1360

Birth of the franc

After being cap­tured by the English in 1356, France’s King John II (also known as John the Good) was released in 1360 but ordered to pay the remainder of his ransom. He passed three tax and mon­etary laws, including one cre­ating a new gold cur­rency, known as the franc à cheval (the horseback franc). The new franc was to become the only cur­rency in use throughout the realm, and its sta­bility was guar­anteed by the monarch. John II promised to end the cur­rency manip­u­la­tions that had marked the reigns of his predecessors.

The name « franc », which means freed in English, was adopted in ref­erence to John the Good’s liberation.

To help raise funds for his ransom, the king also intro­duced a new tax, known as an aide, which was kept in place by his son and suc­cessor, Charles V. Charles also minted new franc coins showing the king standing upright rather than on horseback – these became known as the franc à pied (franc on foot) in con­trast with their pre­de­cessor, the franc à cheval.