2 Drachmai - Constantine I Essai

The 1915 essai pieces for Greece were produced amid one of the most fractious political crises in modern Greek history — the "National Schism" between King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos over whether Greece should enter World War I on the side of the Entente. Constantine, with dynastic ties to the German imperial family, favored neutrality; Venizelos pushed for intervention. The political deadlock meant many planned coinage issues never entered circulation, which explains the essai status of this piece.

Struck in Paris, as was standard for Greek coinage of this period.