1714 AD., German States, Münster (Bishopric), Franz Arnold von Wolff-Metternich zur Gracht, 1/12 Reichsthaler, KM 153.
German States, Münster (Bishopric), Franz Arnold von Wolff-Metternich zur Gracht (1658-1718), moneyer Wilhelm Ritter, 1714 AD.,
1/12 Reichsthaler / Doppelgroschen (ø 24,5 mm / 3,19 g), 0.438 silver, 3.52 g theor. mint weight, mintage ? , axes coin alignment ↑↓ (180°),
Obv.: FRAN·ARN·D - G·EP·MO·ET·P , (FRANCISCUS.ARNOLDUS.DEI.GGRATIA.EPISCOPUS.MONASTERIUM ET PADERBORNENSIS - Franz Arnold, by gods grace, bishop of Münster and Paderborn), crowned oval shield of 8-fold arms in baroque frame, with central shield of Wolff-Metternich, superimposed on crossed sword and crozier.
Rev.: BURGG.STROMB.S.R.I.P.COM.PYRM.D.IN.B / 12 / EINEN / REICHS / THAL / 1714 / W.R , (BURGGRAVIO STROMBERGIAE SACRI ROMANI IMPERII PRINCEPS COMES PYRMONTES DUX IN BERKELO) , shield of Paderbron and Pyrmont, center shield of Wolff-Metternich
KM 153 ; Schulze 191 .
Year / Mint Mark / Details
1710 WR (initials WR = moneyer Wilhelm Ritter )
1711 WR
1712 WR
1713 WR
1714 WR
1715 WR
1716 WR
1717 WR
Franz Arnold von Wolff-Metternich zur Gracht (* 9. Mai 1658 auf Schloss Gracht in Liblar, heute zu Erftstadt; †25. Dezember 1718 in Schloss Ahaus) war Fürstbischof von Paderborn und Münster.
The Bishopric of Münster was an ecclesiastical principality in the Holy Roman Empire, located in the northern part of today's North Rhine-Westphalia and western Lower Saxony. From the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, it was often held in personal union with one or more of the nearby ecclesiastical principalities of Cologne, Paderborn, Osnabrück, Hildesheim, and Liège.
Münster was bordered by the United Provinces to the west, by Cleves, Vest Recklingh, ausen, and Mark in the south, Paderborn and Osnabrück in the east. In the north and north-east it bordered East Frisia, Oldenburg and the Electorate of Hanover (est. 1692).
Münster and surrounding area on the eve of the French Revolution
As with all the other prince-bishoprics of the Holy Roman Empire, it is important to distinguish between the Prince-Bishopric of Münster and the Diocese of Münster although both entities were ruled by the same individual. The dioceses were generally larger than the corresponding prince-bishoprics and in the parts that extended beyond the prince-bishopric, the prince-bishop's authority was strictly that of an ordinary bishop and limited to spiritual matters.
More on https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Arnold_von_Wolff-Metternich_zur_Gracht , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince-Bishopric_of_Münster