Groschen - Germany

Germany

In Germany, the name Groschen (both singular and plural) replaced "Schilling" as the common name for a 12 Pfennig coin. In the 18th Century it was used predominantly in the northern states as a coin worth 1/24 of a Reichsthaler (equal to 1/32 of a Conventionsthaler). In the 19th century, beginning in 1821 in Prussia, a new currency system was introduced in which the Groschen (often called the Silbergroschen (Prussia, since 1821) or Neugroschen (Saxony, since 1840) to distinguish it from older Groschen) was worth 1/30 of a Thaler (Taler). Following German unification and decimalization, the Groschen was replaced by the 10 Pfennig coin and Groschen remained a nickname for the 10 Pfennig coin until the introduction of the Euro. For the same reason, the name "Sechser" (sixer) remained in use regionally for the half-Groschen coin, 5 Pfennigs.

There is a Beethoven rondo for piano, op. 129 (1795) entitled "Die Wut ueber den verlorenen Groschen" (literally "rage over a lost groschen", but known as "Rage over a Lost Penny").