Two Euro 2018 Helmut Schmidt, Coin from Germany - detailed information

The Two Euro coin (€2.00) is a circulating bi-metallic coin made of two alloys: the inner part of nickel brass, the outer part of copper-nickel. Like all the common circulation coins (from 1 cent to €2), the denomination is issued by the separate countries in the Eurozone and is legal tender in all of them, irrespective of which country has issued it. The denomination was introduced in 2002, when Germany retired the German Mark currency and introduced the Euro.

The coins have a common reverse designed by Luc Luycx in 1999 which shows a map of the European Union; it was changed in 2007 to reflect the enlargement of the Union. Each country has its own national obverse; the German regular obverse features the German Federal Eagle.

The €2 is also the only denomination in which circulating commemorative Euro coins are issued; these are also legal tender in all countries of the Eurozone, no matter which country issued them; commemoratives of other denominations are only legal tender in the issuing country. The number of commemorative coins is limited to two (before 2012 to one) per country per year (in addition to any common issue) and to 5 percent of the total mintage output. Given that the reverse is fixed, the commemorative designs are always on the obverse.

This commemorative €2 coin marks 100 years since the birth of Helmut Schmidt.

Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt (1918 - 2015) was a German politician and member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), who served as the chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982.

Before becoming Chancellor, he was the minister of defence (1969 - 1972) and as the minister of finance (1972 - 1974) in the government of Willy Brandt. In the latter role he gained credit for his financial policies. He had also briefly been Minister of Economics and as acting Foreign Minister. As Chancellor, he focused on international affairs, seeking "political unification of Europe in partnership with the United States". He was an energetic diplomat who sought European co-operation and international economic co-ordination and was the leading force in creating the European Monetary System in 1978. In 1986 he was a leading proponent of European monetary union and a European Central Bank.

German Two Euro coins issued in 2018 have now been in circulation for only five years.