Monometallism
As Monometallismus refers to a currency that only a precious metal as a currency standard of its Kurantmünzen based. The basis is metallism , which is based on the material value of money instead of a face value.
Silver standard
In the German past, this precious metal was silver from around 800 to 1871 , which of course also depended on its sufficient availability. One speaks here of a silver standard currency, i. H. the price of every good or service is compared with or related to the value of silver. Now this value cannot be regarded as absolutely stable for all time, but rather an approximate average price over a longer period of time, which is largely dependent on the silver procurement costs and psychological factors. This value can definitely fluctuate up or down. Ultimately, silver is also a commodity that is traded according to supply and demand. In any case, this value was relatively more stable than with our current "paper currency", which only depends on the citizen's "good faith" in the rulers, currency speculators and the central bank.
The value of the currency on a currency metal thus meant greater independence from the will of the authorities, which at that time could not manipulate the international silver price as easily as it can today with our "paper and bank money currency ".
One could also say something subtle: If someone bought a commodity with a thaler at that time, which was then a curant coin , then he actually "exchanged" a silver bar minted in the form of a coin (this thaler coin) for a commodity.
At the time of the silver standard there were also gold coins in circulation in Saxony around 1770, e.g. B. August'dOr with a face value of 5 (Reichs-) Talers in silver. Since gold was not the price-determining currency metal at that time, these gold coins were subject to a rate for silver, so that this August'dOr had a fluctuation range of about 116 to 120 groschen expressed in silver money, with one (imperial bill) thaler = 24 Groschen was valid.
In the 18th century, gold money was often "trading money" for foreign countries, since at that time England was more interested in gold than in silver and explicitly demanded gold money for certain export items.
Gold standard
From 1871, the time of the gold standard began in Germany with the establishment of the German Empire, and silver sank to the level of the common coin . However, the Zollvereinstaler, which was still considered a silver Kurant coin at that time, quickly sank to a cutting coin from 1873 due to the falling silver price, which is why the confiscation of these pieces had to be discontinued in 1879 with increasing loss. It was not until 1907 that the Thaler could be put out of course. The so-called "limping gold standard currency" was finally converted into a real gold currency.
There have always been problems in determining the value relationship between silver and gold , mainly because it was not the same everywhere. From 1803 and at the time of the Latin Monetary Union , attempts were made to establish bimetallism or a double currency on the basis of the statutory definition of a fixed value ratio between gold and silver of 1: 15.5. This worked well until 1870, but from around 1878 this attempt had practically failed, and later attempts also failed.
The gold standard then held up until the beginning of the First World War in 1914 in the economically strongest countries such as Germany, France, Great Britain, the USA and others. a., where all non-gold means of payment such as gold coins were valid 1: 1, since an (at least partial) exchangeability for gold money was possible at any time.
In the economically weaker countries there were up to three currencies in one country at the same time until 1914, e.g. B. the gold ruble, the silver ruble and the paper ruble ..., the respective prices could be taken from the price lists of the stock exchanges or emerged in the daily retail trade .