5 Mark Weimar Republic (1918-1933) / Germany Silver

Germany (Weimar Republic). Large Silver 5 Reichsmark “Oak-Tree” Coin. XF!

Reference: KM-56.
Mint Place: Munich (D)
Denomination: 5 Reichmarks
State: German Empire (Weimar Republic)
Condition: Minor wear on high points, otherwise XF!
Weight:  24.87gm
Diameter: 36mm
Material: Silver

Obverse: Oak tree with 19 bare twigs symbolizing territories lost in Versailles Treaty. Date (1929) in fields below.
Comment: All within a border of stars, mint letter (D) of the Munich mint below.
Legend: EINIGKEIT • UND • RECHT • UND • FREIHEIT •
Translated: "Unity and Justice and Freedom"

Reverse: Heraldic German eagle left inside circle of beads.
Legend: DEUTSCHES • REICH (oak branch with nut) FÜNF • REICHSMARK (oak branch with nut)

The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The other Central Powers on the German side of World War I were dealt with in separate treaties. Although the armistice signed on 11 November 1918, ended the actual fighting, it took six months of negotiations at the Paris Peace Conference to conclude the peace treaty. The treaty was registered by the Secretariat of the League of Nations on 21 October 1919, and was printed in The League of Nations Treaty Series.

Germany’s borders in 1919 had been established forty-five years earlier at the country’s creation in 1871. Territory and cities in the region had changed hands repeatedly for centuries, including at various times being owned by the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Poland, and Kingdom of Lithuania. However, Germany laid claim to lands and cities that it viewed as historically “Germanic” centuries before Germany’s establishment as a country in 1871. Other countries disputed Germany’s claim to this territory. In the peace treaty of Versailles, Germany agreed to return disputed lands and cities to various countries.

Germany was compelled to yield control of its colonies, and would also lose a number of European territories. The province of West Prussia would be ceded to the restored Poland, thereby granting it access to the Baltic Sea via the “Polish Corridor” which Prussia had annexed in the Partitions of Poland. This turned East Prussia into an exclave, separated from mainland Germany.