50 Centimes - Chambre de commerce d'Angoulème [16]

French chambers of commerce became de facto money issuers after the outbreak of war in 1914 drained metallic coinage from circulation. The Angoulême chamber's 50 centimes notes were a local fix for a national problem — the Banque de France simply could not supply enough small-denomination coin to keep commerce moving, and the government authorized these regional emergency emissions rather than let trade seize up entirely.

François Javanaud was a local Angoulême printer, not a specialist security firm. The watermark is the primary protection on an otherwise modest production.