Of particular interest are the German East African bank notes which offer an infinite variety of issues which illustrate the will and resolve of the German and native Askaris to win the war and keep their colony intact.Ī Numismatic History of Portugal's " War of the Two Brothers " Relying upon national pride and a great deal of ingenuity, the Germans were able to resist the British invasion until the homeland capitulated in 1918. When World War I came along, the colony found itself isolated from the mother country, unable to rely on help from outside quarters. German East Africa became a very profitable and well ordered colony, with an outstanding monetary system of its own. This article explores how Germany came to colonize German East Africa, giving a detailed account of all coin issues - both governmental and private. By the 1860s European attention was drawn to the continent of Africa, then in the process of discovery.īritain, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Portugal and Spain all laid claim to African territory. The wealth of these lands, of course, flowed to the conquering power doing little for the natives who were thus "colonized". The bank notes, although referenced in various old numismatic books, are completely unknown to Westerners, have never been cataloged, and to my knowledge appear here for the first time.įrom time immemorial Europeans sought to explore and exploit foreign lands for their own benefit. The coin issues are varied and interesting. This article studies the money of the T'ai P'ing rebels including both coins and bank notes. The movement went terribly wrong, ultimately claiming the lives of 25 million Chinese before government troops, aided by Western forces, restored order.ĭuring their fifteen year civil war the T'ai P'ing rebels, as they were called, formed a government which included an army, a civilian civil service bureaucracy, treasury and even a postal system of their own. The Kingdom of Heavenly Peace, founded in 1850, started as a noble experiment with great promise, which soon turned into outright rebellion against the Chinese Empire.
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