The History of Czech Koruna
"The first Czech coins were gold staters imitating the coins of Alexander II of Macedon issued by Celtic tribes in the third and second centuries BC. Roman coins circulated in Czechoslovakia until the fall of Rome. No coins were produced locally until Duke Bogeslav I (929-967) issued denars. The silver mines of Bohemia enabled local rulers to issue a large number of silver denars. King Wenceslas II (1278-1305) took advantage of the huge silver deposits of Kutna Hora to issue the Pragergroschen, equal to 12 denars, which became the standard coin for Eastern Europe during the Middle Ages. Under the Hapsburg rule, coinage was produced specifically for Bohemia until the death of Empress Maria Theresa in 1780.

Czechoslovakia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the country gained its independence on October 28, 1918. Slovakia unilaterally declared independence on March 15th 1939; the remainder of Czechoslovakia was occupied by the Germans, who referred to the occupied area as the "Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia". The Czechoslovak Republic was reconstituted on April 3, 1945, only to be separated into the Czech and Slovak Republics on January 1, 1993.

Austro-Hungarian Kronen (ATK) circulated in Czechoslovakia until it gained its independence in 1918 and introduced the Czech Koruna (CSO) on February 25, 1919, with the Koruna divisible into 100 Haleru. Germany introduced Reichsmarks (DER) in the Sudenten districts of Czechoslovakia in October 1938 and introduced them in Bohemia-Moravia in March 1939. The latter became the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, in which they introduced a new Koruna (CSM) at par with the Czech Koruna. German Reichsmarks also circulated in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. Hungarian occupied southern Slovakia in October 1938, and Carpatho-Ukraine in March 1939, and circulated Hungarian Pengoe (HUP) during their occupation. Poland occupied Teschen in October 1938 and issued Zloty (PLO) during their occupation.

In May 1945, pre-war Czech Koruna were declared legal tender. The Soviets issued their own Red Army Koruna (CSR) during their occupation of Czechoslovakia. A new Koruna (CSC) replaced the pre-war Koruna and Red Army Koruna in October 1945. A Hard Koruna (CSK) replaced the new Koruna at the rate of 1 Hard Koruna equal to 5 New Koruna on June 1, 1953. Czechoslovakia also issued Foreign Exchange Certificates (CSX) denominated in Korunas. This Koruna remained in use until January 1, 1993 when the Czech Republic Koruna (CZK) replaced the Czechoslovak Koruna (CSK) at par. See also Slovakia.

Banknotes were issued by the government between 1919 and April 1, 1926 and between 1938 and 1961. The National Bank of Czechoslovakia began issuing banknotes on April 1, 1926. The National Bank was nationalized on March 11, 1948 and renamed the State Bank of Czechoslovakia in 1950. After the Czech Republic was established in 1993, the Czech National Bank took over the issuance of banknotes."



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