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Obverse of 1994 Djibouti Silver Proof 100 Francs
Obverse of 1994 Djibouti Silver Proof 100 Francs

Countries
Sailing Ship on Reverse of 1994 Djibouti Silver Proof 100 Francs
Sailing Ship on Reverse of 1994 Djibouti Silver Proof 100 Francs

A Brief History of Djibouti
Djibouti is an African republic in North Eastern Africa and a former French colony. Its capital's name is the same as the country, Djibouti.

Pre-Colonial History
Djibouti is one of the oldest known human habitations, and the 3 million year old remains of pre-human Australopithecus have been discovered there. Djibouti in ancient times was populated mainly by nomads and merchants, who had trading links with China, India and Arabia. Djibouti was one of the earliest African areas to adopt Islam, thanks to its trading links with the Arabs.
Immediately prior to French colonisation, Djibouti was part of the Ottoman province of Habesh.

French Colonisation
As the ageing Ottoman Empire decayed, France began to take an increasing interest in the area due to its proximity to the Suez Canal (especially since the British takeover of Egypt in 1882). Between 1883 and 1887, France signed a treaty with various local Sultans establishing protectorates over the area. In 1888, the French founded the city of Djibouti, and in 1896, this city became the capital French Somaliland.

French Somaliland
During World War II, the Vichy Government took control of the colony following France's defeat in 1940. Following Britain's successful campaign against the Italians in East Africa from 1940-41, French Somaliland fell to the control of the Free French.
The end of World War II saw a French review of how it ruled its colonial empire. Accordingly, French Somaliland was made a French Overseas territory, with increased autonomy and representation in the French Parliament. In 1960, a referendum was held on independence. On this occasion, it was rejected, and French Somaliland remained in association with France. However, a further referendum in 1977 was successful. The former Overseas territory was renamed Djibouti soon afterwards.

Djibouti Since Independence
Hassan Gouled Aptidon became Djibouti's first president. In 1981, he declared Djibouti to be a one-party state, with his own party, the People's Rally for Progress, the only legal party. In 1991, Civil War broke out, with the rebels constituted mainly by ethnic Afars, who had been mostly excluded from Aptidon's mostly Somali government. The rebels, fighting under the banner of the Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy (FRUD) fought with government forces until 1994, when they were defeated by Aptidon's forces (with French support). As part of the peace accord, multi-party democracy was restored. With FRUD becoming a legal party in coalition with Aptidon's government.
Aptidon resigned as president in 1999, and was succeeded by his nephew Ismail Omar Gullah.

Coinage of Djibouti
As an ancient trading nation, coins of various empires circulated in the region, including Roman, Byzantine, and particularly Arab. The Indian Rupee circulated widely in Djibouti, and the Maria Theresa Thaler was (and still is) an important trade coin used in the area.
With French colonisation, the French Franc was introduced as the official currency of what became French Somaliland. In 1948, coins struck specifically for use in French Somaliland were introduced, and in 1949, the Djiboutian Franc was decoupled from the French Franc and pegged to the US Dollar at 214.392 francs to the dollar.
In 1948, 1, 2 and 5 francs were issued in aluminium. In 1952 franc coins were introduced, struck in aluminium-bronze, complemented with a10 francs issued from 1965.50 and 100 francs were introduced in 1970, struck in cupro-nickel, and an aluminium-bronze 500 francs added in 1989, replacing the 500 franc banknote.

For Sale and Wanted
If you are interested in coins from Djibouti please see our product index:-
Djiboutian Coins

Gold Coins
We also have gold coins from Djibouti on our taxfreegold website:-
Djibouti Gold Coins



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