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HESSE-DARMSTADT
The history of Hesse-Darmstadt begins with the partition of Hesse in 1567. George I. (1547-1597), the youngest son of the landgrave Philip, received the upper county of Katzenelnbogen, and, selecting Darmstadt as his residence, became the founder of the Hesse-Darmstadt line. In 1792 Landgrave Louis X joined the allies against France but in 1799 he was compelled to sign a treaty of neutrality. In 1803, having formally surrendered the part of Hesse on the left bank of the Rhine which had been taken from him in the early days of the Revolution, Louis received in return a much larger district which had formerly belonged to the duchy of Westphalia, the electorate of Mainz and the bishopric of Worms. In 1806, being a member of the confederation of the Rhine, he took the title of Louis I., grandduke of Hesse; he supported Napoleon with troops from 1805 to 1813, but after the battle of Leipzig he joined the allies. In 1815 the congress of Vienna made another change in the area and boundaries of Hesse-Darmstadt. Louis secured again a district on the left bank of the Rhine, including the cities of Mainz and Worms, but he made cessions of territory to Prussia and to Bavaria and he recognized the independence of HesseHomburg, which had recently been incorporated with his lands. However, his title of Grand Duke was confirmed, and as Grand Duke of Hesse and of the Rhine he entered the Germanic confederation. Soon the growing desire for liberty made itself felt in Hesse, and in 1820 Louis gave a constitution to the land; various forms were carried through; the system of government was reorganized, and in 1828 Hesse-Darmstadt joined the Prussian Zollverein. Louis I., who did a great deal for the welfare of his country, died on the 6th of April 1830, and was followed on the throne by his son, Louis II. (1777-1848). This grand-duke had some trouble with his Landlag, but, dying on the 16th of June 1848, he left his son, Louis III. (1806-1877), to meet the fury of the revolutionary year 1848. Many concessions were made to the popular will, but during the subsequent reaction these were withdrawn, and the period between 1850 and 1871, when Karl Friedrich Reinhard, Freiherr von Dalwigk (1802-1880), was chiefly responsible for the government of Hesse-Darmstadt, was one of repression, although some benefits were conferred upon the people. Dalwigk was one of Prussia's enemies, and during the war of 1866 the grand-duke fought on the Austrian side, the result being that he was compelled to pay a heavy indemnity and to cede certain districts, including Hesse-Homburg, which he had only just acquired, to Prussia. In 1867 Louis entered the North German Confederation, but only for his lands north of the Main, and in 1871 Hesse-Darmstadt became one of the states of the new German empire. After the withdrawal of Dalwigk from public life at this time a more liberal policy was adopted in Hesse. Many reforms in ecclesiastical, educational, financial and administrative matters were introduced, and in general the grand-duchy may be said to have passed largely under the influence of Prussia, which, by an arrangement made in 1896, controls the Hessian railway system. The constitution of 1820, subject to four subsequent modifications, is still the law of the land, the legislative power being vested in two chambers and the executive power being exercised by the three departments of the ministry of state. Since the annexation of Hesse-Cassel by Prussia in 1866 the grand-duchy has been known simply as Hesse. Louis III. died on the 13th of June 1877, and was succeeded by his nephew, Louis IV. (1837-1892), a son-in-law of Queen Victoria; he died on the 13th of March 1892, and was succeeded by his son, Ernest Louis (b. 1868). This grand-duke's marriage with Victoria (b. 1876), daughter of Alfred, duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was dissolved in 1901. The union was childless, and consequently in 1902 a law regulating the succession was passed. By this the landgrave Alexander Frederick (b. 1863), the representative of the family which ruled Hesse-Cassel until 1866, was declared the heir to Hesse in case the Grand Duke died without sons. However, in 1905 Ernest Louis married Elenore, princess of Solms-Hohensolms-Lich (b. 1871), by whom he had a son George (b. 1906). Today Hesse is a state of the Federal Republic of Germany and its capital is now Weisbaden.
20 Mark - 1901-A
KM-371 - 7,97 g
Edge - Reeded
Mintage
- 0,080M
The obverse depicts the bust of Grandduke Ernst Ludwig with his title in German ERNST LUDWIG GROSSHERZOG VON HESSEN (Ernst Ludwig Grandduke of Hesse) around the bust. The mintmark A (for the Berlin mint) is at the bottom. The reverse has the Royal Arms of the German Empire encircled by the German legend for GERMAN EMPIRE and the date 1901. At the bottom is the denomination 20 MARK. The reverse is Type III.
HONG KONG
Prior to the arrival of the British, Hong Kong was a small fishing community and a haven for travelers and pirates in the South China Sea. During the Opium Wars with China in the Nineteenth Century, Britain used the territory as a naval base. Following the end of the first Opium War, the Treaty of Nanking in 1842 ceded Hong Kong to Britain in perpetuity. Following additional conflicts with the Chinese in 1860 Britain gained Kowloon and Stonecutters Island. In 1898 Britain acquired the New Territories on a 99-year lease. After Japan seized Manchuria in 1932, the Sino-Japanese war broke out in 1937. Throughout the late thirties, as Japan advanced into China, hundreds of thousands of Chinese took refuge in Hong Kong. It was estimated that some 100,000 refugees entered in 1937, 500,000 in 1938 and 150,000 in 1939 - bringing Hong Kong's population at the outbreak of World War II to an estimated 1.6 million. It was thought that at the height of the influx, about 500,000 people were sleeping in the streets. World War II again disrupted the social and economic life of Hong Kong. On Christmas Day, 1941, the British army surrendered Hong Kong to the Japanese. U.S. submarines foiled Japanese plans to use Hong Kong as a staging area for assaults further into East Asia. Following Japan's surrender on August 14, 1945 Britain reclaimed the territory. Hong Kong remained a Crown Colony until 1997 when it was ceded back to the PRC to hold a special status as a Special Administrative Region.Hong Kong's early coins were minted in the colony. Later colonial coins were minted at the Heaton and Kings Norton private mints in the UK.
$1.000 - 1975
KM-038 - 15,97 g
Edge - Reeded
Mintage - 0.015M
The NCLT "coin" was struck to commemorate the visit of the Royal Family to the colony in 1975. The obverse depicts a busy of Queen Elizabeth II (b1926-) with the English legend QUEEN ELIZABETH THE SECOND. The reverse has the colony's arms with ROYAL VISIT 1975 in script above and the denomination $1000 at the bottom. Chinese characters are at the sides.
HUNGARY
The Carpathian Basin, in which Hungary lies, has been populated by successive peoples for thousands of years. One such tribe was the nomadic Magyars, who reached the area as early as the mid-8th century. Known for their equestrian skills, the Magyars raided far and wide, until they were stopped by the Germans in 955. The defeat left the Magyar tribes in disarray, and later forced them into an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire. In the year 1000, the Magyar prince Stephen was crowned 'Christian King' Stephen I, with a crown sent from Rome by the pope, and Hungary, the kingdom and the nation, was officially born. In 1526, Hungary was defeated by the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Mohács. Turkish occupation did little to improve the country, and resistance to their rule forced the Turks out by 1699. The country became a province of the Austrian Habsburg Empire. In 1849, under the rebel leadership of Lajos Kossuth, Hungary declared full independence and the dethronement of the Habsburgs. The Habsburgs replied by quickly crushing the revolution and instigating a series of brutal reprisals. Hungary was again merged into the empire as a conquered province. Passive resistance among Hungarians and a few military defeats for the Habsburgs prompted negotiations between the two sides. This resulted in the Compromise of 1867, which created the Dual Monarchy of Austria the empire and Hungary the kingdom. Austria-Hungary entered WW I as an ally of Germany and was replaced by a republic immediately after the war. Hungarian communists then seized power, but were overthrown five months later by troops from Romania. In 1920, the Allies drew up a postwar settlement under the Treaty of Trianon which drastically reduced Hungary's size. Hungary sought help from the fascist governments of Germany and Italy to get its land back, but found itself again on the losing side in WW II. In 1947, rigged elections brought the communists to power. The collapse of European communism caused a democratic republic to be reestablished in 1989.
Austria-Hungary had a number of mints in Hungarian territory. The present State Mint is located in Budapest.
20 Korona - 1906-KB
KM-486 - 6,78 g
Edge - Reeded
Mintage
- 0,353M
The obverse depicts a standing figure of King Ferencz Jozsef I (b1830-d1916) surrounded by his titles in Hungarian. Below the figure is the date 1906. The reverse features the Hungarian royal arms with the Hungarian name of the country (MAGYAR KIRALYSAG (Hungarian Kingdom) around the top. At the bottom of the arms is the mintmark KB (for the Kormoczbanya mint). Below this is the denomination 20 KRONA.
There are more Hungarian gold coins in this section if you are interested - Page Hungary 1
HYDERABAD (INDIAN PRINCELY STATE)
Hyderabad was ruled by Nizams from the 16th century until 1948, when it was invaded and forcibly annexed by the Union of India. Hyderabad had been quasi-independent under the British administration. When India gained independence in 1947, Hyderabad was "invited" to join the Union. The Nizam envisioned that Hyderabad would become a third dominion (along with India and Pakistan) and appealed to the United Nations Organization while trying to strengthen the military to hold India at bay. India invaded on 13 September 1948 and the Nizam's forces surrendered a week later. India reorganized the states and Hyderabad is now in the State of Andhra Pradesh.
Hyderabad issued coinage from numerous mints, both government and private.
1 Ashrafi - 1344 AH - Regnal Year 15
KM-057a
- 11,18 g
Edge - Reeded
This coin was issued under the Nizam Mir Usman Ali Khan. The obverse features the Charminar building (a palace in the centre of the city built in the late 16th century) with Persian legends. The date 1344 is below the building. The reverse has Persian legends with the regnal year 15 on the left side just below the centre.
ICELAND
Iceland's first inhabitants were Irish monks, who regarded the island as a hermitage until the early 9th century. Iceland's first permanent settlers came from Norway in the late 9th century. Iceland's settlers established a parliamentary system of government. A district assembly and Alping (National Assembly) were founded, and a code of law prepared. Iceland became a Christian country in 999. By the early 13th century, Norwegian King Hákon Hákonarson stepped in and Iceland became a Norwegian province. By the end of the 14th century, Iceland came under Danish rule. Disputes between church and state resulted in the Reformation of 1550, and the imposing of Lutheranism as the country's religious doctrine. Denmark's grip on Iceland was broken in 1874 when Iceland drafted a constitution and was permitted to handle its own domestic matters. Iceland was released from Danish rule in 1918, making it an independent state within the Kingdom of Denmark, with Copenhagen retaining responsibility for defence and foreign affairs. However, in 1940, Denmark was occupied by Germany. Iceland realised that the Kingdom was in no position to continue overseeing its affairs and, a year later, requested independence. It was granted on 17 June 1944.
Iceland's coinage is minted at the Royal Danish Mint in Křbenhavn.
500 Kronur - 1061
KM-014 - 9,065 g
Mintage
- 0,010M
The obverse depicts the arms of Iceland with the name of the country ISLAND in Icelandic at the top. Below the arms is the denomination 500 KRONUR. The reverse features a bust of Jon Sigurdsson (b1811-d1879) with his name JON SIGURDSSON at the top and the date of his birth and the issue year 1961 at the bottom. Sigurdsson was the father of the Icelandic limited constitution granted in 1874 which led to home rule a few years later while retaining the Danish monarch. His dream of total independence was achieved on his birthday in 1944.
There are more Icelandic gold coins in this section if you are interested - Page Iceland 1
If you would like to see additional gold coins, please click here - Page 16
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