Money Became 'Firewood' in 1923
Today, 95 years ago, riots hit the Weimar Republic alias Germany because of extreme inflation or hyperinflation. The value of the mark currency drops to the tragic point, 4,210,500,000,000 per one United States dollar. Robbers, snatchers, and thieves stopped operating. Because, money is no longer worth to be stolen and stolen.
A piece of bread worth up to 200 billion marks, much more expensive than the January price of 250 marks. On payday, the workers bring home a pile of money in the bag. Even so much to be transported by cart!
quotes from the BBC, even more unique concerning stories arise. "Someone forgot to leave a suitcase with money, and when he returned to the location, he found the money intact, only his luggage was stolen."
Prices go up quickly. A boy who was told by his parents to buy 2 loaves of tempted to play ball. Finished playing, he headed for the store. Apparently, the money he brought can only buy 1 bread only. "A dad headed to Berlin to buy a pair of shoes, and when he got there, with the money he brought, he could only buy a cup of coffee and a bus ticket home."
But there is also a profit. For example, someone who borrows money to buy herds of cattle. And he just sells 1 cow to pay off all his debts. The permanent employees are also relatively secure, they negotiate their salary every day. Salaries are given up to 3 times a day, wives wait outside the office and ready to receive and then spend the money as quickly as possible.
"Unfortunate to the pensioners and those with large savings, a woman sells her house, intends to use her money to pay for her life, and weeks later, all the money she has is not even enough to buy a loaf of bread," the BBC reported.
People even use money as fuel, because its value is lower than coal and firewood. Burned in a stove or heater. Meanwhile, the boys play with real money piles. Not money.
At that time, Eugeni Xammar, a daily journalist of La Veu de Catalunya - based in Barcelona - was sent to Berlin. He witnessed the escalating price increase.
"The price of tram tickets, meat, cinema tickets, tuition, newspapers, haircuts, sugar, bacon, rises every week," Xammar wrote in February 1923.
"People do not know how long their money is worth, people are scared, do not think of anything but eat, drink, buy and sell.This is the topic all over berlin: dollars, marks and prices ... you see? , stop this! I just bought a supply of sausage, ham, and cheese !, "as quoted from the site Der Spiegel.
All Beginning of the War ...
During World War I on July 31, 1914, the then German Central Bank, Reichsbank ceased to convert banknotes to gold reserves. After that, there is no legal limit how much money can be printed.
To finance the war, the government chose to borrow large amounts of money instead of taxing the people. The debt is planned to be paid by the enemy after Germany won the war. But plan to stay plan. Germany on the losing side.
Postwar, the need to repay debt and reconstruct the economy after World War I resulted in German government spending far outstripping its earnings.
To finance its spending, the government scored more money. Inflation is inevitable in the Weimar Republic - a parliamentary republic established in 1919 after the fall of the monarchy.
The debt to France in the wake of the war made Germany worse. Extreme inflation is inevitable.
The economic crisis could be overcome after the German government created an independent central bank and launched a new currency, rentenmark.
The turmoil experienced by postwar Germany has another side effect: it gives a gap to the emergence of a socialist nationalist (Nazi) party figure: Adolf Hitler, who later became dictator.
In addition to the crisis in Germany, November 6 was colored by a number of important events. In 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th President of the United States.
In 1963, Duong Van Minh formally took over the government in South Vietnam a few days after the assassination of President Ngo Dinh Diem.