only a few dozen inhabitants. Depression-era Schwundgeld In a bid to increase economic activity, several depressed municipalities in the Alps regions of Austria experimented with demurrage features in their Notgeld during the period 1932–1934. As the notes lost value (Schwund) over time, the idea was to convince holders to spend them quickly, thereby spurring economic activity. Notes had dated spaces for demurrage coupons to be affixed to them, and each one lessened the total value as they were added. The effort was unsuccessful because the scale of the experiment was too small to show any benefit. In other countries Ireland (1689–1691) The forces of James II minted coins in base metal (copper, brass, pewter) during the Williamite War in Ireland, which were known as gun money, because some of the metal was sourced from melted-down cannon. It was intended that, in the event of James' victory, the coins could be exchanged for real silver coins. They were also stamped with the month of issue so that soldiers could claim interest on their wages. As James lost the war, that replacement never took place, but the coins were allowed to circulate at much reduced values before the copper coinage was resumed. Sweden (1715–1719) In Sweden, between 1715 and 1719, 42 million coins with the nominal value 1 daler silver were manufactured, but made in copper, with a much smaller metal value. All silver coins were collected by the government, which replaced them with the copper coins. They were called nödmynt ("emergency coins"). This was done to finance the Great Northern War. The government promised to exchange them into the correct value at a future time, a kind of bond made in metal. Only a small part of this value was ever paid. Belgium (1914–1918) Throughout the German occupation of Belgium during World War I there was a shortage of official coins and banknotes in circulation. As a result, around 600 communes, local governments and companies issued their own unofficial "Necessity Money" (, ) to enable the continued functioning of the local economies. These usually took the form of locally produced banknotes, but a few types of coins were also issued in towns and cities. In 2013, the National Bank of Belgium's museum digitized its collection of Belgian notgeld, which is available online. France (1914–1927) Between 1914 and 1927, large amounts of monnaie de nécessité were issued in France and its North