 1 dollar note | |
| ISO 4217 | |
|---|---|
| Code | RHD |
| Unit | |
| Symbol | $ |
| Denominations | |
| Subunit | |
| 1⁄100 | cent |
| Banknotes | 1, 2, 5, 10 dollars |
| Coins | 1⁄2, 1, 2+1⁄2, 5, 10, 20, 25 cents |
| Demographics | |
| User(s) |  Rhodesia |
| Issuance | |
| Central bank | Reserve Bank of Rhodesia |
| This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete. | |
The Rhodesian dollar (R$ or Rh$, RHD) was the currency of Rhodesia between 1970 and 1980. It was subdivided into 100 cents.
The dollar was introduced on 17 February 1970, roughly two weeks before the declaration of a republic on 2 March 1970. It replaced the Rhodesian pound at a rate of 2 dollars to 1 pound. The dollar proved to be a strong currency, at parity with the pound sterling right up to the very end of Rhodesia in 1980, when it was replaced by the Zimbabwean dollar at par. However, the Rhodesian dollar was never a fully convertible currency and its exchange rate was therefore not an indication of the underlying economics.
In adopting the Rhodesian dollar, Rhodesia followed the pattern of South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand in that when it adopted the decimal system, it decided to use the half pound unit as opposed to the pound unit of account. The choice of the name dollar was favoured by the then Minister of Finance, John Wrathall, who regarded it as having international substance. [1]
On 17 February 1970 the Rhodesian dollar was introduced and was par to the Pound; the currency was manufactured as follows - bronze 1⁄2 and 1 cent and cupro-nickel 2+1⁄2 cent coins were introduced, which circulated alongside the earlier coins of the Rhodesian pound for 5, 10, 20 and 25 cents, which were also denominated in shillings and pence. New 5-cent coins were introduced in 1973, followed by 10, 20 and 25 cents in 1975. Coins were struck until 1977 at the South African Mint in Pretoria.
Rhodesia had both 1⁄2 Cent and 2+1⁄2 Cents coins, just like in South Africa.
Tommy Sasseen was the designer of all Rhodesian coins from 1964 to 1968 (reverse only) and 1970 to 1977 (both obverse and reverse).
On 17 February 1970, the Reserve Bank of Rhodesia introduced notes in denominations of 1, 2 and 10 dollars. [2] 5-dollar notes were added in 1972.
| Pick No. (of example image) | Image | Value | Dimensions | Main colour | Description | Date of | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | Watermark | printing | issue | withdrawal | |||||
| 34c |  |  | $1 | 134 × 75 mm | Blue | Zimbabwe Bird | Tobacco field | Cecil John Rhodes | 1970 - 1978 | 17 February 1970 | ||
| 31d |  |  | $2 | 149 × 83 mm | Red | Flame lily | Victoria Falls | Cecil John Rhodes | 1970 - 1978 | 17 February 1970 | ||
| 36b |  |  | $5 | 152 × 86 mm | Brown | Giraffe | Lions | Cecil John Rhodes | 1972 - 1978 | 16 October 1972 | ||
| 37a |  |  | $10 | 158 × 88 mm | Grey | Sable antelope | Great Zimbabwe | Cecil John Rhodes | 1970 - 1978 | 17 February 1970 | ||
On 2 January 1979, the Reserve Bank of Rhodesia replaced the watermark of Cecil Rhodes with that of the Zimbabwe Bird, following the Internal Settlement, which saw the country renamed Zimbabwe Rhodesia.
| Pick No. | Image | Value | Dimensions | Main colour | Description | Date of | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | Watermark | printing | issue | withdrawal | |||||
| 38 |  |  | $1 | 134 × 75 mm | Blue | Zimbabwe Bird | Tobacco field | Zimbabwe Bird | 1979 - 1980 | 2 August 1979 | ||
| 39 |  |  | $2 | 149 × 83 mm | Red | Flame lily | Victoria Falls | Zimbabwe Bird | 1979 - 1980 | 24 May 1979 | ||
| 40 |  |  | $5 | 152 × 86 mm | Brown | Giraffe | Lions | Zimbabwe Bird | 1979 - 1980 | 15 May 1979 | ||
| 41 |  |  | $10 | 158 × 88 mm | Grey | Sable antelope | Great Zimbabwe | Zimbabwe Bird | 1979 - 1980 | 2 January 1979 | ||
This table shows the historical value of one Rhodesian dollar.
| Date | Official Rate | Free / Parallel Rate | notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 (Feb) | US$1.40 | — | Parallel market starts 1970 (July) |
| 1971 (Aug) | R 1.00 | (−30%) R 0.769 | Pegged to the ZA Rand |
| 1971 (Dec) | US$1.52 | (−30% to 40%) US$1.09 to US$1.17 | US dollar devalued |
| 1972 (July) | floated | (−20% to 30%) | Floated at same time GBP was floated |
| 1972 (Oct) | US$1.52; R 1.19 | — | — |
| 1973 (Feb) | US$1.69 | — | USD devalued |
| 1973 (Jun) | US$1.773; R 1.19 | — | ZA Rand and R$ revalued against USD |
| 1975 (Sep) | US$1.60; R 1.34 | — | R$ devalued against USD and ZAR |
| 1977 (Oct) | US$1.50; R 1.30 | (−69%) US$0.46; R 0.40 | R$ devalued against USD and ZAR |
| 1980 (Mar) | — | — | Pegged to flexible basket (FRF, DEM, ZAR, CHF, GBP, USD) |
| 1980 (Apr) | — | — | Replacement by the Zimbabwean dollar Z$1 = R$1 |
| 1981 | — | — | Rhodesian dollar demonetised under Statutory Instrument 378 of the Government of Zimbabwe |
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The pound was the currency of Southern Rhodesia from 1964 to 1965 and Rhodesia from 1965 until 1970. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.
The historical Rhodesian dollar was subdivided into a number of smaller values that were issued as coins. All Rhodesian decimal coins were designed by Tommy Sasseen and struck at the South African Mint in Pretoria. They replaced the coins of the Rhodesian pound.
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The coins of the Rhodesian pound were part of the currency of Southern Rhodesia, which changed its name to Rhodesia, following the break-up of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, when the Rhodesian pound replaced the Rhodesia and Nyasaland pound, which had replaced the Southern Rhodesian pound.
| Preceded by: Rhodesian pound Reason: decimalization Ratio: 2 dollars = 1 pound | Currency of Rhodesia (Zimbabwe since 1980) 1970 – 1980 | Succeeded by: Zimbabwean dollar Reason: independence recognized Ratio: at par |
