From the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

to the Early modern period (or even later), to have minting rights was to have "the power to

mint MiNT is Now TOS (MiNT) is a free software alternative operating system kernel for the Atari ST system and its successors. It is a multi-tasking alternative to TOS and MagiC. Together with the free system components fVDI device drivers, XaAES g ...

coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

s and to control

currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general def ...

within one's own dominion."

History

In the Middle Ages there were at times a large number of

mints A mint or breath mint is a food item often consumed as an after-meal refreshment or before business and social engagements to improve breath odor. Mints are commonly believed to soothe the stomach given their association with natural byproducts ...

, and similar coins could have different denominations depending on who minted them, but there were certain coinage regulations. In the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

, the right to mint coins, known as the ''Münzrecht'', was granted by the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

to individual feudal princes and cities. As in the

Francia Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks dur ...

under

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

, the empire initially minted coins itself but, from the 10th century, more and more fiefdoms and institutions were granted the right to mint coins. For example,

Emperor Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Francia, East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the olde ...

gave minting rights to the

Archbishopric of Cologne The Archdiocese of Cologne ( la, Archidioecesis Coloniensis; german: Erzbistum Köln) is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. History The Electorate of Cologn ...

. In the 16th century, the Empire stopped minting coins itself and only specified minting regulations. Similarly, within European kingdoms, the king granted the right to mint coins. Individual monasteries of supraregional importance were granted the right to mint coins by the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

, such as the

Cluny Abbey Cluny Abbey (; , formerly also ''Cluni'' or ''Clugny''; ) is a former Benedictine monastery in Cluny, Saône-et-Loire, France. It was dedicated to Saint Peter. The abbey was constructed in the Romanesque architectural style, with three churches ...

in 1058. A special event in

Saxon coin history The history of Saxon coinage or Meissen-Saxon coinage comprises three major periods: the high medieval regional pfennig period (bracteate period), the late medieval pfennig period and the thaler period, which ended with the introduction of the ...

was the establishment of a separate mint by Elector Frederick II in

Colditz Colditz () is a small town in the district of Leipzig, in Saxony, Germany. It is best known for Colditz Castle, the site of the Oflag IV-C POW camp for officers in World War II. Geography Colditz is situated in the Leipzig Bay, southeast of the c ...

for his wife and the granting of the minting rights to her. As compensation for the high

life estate In common law and statutory law, a life estate (or life tenancy) is the ownership of immovable property for the duration of a person's life. In legal terms, it is an estate in real property that ends at death when ownership of the property may ...

promised to her as the Archduchess of Austria, she was granted the

seigniorage Seigniorage , also spelled seignorage or seigneurage (from the Old French ''seigneuriage'', "right of the lord (''seigneur'') to mint money"), is the difference between the value of money and the cost to produce and distribute it. The term can be ...

: i.e. a certain share in it from the Colditz Mint. The looming future difficulties (see ''

Schwertgroschen The history of Saxon coinage or Meissen-Saxon coinage comprises three major periods: the high medieval regional pfennig period (bracteate period), the late medieval pfennig period and the thaler period, which ended with the introduction of the ...

'') may have prompted the Elector to ask the Emperor Frederick III to ensure his wife received the right to mint coins in Colditz in the name of his two sons until the end of their lives.Krug (1974), p. 83

References

External links

* Hubert Emmerig (2010). "Münzrecht (Mittelalter/Frühe Neuzeit)". In: ''Historisches Lexikon Bayerns.''

Literature

* Gerhard Krug: ''Die meißnisch-sächsischen Groschen 1338–1500'' (1974) {{Authority control Monetary policy Business law Numismatics

History

See also

References

External links

Literature