Money of the Short-Lived Duchy of Warsaw .

 

Duchy of Warsaw ( Poland ) in name of Friedrich August, King of Saxony and Grand Duke of Warsaw . Silver "Talar", 1812-IB ( Warsaw )

 

Poland has always had the misfortune of living next to powerful, acquisitive neighbours and, consequently, her borders have rarely remained static for long. At times, the country has disappeared completely.

 

It had done so in 1795, Poland 's Third Partition having divided her among Prussia , Austria and Russia , the former containing Warsaw . But the short-lived political entity known as the Duchy of Warsaw was the result of double-dealing and betrayal.

 

Politically, Poland did not exist in 1806 when Napoleon defeated the combined armies of Saxony and Prussia at Jena . In November of that year, Napoleonic troops occupied Warsaw and were confirmed in their possession by the Treaty of Tilsit (1807). But after the defeat at Jena , King Friedrich August III (the First after 1806) of Saxony (1763-1827) opted for the winning side, abandoned Prussia and joined Napoleon as a member of his "independent" and "neutral" Confederation of the Rhine , promising 20,000 troops for the French (Peace of Posen, Dec.11, 1806). For his duplicity, Friedrich was confirmed as Friedrich August I of Saxony as well as made Grand Duke of Warsaw. With the addition to the duchy of Crakow and part of Galicia in 1809, the duchy was in large part all of Poland .

 

Even so, it was an uneasy rule, the Austrians attacking and occupying Warsaw for a time in 1809 (Apr. 21 - June 2). On Feb. 8, 1813 , Russian troops occupied and held Warsaw , Friedrich's duchy now mostly in the countryside. Uneasy with this unnatural alliance with the ancient enemy, the Saxon troops brought about Friedrich's downfall by mass desertion to the allies at the Battle of Leipzig (Oct., 1813). After Napoleon's defeat, the Congress of Vienna (1815) gave more than half of Saxony's lands (but less than half the population) to Prussia and Friedrich August I, with his truncated kingdom, joined the German Confederation (June 8, 1815). For Poland 's part, she disappeared again, most of the eastern half becoming a province of Russia and the rest to Prussia and Austria .

Coinage in the name of the Duchy of Warsaw did not begin until 1810 and lasted only until 1814 at the latest. Coins consisted of copper 1 and 3 grosze, billon 5 and 10 groszy and silver 1/6, 1/3 and 1 talar. There were also struck gold "trade ducats" in 1811 and 1813.

 

In 1810, paper notes for the Duchy appeared. Called "Kassowy-Billet Xi e stwa Warszawskiego" ('Bon de caisse' of the Duchy of Warsaw), they were issued "1 go. Grudnia (or 1 st December), 1810" in denominations of 1 ("jeden"), 2 ("dwa") and 5 ("Pi ec ") Talarów. Printed in Dresden , the notes did not appear on the date stated but rather not until May, 1811, after the French bankers Levregaux LaFitte & Co. of Paris agreed to back the issue with a loan of 12-million francs. As collateral, the bankers were assigned a half-interest in the Wieliczka Salt Mines.

Wayne Jacobs is a numismatic expert. Currently secretary and editor of the "Mid-Island Coin Club Numismatic Journal"of Nanaimo, Vancouver Island , British Columbia, he is the award winning author of numerous articles. The MICC journal are hosted here: MICC webpages Copyright 2006 Wayne Jacobs. This article may be reprinted freely for non commercial purpose only if the resource box is left intact, linking back to us.