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10 Marks Independent West Army
| Issuer | Western Volunteer Army (Zapadnaya Dobrovolcheskaya Armiya) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1919 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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| Obverse description | The Imperial Russian double-headed eagle appears at upper centre, flanked on either side by the large numeral 10 in ornate type. The heading reads ВРЕМЕННЫЙ РАЗМЕННЫЙ ЗНАК (Temporary Exchange Note) in bold Cyrillic lettering across the top, with ДЕСЯТЬ МАРОКЪ (Ten Marks) below the eagle. The lower portion carries bilingual text in Cyrillic setting out the note's legal tender status within the territory of the Western Volunteer Army, with two manuscript signatures of army officers and the place and date of issue, МИТАВА 10 ОКТ 1919. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | KASSENSCHEIN ZEHN MARK AUSGEGEBEN LAUT VERFÜGUNG DER HEERESLEITUNG DER "FREIWILLIGEN WESTARMEE" MITAU, 10. OCT. 1919 NACHAHMUNGEN DIESER KASSENSCHEINE WERDEN STRAFRECHTLICH VERFOLGT |
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| Comments |
The Western Volunteer Army — better known as the Bermondtsy after their commander Pavel Bermondt-Avalov — was a deeply anomalous force: nominally anti-Bolshevik but widely regarded by the Entente and Baltic governments as a German proxy army operating in defiance of Allied instructions. These notes were printed in Mitau (now Jelgava) in the autumn of 1919, when Bermondt-Avalov's troops occupied the city and briefly threatened Riga before being driven out by Latvian and Estonian forces in November of that year.
The currency had an operational life measured in weeks. Once the army collapsed and scattered, the notes became worthless almost immediately — redeemable by no authority and recognized by none.