with tin dishes, if only to achieve prosperity for the country. But it didn’t work out! Fine silver sets, which cost about 800 thousand rubles, were melted and made money out of silver, which turned out to be worth only up to 50 thousand. Therefore, the problem has not been resolved. Soon, however, the state was forced to return to the production of paper money.
"Napoleonic" money in Russia
Along with the release of paper notes, a lot of counterfeiters appeared, because even state paper was then easier to fake than minted coins. Counterfeiters were not afraid of any punishment. But they were always severely punished with the help of various types of executions. While Napoleon was about to attack Russia, he made a scam. In 1812, on his orders, fake Russian banknotes were printed. But, as it turned out, their quality was much higher than the original Russians. Then Emperor Alexander I realized that it was time to change something in the monetary system. High-quality paper money in Russia appeared when the emperor established the foundation of the Expedition for the production of government securities. This happened in 1818.
Subsequent development of paper money in the country
Under Emperor Alexander, a factory for producing notes, watermarked paper and various documents appeared on the Fontanka embankment near St. Petersburg, which still works today. On this place, over time, a whole small city was built, whose inhabitants worked at this factory. This was the next period when paper money appeared in Russia, after which it no longer disappeared until our days.
During the reign of Nicholas I in Russia went bills of Catherine, silver rubles, as well as deposit and credit tickets, which in 1841 after the decree became money. Two years later, all varieties of money were replaced by a single type - a credit ticket. After a while, silver was replaced by gold. At the same time, confidence in the Russian monetary unit appeared. Silver and paper money were still in free circulation, while gold was in the treasury, providing value to the Russian national currency.
Further, during the formation of Soviet power, paper money was issued, and in the 1990s, a change in the production of banknotes again occurred.
Thus, today we can trace the history of paper money in Russia: when they appeared, what changes they had to undergo in the course of history. Of course, paper money in Russia played an important role, influencing history and benefiting both the state and society as a whole.