During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

government needed to mint coins using metal that would not be needed for the war effort. Therefore, silver coinage was discontinued and coins were instead minted using pure zinc. In 1944, shortly before the Liberation, the Allies minted 25 million 2 franc coins at the

Philadelphia Mint The Philadelphia Mint in Philadelphia was created from the need to establish a national identity and the needs of commerce in the United States. This led the Founding Fathers of the United States to make an establishment of a continental national ...

, which were put in circulation after Belgium regained its independence.

Occupation coinage

One Franc

The 1 Franc coin was circulated through Belgium from 1941. ;Belgique-Belgie lettering ;Belgie-Belgique lettering

Five Francs

The 5 franc coin was minted between 1941 and 1947, first by the Germans during the occupation of Belgium, and then by the Belgian government after the end of World War II. The coin composed of 100% zinc, and was an emergency issue type.

Five Centimes

The 5 centimes coin was minted between 1941 and 1943 during the German occupation. The coin composed of 100%

zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...

, and was an emergency issue type. There are also two varieties. The Centime is a sub-unit of the franc. It is 1/100 of a franc. ;Belgique-Belgie lettering ;Belgie-Belgique lettering

Ten Centimes

The 10 centimes coin was minted between 1941 and 1946, first by the Germans during the occupation of Belgium, and then by the Belgian government after World War II ended. The coin composed of 100% zinc, and was an emergency issue type. There are also two different varieties. ;Belgique-Belgie lettering ;Belgie-Belgique lettering

Twenty-five Centimes

The 25 centimes coin was minted between 1941 and 1947, first by the Germans during the occupation, and then by the Belgian government after

ended. The coin composed of 100% zinc, and was an emergency issue type. There are also two different varieties. ;Belgique-Belgie lettering ;Belgie-Belgique lettering

Liberation coinage

Two Francs

The 2 franc coin was minted by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in 1944 in preparation for the Allied liberation of Belgium. An Allied Occupation Issue, this coin was minted at the

with the blank planchets of the

1943 steel cent 1943 steel cents are U.S. one-cent coins that were struck in steel due to wartime shortages of copper. The Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco mints each produced these 1943 Lincoln cents. The unique composition of the coin ( low-grade ste ...

2013

Standard Catalog of World Coins The ''Standard Catalog of World Coins'' is a series of numismatic catalogs, commonly known as the Krause catalogs. They are published by Krause Publications, a division of Active Interest Media. Overview The by-century volumes list by date virt ...

Some of these coins have a slightly different weight, and thus their blank planchets would have been specifically made for this foreign denomination.

References

{{WWII Belgian coins