Bernese–Helvetic old franc
A Bernese franc of account that became the Helvetic Republic’s national unit in 1799 and later fed into federal Swiss-franc accounting.
- Dates in use
- Documented in 1767; older origin uncertain
- Where
- Bern; extended under the Helvetic Republic
- From 1799
- 1 franc = 10 batzen = 100 rappen
- Successor account
- Federal Swiss franc; conversion documented in Zurich contracts
- Ancestry branch
- See family connections
Sources for the facts [1] [2] [3]
Where this money came from
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Earlier ancestry is not established here.
The story
A 1767 arithmetic book distinguishes francs used in Bernese commerce from local pounds and crowns. The ten-batzen franc had already existed as an account denomination before its first coinage in 1757. Neither the first coin nor the surviving account witness gives its founding date. [1]
In 1799 the Helvetic state carried forward the previous Bernese franc and gave it decimal subdivisions. This was a national extension of an existing unit. It is therefore shown as one continuing history, with the older Helvetic name preserved for search. [2]
Zurich’s conversion law of 1851 valued sixteen old Swiss-franc units at ten Zurich gulden, equivalent to 70/3 new federal francs. That contractual conversion links this older tradition to the modern Swiss franc. Its earlier ancestry before the Bernese evidence remains open. [3]
Sources and evidence
- J. Schüepp · Neue Beiträge zur Schweiz. Münz- und Währungsgeschichte: 1. Das Zählen der Münz (1914–1919) C2105 ↗
- Wilhelm Oechsli · Die Schweiz in den Jahren 1798 und 1799: Die helvetische Republik (1899); J. Schüepp · Neue Beiträge zur Schweiz. Münz- und Währungsgeschichte: 1. Das Zählen der Münz (1914–1919) C2106 ↗
- Zurich · Zurich, Gesetz betreffend den Reduktionsfuß für Umwandlung der im Kanton Zürich bestehenden Geldverträge in die neue eidgenössische Währung C1163 ↗
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Cite this page
“Bernese–Helvetic old franc.” The Family Tree of Money. © Field Technologies, Inc. Reader edition 2026-10-13; research dataset v44. https://familytreeofmoney.org/currency/T-FTM000839.html