1916 German Occupied East Africa 1 Rupie Banknote - Large Serial Type - WWI Germany Africa - 1916 Germany Africa One Rupie Note - P#19

This listing is for the photographed 1916 Germany Africa Occupation 1 Rupie Note. This note was issued by the German East Africa Bank on February 1st, 1916. It was issued during World War One, while Germany occupied many parts of east Africa. The signatures and overprinted diagonal design on either side of the note are printed in purple ink. This note has the larger size variety of serial numbers on the reverse side of the note, a rarer variety for this issue! Extremely Fine (XF) grade/condition, minor visible folds and other signs of circulation. Great rarer early German colonial occupation note! Excellent addition to any collection! P#19 (Pick Number 19).

During the "Scramble for Africa" that took place between the major European powers in the late 19th century  in which they fought over control the African continent, Germany came out of the scramble with control of the eastern portion of the continent, in modern day Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi. Germany entered the practice of African colonialism late compared to other European powers, so they sought to quickly turn a profit from their exploits. They established coffee, cotton, and sisal plantations that relied on forced labor in local African communities. During World War I East Africa became a key battleground in the East African campaign between German and British, Belgian, and Portuguese forces. Emergency banknotes such as this one were distributed at the height of this conflict in an attempt to preserve stable local daily economies in the German colonies. Germany lost control of East Africa in 1919 with their defeat in World War I and the Treaty of Versailles. The territory of East Africa was subsequentially divided up among the victorious Allied powers, particularly Britain and Belgium.

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1916 German Occupied East Africa 1 Rupie Banknote - Large Serial Type - WWI Germany Africa - 1916 Germany Africa One Rupie Note - P#19