Cruzado (Portugal)
Cruzado ( German cruiser ) is the name of two historical Portuguese coins that were minted from gold from the 15th century and from silver from the 17th to 19th centuries . The gold coin for 10 cruzados, called Portuguez , was minted many times in Northern Europe under the name Portugaleser .
prehistory
Since gold is far less common in Europe than silver, only a few gold coins were in circulation across the continent in the Middle Ages . Most of the gold that was available came to Europe via trade routes from sub-Saharan Africa . As a result of the expeditions of the Portuguese , who systematically sought a sea route around Africa to India from the beginning of the 15th century , the Portuguese capital Lisbon developed into a center of the European gold trade. Large quantities of the precious metal flowed to Portugal via the Arguim trading post on the west coast of today's Mauritania . This finally made it possible for the Portuguese crown to mint its own gold coins, which were coveted all over Europe and often imitated.
Cruzado de Ouro
King Alfonso V of Portugal (1438–1481) had the golden Cruzado de Ouro minted for the first time in 1457 with a fineness of 989 ‰. On the obverse it showed the coat of arms of Portugal and on the reverse the George Cross , from which its name is derived. The inscription " IN HOC SIGNO VINCES " ( "In this sign you will win" ) was a reaction to the crusade call of Pope Kalixt III. after the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453. The cruzado was supposed to replace the Italian ducat , which until then had been the gold standard in the country. The cruzado remained Portugal's most important trading currency for around a hundred years and was willingly accepted by both Christian and Muslim trading partners. The coin was last minted in 1555.
The value of the cruzado was measured in the silver currency of the Portuguese real (plural form: Réis). Under Alfonso V, a Cruzado de Ouro initially corresponded to 253 Réis. In 1472 the value was set at 324 and in 1489 at 380 Réis. King Manuel I (1495–1521), under whose rule Portugal finally rose to sea power, increased the value of the coin in 1496 to 390 and in 1517 finally to 400 Réis. Manuel I also had the so-called Portuguez struck for the first time , a 10 cruzado coin that was initially worth 3900, later 4000 rice. For comparison: for a cruzado or 400 réis, around 325 liters of wheat were obtained in Lisbon at the end of the 15th century.
Portuguese people
Since the Portuguese crown guaranteed the gold weight and purity of the 10 cruzado coin with its mint, the Portuguez was also very popular as a unit of account and investment in northern European trading cities. Following his example, Hamburg minted gold coins of 2½, 5 and 10 ducats in the 16th and 17th centuries , which were called Portuguese and also had a cross on the reverse. Coins with this name were also in circulation in Electoral Saxony , Schleswig-Holstein , Denmark and Sweden .
Since the Augsburg Imperial Coin Regulations in Germany only allowed guilders and ducats as gold coins, the Portuguese gradually fell out of use in the middle of the 17th century. From 1676 onwards they were only minted as medals worth 10 ducats. The Hanseatic City of Hamburg still awards Portuguese citizens as medals of honor, for example for special voluntary work or to foreign state guests.
Cruzado de Prata
In the period from 1580 to 1640, when Portugal was linked to Spain in personal union, the decline of Portuguese naval power began. When the country regained its independence after an uprising, its state finances were in disarray and Lisbon had lost its position as a trading center to Antwerp , Amsterdam and London . For lack of gold, the new Portuguese King John IV (1640–1656) from the House of Braganza had the Cruzado de Prata , a silver coin, hit from 1643 onwards .
Their value was always set by law, initially to 400 Réis, 1663 to 500 and 1688 to 480 Réis. The silver cruzado to 500 Réis at the time of Alfonso VI. weighed 17.9 grams and was 37 millimeters in diameter. On the front he showed the Portuguese coat of arms and the inscription "ALPHONSVS VI.DG REX PORTVGALI" ("Alfons VI. King of Portugal by God's grace"). The cross and the inscription "IN HOC SIGNO VINCES" were again emblazoned on the back. In 1808, under the then Prince Regent Johann, there was an incorrect coinage ("VINECS" instead of "VINCES"). Due to the introduction of the metric system in Portugal, the minting of the cruzado was discontinued after 1835.
literature
- Helmut Kahnt u. Bernd Knorr: Old measures, coins and weights , Bibliographisches Institut, Mannheim, Vienna, Zurich 1987 ISBN 3-411-02148-9