1 of 4 Real “de a ocho” was the first globalized currency unit in modern history — Photo: National Archaeological Museum of Spain/Disclosure via BBC Real “de a ocho” was the first globalized currency unit in modern history — Photo: National Archaeological Museum of Spain Spain/Broadcast by BBC
It was such a coveted currency that its hegemony in world trade lasted for over 300 years.
It preceded the gold pound sterling and the US dollar. In fact, Americans built on this model to develop the dollar.
The coin has been called “really de a ocho” (also known as “Spanish Dollar”). Made largely of silver from the Americas, it was the first internationalized currency in modern history.
The motto was coined by the Spanish Empire in the mid16th century and reinforced by the immense riches brought about by the colonization of America.
And even as that empire fell, the Spanish currency remained one of the most competitive in the world, extending its dominance into the late 19th century.
2 of 4 With the rise of the House of Bourbon, the Spanish monarchy began to mint its reais “de a ocho” mainly in American territories — Photo: National Archaeological Museum of Spain/Disclosure With the rise of the House of Bourbon, the Spanish began The monarchy began, to mint their reais ‘de a ocho’ mainly in American territories — Photo: National Archaeological Museum of Spain/Disclosure
The birth of a world currency
The origin of this coin dates back to the currency reform adopted by the Catholic Kings of Spain in 1497 after the socalled Reconquista and the arrival in the Americas.
This reform is referred to in the history books as the “Pragmática de Medina del Campo” and established the real, a silver coin, as a unit of payment.
But it was not until the middle of the 16th century that the “Real de a ocho” began to become popular, driven mainly by the Spanish kings Carlos 1º (who reigned in Germany as Carlos 5º) and Felipe 2º.
These two monarchs represented the phase of greater protagonism and expansion of the Spanish Empire.
Silver mined from the Americas, particularly from mines in Mexico and Cerro Potosí (presentday Bolivia), caused the issuance of silver coins to skyrocket.
“Around 1535 the first mints appeared in America, in Mexico and Santo Domingo [hoje, República Dominicana]. With this large amount of silver, the real of the Catholic Monarchs will multiply: a real of two, three, four… because silver is best transported in the form of a coin,” explains history professor José María of Francisco Olmos, from the university Complutense Madrid, Spain and numismatist (study from historical, artistic and economic point of view of banknotes, coins and medals).
“After this little confusion, the real ‘de a ocho’ is determined, which is the multiplication by 8 of the real of the Catholic Kings,” he explains.
And alongside the ounce the unit of measure for gold the real “de a ocho” formed the twometal system promoted by the Spanish monarchy.
“This stream of gold and silver is going to Europe. Since everyone agrees that it is a very good silver, it is gradually becoming the reference currency of all other countries,” adds Olmos.
3 of 4 Real “de a ocho” was the first coin to circulate on five continents — Photo: Getty Images via BBC Real “de a ocho” was the first coin to circulate on five continents — Photo: Getty Images via BBC
“World and Seas” coin.
In the 18th century the real “de a ocho” was consolidated as global currencywith the arrival of the House of Bourbon after the War of Succession, an international conflict involving European powers seeking control of the Spanish throne.
Spain later focused on its colonies in the Americas. After taking over the Royal Mint of Mexico until then a concession the metropolis ordered the modernization of its minting machines.
From then on, the real “de a ocho” was made with a new design exclusively for the American colonies. He was called the currency of “world and seas”.
It was also known as the “Pillar” as it contained the impression of the Pillars of Hercules (depicting the Strait of Gibraltar) and between them the two hemispheres of the planet depicting the expansion of the Spanish Empire.
Numismatists consider this coin to be one of the most beautiful and magnificent ever minted.
According to Francisco Olmos, this new version was particularly successful in the Pacific Basin, where trade had hitherto been conducted with a single silverbased metal system.
“Atlantic trade was important in the 15th and 16th centuries. From a certain point in time, however, Pacific trade gained equal or greater importance,” explains the historian. “At the center is America with its mines, with its coins that can go to both the Atlantic and the Pacific.”
Transported by the famous Galleon of Manila, a ship that linked the port of Acapulco, Mexico, to the Philippines for more than 250 years until 1815, the royal “de a ocho” was introduced to Asia. There it was accepted as a separate currency in China, Japan, Korea and India, among others.
Some nations simply stamped or stamped coins with local stamps to allow circulation.
4 of 4 Capture of a Spanish fleet laden with silver by a squadron of 24 ships of the Dutch West India Company at Havana, Cuba, 1628 — Photo: Getty Images via BBC Capture of a Spanish fleet laden with silver by a squadron of 24 ships of the Dutch West India Company in Havana (Cuba), 1628 Photo: Getty Images via BBC
The ‘Column Dollar’, popular in the British colonies
Spanish silver currency was also accepted in the expanding dominions of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries, and became popular under the name Pillar Dollar (“dollar of the pillars”), in reference to the 18thcentury design of the Pillars of Hercules.
But that wasn’t his only name. In Australia, for example, in the early 19th century it was called the Holey Dollar the “stuck dollar”.
Due to the scarcity of British currency, the Australian colonial authorities ordered the importation of around 40,000 Spanish reais at the time, which was “boring” and doubled the number of coins available.
The currency was also known as the “Spanish Dollar” and gained equal popularity in the 13 British colonies in North America. It was easier to get the Spanish dollar there than the British coins themselves.
The US Dollar Standard (and other currencies)
Even during the decline of the Spanish Empire, the real “de a ocho” remained a coveted currency worldwide.
In the years leading up to and following independence in the 1770s, the United States began designing its own currency modeled on Spanish imperial chevrons. American revolutionaries even funded their movement by issuing paper money backed by Spanish reais.
The US dollar was born as a currency in 1785, but the “Spanish dollar” continued to be accepted until 1857, when it was finally removed from circulation in the United States by the Coinage Act.
Add to that fact a widely accepted theory about the origin of the dollar sign ($). It is believed to derive from the union of the two Pillars of Hercules and the transformation of the letters P and S, which can refer both to the word “peso” and to the phrase “Plus Ultra” that accompanies the Coat of Arms Spanish monarchy.
The end and legacy of the real “de a ocho”
The Napoleonic Wars and the independence of the Spanish provinces in the Americas marked the beginning of the Spanish currency’s decline. When it lost control of America’s silver mines and its mints, Spain was unable to continue its main export.
Even with the collapse of the empire, the real “de a ocho” remained a competitive currency until the end of the 19th century.
The Spanish historian María Ruíz Trapero, in her book on the history of the currency, notes that the real “de a ocho” was deposited as the main reserve currency in China, India and the Middle East.
And it wasn’t just a dollar model. The Canadian dollar, the Chinese tael, the Korean won and of course the currencies of the American republics that arose from the independence of the Spanish colonies were based on the same model for their consolidation.
For all these reasons, whether aboard Spanish galleons or plundered by pirates, the real “de a ocho” crossed “the world and the seas” over three centuries to become the forerunner of the global economy as we know it today.