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100 Francs - Oostende
| Issuer | City of Ostend (Province of East Flanders) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Franc |
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| Obverse description | Pale orange underprint with a vignette of a city district rendered in black, red, and green. The city's coat of arms appears above center, flanked by the coat of arms of the province of West Flanders to the right and that of Belgium to the left. A serial number is positioned in the exergue, with a caduceus vignette on either side. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | STAD OOSTENDE GOED VOOR HONDERD FRANK UITBETAALBAAR IN DE GEMEENTEKAS TEN LAATSTE DRIE MAANDEN NA DE VREDESLUITTING 1915 |
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| Comments |
Ostend sits in West Flanders, not East Flanders — a cataloging error worth flagging. The city issued its own emergency paper during the German occupation of Belgium in the First World War, when the banking system had effectively collapsed and small change disappeared almost entirely from circulation. These municipal notes, known as noodgeld or monnaie de nécessité, were a local stopgap, authorized by the communal authorities and backed by nothing more than municipal good faith.
Ostend was under German control from October 1914 and served as a major U-boat base throughout the war, which shaped everything about civilian life there — including how money moved.