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100 Francs - Oostende
| Issuer | City of Ostend (Province of East Flanders) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
| Type | Local banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | VILLE D`OSTENDE 100 100 BON DE CENT FRANCS REMBOURSABLE À LA CAISSE COMMUNALE AU PLUS TARD TROIS MOIS APRÈS LA CONCLUSION DE LA PAIX. Le Bourgmestre, Le Secrétaire, Le Receveur, (3 signatures) 1915 N 40147 1915 |
| Reverse description | Light blue underprint with the coat of arms of the province of West Flanders at left, that of Belgium at right, and the city's coat of arms centered below. The legend is printed in red within an orange frame, a caduceus vignette appears at top center, and the denomination is repeated in the four corners in white on red rosettes. |
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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.