Palestine Mandate Coins and Banknotes

November 2, 1917

Balfour Declaration Issued.

December 8, 1917

General Edmund Henry Allenby enters Jerusalem after defeating the Turkish forces.

December 12, 1918

Public Notice 73A permits only specific currency as legal tender in Palestine. As specified, coins and banknotes from Egypt, France, Belgium, Switzerland, United States, Great Britain, Italy, Austria, Germany, India, and Turkey were to be considered legal tender in Palestine.

January 22, 1921

Only Egyptian gold, notes, silver and nickel coins, as well as British sovereigns are now considered legal tender in Palestine.

April, 1922

San Remo Conference grants the Palestine Mandate to Britain.

July 24, 1922

The League of Nations officially grants Britain the Palestine Mandate.

March, 1924

The High Commissioner of Palestine appoints a committee to report on the currency of Palestine.

June 5, 1926

Under-Secretary of State for Colonial Affairs offers part-time positions on the Palestine Currency Board to Sir Percy Ezechiel, Leslie Couper, and A.J. Harding at the annual salary of £P100.

June 15, 1926

The Palestine Currency Board is constituted and the menbers and Secretary appointed by a minite of the Secretary of State for the Colonies. The adopted unit of currency is the Palestine pound to be equal in value to the British pound sterling and divided into 1000 mils.

August 2, 1926

Regulations signed by the Secretary of State in which the Palestine Currency Board appoints the Treasurer of Palestine to represent it in Palestine as Currency Officer, and Barclays Bank D.C.O. at Jerusalem as its agent for the custody of its local stocks of currency.

February 7, 1927

The Order of His Majesty in Council entitled, "The Palestine Currency Order," is passed.

March 1, 1927

A memorandum relating to the Palestine Currency Order is published by the Palestine government in its official gazette. The Currency Notes Ordinance 1927 is then passed in Palestine constituting as legal tender the currency that will be issued by the Palestine Currency Board.

June 16, 1927

The first shipment of banknotes leaves London.

November 1, 1927

Introduction of the new coins and currency of Palestine begins. Coins of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 mils show the 1927 date; 500 mils, £P1, £P5, £P10, £P50, and £P100 banknotes show the September 1, 1927 date.

February 29, 1928

British gold sovereign is withdrawn as legal tender in Palestine.

March 31, 1928

Egyptian notes, gold, silver, and nickel coins previously used in Palestine are demonetized.

September 30, 1929

Palestine Currency Board issues dated 500 mil, £P1, £P5, £P10, £P50, and £P100 banknotes.

1931

Palestine Currency Board issues 50- and 100-mil coins with the 1931 date.

September, 1931

Great Britain abandons the gold standard, prohibiting future minting of gold Palestine coins.

1933

Palestine Currency Board issues 10-, 20-, 50-, and 100-mil coins with the 1933 date.

1934

Palestine Currency Board issues 5-, 10-, 20-, 50-, and 100-mil coins with 1934 date.

1935

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 5-, 10-, 20-, 50-, and 100-mil coins with 1935 date.

1937

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-and 10-mil coins with the 1937 date.

1939

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 5-, 10-, 50-, and 100-mil coins with the 1939 date.

May, 1939

The MacDonald White Paper is issued, providing for the limit of 15,000 Jewish immigrants annually for a period of five years, as well as empowering the High Commissioner to dramatically limit the purchase of land by Jews.

April 20, 1939

Palestine Currency Board issues £P5 banknotes.

September 7, 1939

Palestine Currency Board issues 500 mil, £P1, £P10, and £P50 banknotes.

1940

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 10-, 20-, 50-, and 100-mil coins with the 1940 date.

1941

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 2-, 5-, 10-, and 20-mil coins with the 1941 date.

1942

Palestine Currency Board issues 10-, 50-, and 100-mil coins with 1942 date.

February 3, 1942

The Crown Colony government on Cyprus places a request with the Secretary of State for the authority to obtain Palestine Currency Board bankotes.

April 14, 1942

The Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 2-, 5-, 10-, and 20-mil coins with wartime alloys.

May 6, 1942

£P1 and £P5 Palestine Currency Board notes are placed into circulation on Cyprus.

September 10, 1942

Palestine Currency Board issues £P100 banknotes.

November 17, 1942

All Palestine Currency Board notes are demonetized on Cyprus.

1943

Palestine Currency Board issues 1- and 10-mil coins with the 1943 date.

1944

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 5-, and 20-mil coins with the 1944 date.

January 1, 1944

Palestine Currency Board issues £P1, £P5, and £P10 banknotes.

1945

Palestine Currency Board issues 2-mil coins with the 1945 date.

August 15, 1945

Palestine Currency Board issues 500-mil banknotes.

1946

Palestine Currency Board issues 1-, 2-, 5-, and 10-mil coins with the 1946 date with original pre-war alloys.

1947

Palestine Currency Board has 1-, 2-, 5-, and 10-mil coins struck with 1947 date. However, entire issue was withdrawn and melted down although a few specimens remain in mostly private collections.

November 29, 1947

UN General Assembly approves the partition of Palestine.

May 14, 1948

The State of Israel is proclaimed and the British Mandate of Palestine ends.

September 15, 1948

Palestine Currency Board coins and banknotes are demonetized in Israel.

September 30, 1950

Palestine Currency Board banknotes are demonetized in Jordan.

June 9, 1951

Palestine Currency Board coins and banknotes are demonetized in Egypt (Gaza Strip).

June 30, 1951

Palestine Currency Board coins are demonetized in Jordan.

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© 1998-2010, Howard M. Berlin.
November 30, 2010