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50 000 Livres
| Issuer | Ottoman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 1914 |
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| Reference(s) | P#95 |
| Obverse description | The Imperial toughra of Sultan Mehmed V occupies the upper centre within a finely engraved rectangular frame, surrounded by intricate guilloche rosettes and geometric lacework borders at each corner bearing the French legend 'LIVRES TURQUES'. Arabic calligraphic inscriptions in Ottoman script occupy the central panel, with the denomination '50000' printed in bold numerals at left and right, and two serial number prefixes 'No 00' flanking a central oval cartouche containing an official seal. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | دولتِ عليّهٔ عثمانيّه LIVRES TURQUES 50000 |
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| Comments |
The Ottoman Empire entered World War I in late October 1914, and the financial strain was immediate. The empire had been functionally bankrupt for years, its monetary system propped up by foreign loans that evaporated with the war. These high-denomination kaime notes were issued through the Imperial Treasury rather than a functioning central bank — the Ottoman Public Debt Administration, controlled largely by European creditors, was no longer a viable instrument for wartime finance.
Rapid inflation followed. By the Armistice of Mudros in 1918, Ottoman paper currency had collapsed in purchasing power, and much of the circulating issue was repudiated outright during the subsequent transition to Turkish Republican currency in the 1920s.