Catalog
5 Dollars
| Issuer | Independent Hungarian Government - National Treasury |
|---|---|
| Year | 1852 |
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| Currency | Dollar (1792-date) |
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| Obverse description | Intaglio-printed note with elaborate vignette work. At centre top, the Hungarian coat of arms flanked by crossed cannons and military trophies, with numeral '5' in ornate circular guilloche frames to either side. To the left margin stands a Hungarian hussar in military uniform; to the right, a classical allegorical female figure holds a lance and rests beside a heraldic shield. The central text panel carries the inscription 'HUNGARIAN FUND' in bold letterpress beneath a scrollwork border, with a manuscript promise text and a single cursive signature at foot. The note is dated 'New York, 1st February 1852' in manuscript. |
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| Obverse lettering | HUNGARIAN FUND On demand one year after the establishment in fact of the INDEPENDENT HUNGARIAN GOVERNMENT, the Holder hereof shall be entitled to FIVE DOLLARS payable at the National Treasury or at either of its depositories in London or New York or to exchange the same in sum of Fifty Dollars or over for ten per cent Coupon five Cent interest payable in ten equal annual installments from one year after said cent. Dated at New York, 1st February 1852 No. |
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| Comments |
The Independent Hungarian Government's 1852 dollar-denominated notes were issued in exile, not in Hungary. After the failed 1848–49 revolution and subsequent Habsburg repression, Lajos Kossuth fled to the United States on a tour that generated enormous popular sympathy. These notes — payable in U.S. dollars and printed by one of New York's premier security printers — were intended to raise funds for a second liberation attempt that never materialized.
Rawdon, Wright, Hatch & Edson were the dominant American banknote engravers of the period, responsible for much of the early U.S. federal currency work. Their involvement lent the notes a credibility that helped Kossuth's fundraising, even if the political venture ultimately collapsed. The notes were never redeemed.