1 franc - Chambre de Commerce de Belfort [90] Surcharge verso en noir

The Chambre de Commerce de Belfort issued emergency small-change notes during the First World War to address the acute shortage of circulating coin — a problem that afflicted virtually every French department after 1914 as metal was diverted to the war effort. Belfort's situation had a particular edge: the territory of Belfort was a singular administrative unit, neither a full department nor merely a city, and its commerce relied heavily on its own local instruments when central supply chains collapsed.

The black surcharge on the reverse distinguishes this variety from otherwise identical printings — a simple overprint that created a distinct catalogued type, likely reflecting a reissue or authorization amendment rather than any substantive change in value or issuing terms.