Euromonets: How did it start

The first Euromonets appeared in circulation in early January 2002 in 12 countries of the European Union. Then the Eurozone included Austria, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Finland and France. Three “dwarf countries”-Vatican, Monaco and San Marino, not part of the EU, but closely related to it economically, received the right to mock their own coins with a small circulation. However, long before our time, from the Roman Empire, attempts have been made to unify the unusually motley and complex monetary system of European countries. There were so many different coin systems that the exchange of money becomes a real profession. The first, rather limited, project to introduce a single monetary system in Europe was proposed in the Middle Ages by the General of Genta (Flanders). It was proposed to unite France, England, Flanders and Duchy of Brabant into a single mint. In 1469, a meeting of financiers was held in the Belgian city of Bruges, which discussed the ratio of the cost of coins of different countries. The meeting was also attended by monarchs Karl Smey (Burgundy), Louis XI (France) and Edward IV (England). The meeting did not give any results. The case moved from the dead point only in the second half of the twentieth century.

In March 1957, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, France and Germany signed an agreement on the creation of the European Economic Community (EEC) in Rome, or, as it was then called, a “common market”. In 1973, Great Britain joined the contract, and in subsequent years - Austria, Greece, Denmark, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Finland. In 1969, it was proposed to introduce a single monetary system within the countries of the “common market”. European bureaucracy is famous for its slowness. The development of this project began only in 1978. And already in 1992, an agreement was signed in the Dutch city of Maastricht on the creation of the European Economic and Monetary Union. Changes have been repeatedly made to the text of the contract; The last time in Lisbon in 2007.

According to the initial plan, the introduction of Ecu (ECU - reduction from the English European Currency Unit) was provided as a general European currency). First, in the form of non -cash currency, followed by the release of banknotes and coins. The non-cash Ecu once quite successfully competed in Europe with an American dollar. In a number of European countries, “pilot” monetary tokens were produced - for collectors. On their gurt, an inscription was sometimes placed that this token is not an official coin and cannot serve as a payment vehicle (Fig. 1, 2).

And the Catalans once again showed Madrid their desire for independence (Fig. 3).

The most carefully entered the Germany: there was no face value in this country (Fig. 4).

However, in a number of countries, Eku coins were a legal payment fund for some time! So, for example, in Belgium in 1987 they hastened to mint silver and gold coins with a face value of 5 and 50, dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Roman Treaty. They depict Emperor Charles V (Fig. 5).

In France, too, apparently, they were sure that Eku was about to be put into circulation in all EU countries. And on their coins, they “for convenience” indicated a double face value - in old francs and in the new Ecu (Fig. 6).

However, the financiers of a number of European countries clearly hastened: not all EU members liked the name of the new currency. And this is understandable - after all, the word “ecu” is firmly connected with France: the first golden French coin with the image of royal lilies against the background of the shield (franz. Écu - a stamp shield) was also called. The coinage of Ecu began under Louis IX in 1266 and lasted several centuries. The hero of Alexander Dumas d'Artagnan wore such coins in his wallet (Fig. 7).

They say that the Germans especially objected about Eku-perhaps because of unpleasant associations: in German ekel-disgust, abomination, nastiness, du ekel! - Gadin! (It is curious that around the same years in Germany, a British car with the beautiful name Silver Mist “did not go” in Germany: the British did not take into account that in German Mist is not a romantic haze, but an ordinary manure.) One way or another, he didn’t go, and now few people remembered about this monetary unit, and this name has lost its place for no “national” associations.

Until the end of 2001, payments in euros were made in non -cash form. Residents of 12 European countries were able to hold new banknotes and coins for the first time on December 15, 2001, when the exchange of old banknotes for new ones began. And already on January 1, 2002, about 15 billion banknotes and 80 billion coins were circulated, replacing national monetary units. Austria, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Finland and France decided to abandon their national currencies in favor of the euro. To date, the euros have been introduced by 19 out of 28 countries that are in the European Union. In addition to the “pioneer dozen”, these include Cyprus (since 2008), Latvia (since 2014), Lithuania (since 2015), Malta (since 2008), Slovakia (since 2009), Slovenia (since 2007), Estonia (since 2011). Perhaps an important role in the desire to join the Eurozone is played by a significant strengthening of the euro after its introduction regarding the dollar. So, if in mid -May 2002, 1 euro corresponded to approximately $ 0.9, then in the summer of the same year the euro caught up with the dollar, by the beginning of 2003 it significantly overtook it and continued to strengthen. True, with significant fluctuations. So, at the beginning of 2004, the euro/dollar ratio was already 1.28, and at the end of December - 1.36! During 2005, this ratio ranged from 1.19–1.35. In mid -May 2018, the ratio was 1.18.

It is interesting that some countries that are not part of the Eurozone (Great Britain, Denmark, Sweden) mint, albeit unofficially, memorable Euromonets. Some countries, including Andorra, Montenegro and Kosovo, accepted the euro as their currency unilaterally, although they are not part of the EU and do not have the right to release such money.

The exchange of old currency for a new one led to a series of curioses. When the euro was introduced into circulation and announced the exchange of old money for new, one Frenchman from the city of Marmand (it is located about 70 km southeast of Bordeaux) came to his bank with a car of money. It turns out that for ten years he accumulated bunk coins (Fig. 12) and, having learned about the introduction of the new currency, decided to exchange. It took bank employees only 15 minutes to count all the coins that turned out to be 10 thousand francs (about 1900 dollars) or 5 thousand coins. The mass of one such coin is 7.5 g, which means that 37.5 kg of money was presented to the bank for exchange! If we accept that one person can count about 60 coins per minute (one per second), it turns out that the owner of the car took up at least five people (albeit short).

In those countries where the new currency has been introduced since the beginning of 2002, the euro has relatively quickly replaced national money. By the end of January, the inhabitants of the Netherlands were the first to completely withdraw their guilds - the face value, which lasted 776 years in Europe. The Irish people who abandoned the parallel walking of the euro and their old currency were not much behind (since 1928 they had British pounds, renamed in 1979 to Pant, a name for our “pontious”). And soon other European monetary units ordered to live long, many of which had a long history. So, the first franc was minted in 1360, the first mention of the brand dates back to 857, and Dragma was known from the VI century BC. e.!

A few words about the name of European money. Still Herodotus in the 5th century BC. e. He asked the question of the origin of the word "Europe". But still, linguists have no consensus on this issue. Some believe that the word "Europe" comes from Semitic languages ​​and means "sunset". Indeed, southern and central Europe are west of Palestine. According to another version of “Europe” means “broad-faced”-a symbol of the full moon and an epithet of the Moon-Bogini. The archaic images of the holy priestess, sitting in the sun-bunch, have been preserved. In ancient Greek mythology, the beauty Europe is the daughter of telefasse and the Phoenician king Agenor (Telefass is one of the ancient epithets of the Bogini Moon). The Princess Europe was abducted by Zeus, who took the appearance of a white bull and, having crossed the Mediterranean Sea, brought her from the Middle East to Crete, where she gave birth to three sons. The Greek Island of Crete is located in another part of the world; She was called Europe. Thus, it can be assumed that the newly -insuceling “Euro” emphasizes that all European civilization can consider himself the heiress of ancient Greece (Fig. 13). The Symbol of the Euro is the Greek letter “Epsilon” with two parallel transverse lines symbolizing the stability of the combined currency. True, among mathematicians, the letter “Epsilon” always meant an infinitely small size, but Europeans, obviously, are not afraid for their euros - and they do the right thing.

Ilya Lenson,
cand. chem. sciences, associate professor of the Higher Chemical College of RAS