The Vereinsthaler (, ''union thaler'') was a standard

silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

coin A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by ...

used in most German states and the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

in the years before German unification. The Vereinsthaler was introduced in 1857 to replace the various versions of the North German thaler, many of which were already set at par with the Prussian thaler. While the earlier Prussian Thaler was slightly heavier at th a

Cologne mark The Cologne mark is an obsolete unit of weight (or mass) equivalent to 233.856 grams (about 3,609 grains). The Cologne mark was in use from the 11th century onward. It came to be used as the base unit for a number of currency standards, including ...

of fine silver (16.704

gram The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a Physical unit, unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one thousandth of a kilogram. Originally defined in 1795 as "the absolute Mass versus weight, weight of a volume ...

s), the Vereinsthaler contained grams of silver, which was indicated on the coins as one thirtieth of a metric pound (Pfund, equal to 500 grams).

Distribution

The Vereinsthaler was used as the base for several different currencies. In

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

and several other northern German states, the Vereinsthaler was the standard unit of account, divided into 30 Silbergroschen, each of 12

Pfennig The pfennig (; . 'pfennigs' or 'pfennige' ; currency symbol, symbol pf or ₰) or penny is a former Germany, German coin or note, which was an official currency from the 9th century until the introduction of the euro in 2002. While a valua ...

. See Prussian Vereinsthaler. In

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

, the Neugroschen was equal to the Prussian Silbergroschen but was divided into 10 Pfennig. See Saxon Vereinsthaler. Some other north German states, such as

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, used the name

Groschen Groschen (; from "thick", via Old Czech ') is the (sometimes colloquial) name for various coins, especially a silver coin used in parts of Europe including Kingdom of France, France, some of the Italian states, and various states of the Holy R ...

rather than Silbergroschen for a coin of 12 Pfennig (see Hanoverian Vereinsthaler), while the Mecklenburg states and Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel) used entirely distinct subdivisions; see Mecklenburg Vereinsthaler and Hesse-Kassel Vereinsthaler. In southern Germany, states including

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

used the South German gulden as the standard unit of account, with Gulden = 1 Vereinsthaler. The Gulden was divided into 60 Kreuzer, each of 4 Pfennig or 8 Heller. These states issued ''Vereinsmünze'' (union coinage) worth 1 and 2 Vereinsthaler, or 1 and 3 gulden. See Bavarian Gulden, Baden Gulden, Württemberg Gulden. In the Austrian Empire (and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire), a different florin (known as the ''Gulden'' in German or ''forint'' in Hungarian) was the unit of account, with florins = 1 Vereinsthaler. The florin was divided into 100 kreutzers.

Withdrawal

Following German unification in 1871, the Goldmark was introduced in 1873 at a rate of 3 mark = 1 Vereinsthaler. Consequently, the new 10 pfennig coins were equivalent to the old Groschen of northern Germany and this became a nickname for the denomination. Unlike subsidiary silver coins of the goldmark with a legal tender limit of 20 marks, all silver 3-mark Vereinsthalers issued before 1871 enjoyed unlimited legal tender status even after the switchover to the

gold standard A gold standard is a backed currency, monetary system in which the standard economics, economic unit of account is based on a fixed quantity of gold. The gold standard was the basis for the international monetary system from the 1870s to the ...

. This ended with the demonetization of the Vereinsthaler in 1908 and the minting of new, smaller subsidiary 3-mark coins. The name Thaler for 3 marks persisted until the 1930s. Austria-Hungary stopped issuing Vereinsthaler coins in 1867, following the Austro-Prussian War.

References

* {{Thaler, state=collapsed Currencies of Austria Currencies of Germany Modern obsolete currencies Thaler