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      Contemporaries in the Holy Roman Empire      

Ulric I., Duke of Württemberg 1498-1519 & 1534-1550
*1487. Ulric was declared of age in 1503. At the time he had not yet received any education whatsoever. He succeeded his uncle, who had been removed from office in 1498 and his own father was mentally ill. The dukedom had only been aquired for the House of Württemberg in 1495 by an intelligent and paragon relative, Eberhard "in the Beard".
Being greatly in debt, Ulric raised taxes on foods. When he tried to hide this by reducing standard weight, he was confronted with "Poor Conrad's" uprising (1514). In 1515 he coveted his equerry's wife, so he stabbed him to death. He was outlawed in 1516. The Swabian League exiled him in 1519 after he had attacked and annexed the imperial town of Reutlingen. The emperor reimbursed the league's costs and took over Ulric's duchy in 1520. Ulric tried to reconquer his estates during the peasants' uprising in 1525, but the attempt failed and Ulric sought refuge with Philip of Hesse, having become a protestant in the meantime. In 1534 Ulric was restored by Philip and his Schmalkaldic League. Württemberg had been imperial fief since 1495 but became hereditary Austrian fief in the Peace Treaty of Kaaden. Ulric now ruthlessly seized church estates. He was in danger of being dismissed from office because of violation of his feudal duties but he died before a sentence was passed.

1st government 1498-1519   -   mint period 1501-1519


1/8 Guldiner n. d. (1501), Stuttgart.     Ø 24 mm   Klein/Raff 43; Ebner 47; Schulten 3678
Obv.:   +VLRICVS◦DVX◦IN◦WIRTemberga◦ET◦TECK
bust of the 14 years old duke in armour to the right
Rev.:   +MONETA◦NOva◦ARGENTEA◦STVGA'rdia
shield: Württemberg (3 stag horns), Teck (rhombic), Markgröningen (imperial flag), Montbéliard (2 fishes).


Goldgulden n. d. (after 1501), Stuttgart.     Ø 23 mm, 3,26 g.   Klein/Raff 32; Friedb.3540.
Obv.:   VLRICVS⦂DV - X - WIRTEBER - G   -   Standing duke in armor.
Rev.:   ✠MONE◦NO◦AVREA◦STVGARDIE'   -   Arms as before.


Reitertaler 1507   Ø 46 mm   K/R 38.1; Ebner 101; Dav.9955
The first Thaler from South-Germany, issued to commemorate the dukes 20th birthday.
Obv.:   VLRICVS:DEI:GRA:DVX:WIRTEM:ET:TECK: (Mm.)
the galloping duke in armour within a circle of lunettes; the plume of his hat breaks through the lunettes;
date at the bottom.
Rev.:   DA·GLORIAM·DEO·ET·EIVS·GENITRICI·MARIE·  = "Praise the Lord and his mother Mary"
Shield with two helms and crests (hunting horn for Württemberg and
dogs head with lozenged neck for Teck).


1/4 Guldiner, 1513, Stuttgart.     Ø 27 mm, 7,30 g   Klein/Raff 42
Specimen in the Coin cabinet of the Landesmuseum Württemberg, Stuttgart.
Obv.:   +VLRICVS◦DVX◦IN◦WIRTEMBERGEN'◦ET◦TEC'
Bust of the young duke in armour to the right.
Rev.:   +MON◦NO◦AR - GENT◦STVG' - 15 - 13
Shield with two helms and crests, as before, but the crests interfere with the legend.


Dicken (1/3 Guldiner) n. d. (1518/19), Stuttgart.   Ø 30 mm   K/R 41.5; Ebner 41.
Obv.:   ¤ULRICVS·DVX· - WIRTEMBERga
Effigy of the 20 years old duke, at the bottom arms of Teck.
Rev.:   MONETA·NO - VA·STVGAR'dia
Patron saint Ulric with crosier, bible and fish, at the bottom the arms of Württemberg.
The portrait is in the Renaissance style while the legend and the reverse look gothic.
Compare with an engraving from Erhard Schön (Württembergische Landesbibliothek Stuttgart).

From 1520 to 1534 Ulric was dethroned and during this period Emperor Charles V and
his brother Ferdinand were entitled to mint in occupied Württemberg.

2nd government 1534-1550   -   mint period 1501-1519


Stuck silver medal 1535 by Concz Welcz, Joachimstal.   Ø 31 mm, 10,27 g.
Klein/Raff (1995) 3; Katz 208.     Specimen in the Coin Cabinet from Landesmuseum Württemberg, Stuttgart
Obv.:   ᕠVON·GOTTES·GENADEN·VLRICH·HERCZOG·ZV·WIRT·B / ᕠVND·ZV·TEGK·GRAVE·ZV· MVMPPELGART·CZ·  -  Portrait almost from the front with a feathered hat.
Rev.:   ᕠVERBVM·DOMIni - ·MANeT·IN·ÆTERNVM·1·5ᕠ3·5·   "God's will remains forever, 1535"
Quartered coats of arms with crest decorations and covers between two lying deer, the Württemberg heraldic animals.
To Ulrich's return to his country. According to Habich 424, the bust and coat of arms are likely
to go back to a lost model by Weiditz. [Katz]
The Duke is depicted with a fashionable hat of the time, as on the woodcut
(ca.1545, 35×26cm, by Hans Brosamer).


Ducat, 1537.   Ø 22 mm, 3,45 g, 23½ carat (771‰)   Klein/Raff 91; Ebner 109; Fr.3545
Obv.:   D:G.VL·DVX·WIRT·ET:TECK CO:MO:PEL:   -   effigy with large biretta to the left.
Rev.:   MONE·NO·AVR·WIRTENBER·1537·   -   shield with ornaments on top and bottom.


Schautaler, 1537.     Ø 43 mm   Klein/Raff 92; Ebner 113; Schulten 3666; Dav.9960A
issued to commemorate the dukes 50th birthday.
Obv.:   ¤D:G·VLRICVS·DVX·WIRT:ET:TECK·CO:MO:BELL:Z
armoured effegy with broard feather hat in high relief
Rev.:   ¤DA·GLORIAM·DEO· - OMNIPOTENTI·1537
arms with two helms and crests
(hunting horn for Württemberg and dogs head with lozenged neck for Teck)

For the thalers of his first government, when Ulric was catholic, he used the legend "DA·GLORIAM·DEO·ET·EIUS·GENITRICI·MARIE" (Praise the Lord and his mother Mary) . When Ulric turned protestant after his dethronement, landgrave Philip of Hesse reinstalled him. Ulric, the protestant, then used a shorter glorification for the thalers of his second government (the following Guldiner).


Guldiner 1537.     Ø 42 mm.   Klein/Raff 100; Ebner 123; Dav.9961.
Obv.:   D:G·VL·DVX·WIRT:ET:TECK:CO:MO:BELL:   -   Bust with a large beret to the left.
Rev.:  DA·GLORIAM·DEO·OMNIPOTENTI·   -   Quartered coat of arms between 1·5 - 3·7.


Guldiner, 1537.     Ø 42 mm   Klein/Raff 103c; Ebner 145; Schulten 3670; Dav.9962.
Obv.:   ¤D.G.VLricus·DVX·WIRTemberga:ET:TECK·COmes:MOns:BELLigardus:Z
"by the grace of God duke of Würtemberg and Teck, count of Montbéliard"
Rev.:   ¤DA·GLORIAM·DEO·OMNIPOTENTI·   = "Praise God the Almighty"
shield: Württemberg (3 stag horns), Teck (rhombic), Markgröningen (imperial flag), Montbéliard (2 fishes).
The date I - ·5·3· - 7 around and above the shield.
At the bottom of the shield is a countermark with the imperial eagle.
Emperor Charles V had ordered to countermark these Ulric thalers in oder to make known their reduced silver content and reduced value (64 instead of 72 Kreuzer) to everyone.
Montbéliard, situated in Franche-Comté, came to the house of Württemberg by marriage in 1409. It remained there until 1793. Würtemberg aquired Teck in the course of the 14th century. Ulric's predecessor was Eberhard V ("in the beard"), who had become 'Duke of Würtemberg and Teck' in 1495.
The empire's flag of attack, a one-headed black eagle on golden ground, was integrated into the duchee's coat of arms in 1495. The imperial city of Markgröningen had been invested with this flag. The town fell to Württemberg in 1336.


Guldiner 1537.     Ø 42 mm, 28,85 g.   Ebner 119; Schulten 3670; Dav.9964.
Vs.:   ¤D:G.VLRIC:DVX·IN·WIRTEM:ET:TECK·CO:MO:BELIAЄ
Rs.:   ¤DA·GLORIAM·DEO·OMNIPOTENTI· M.D.XXX.VII
Gegenstempel mit dem kaiserlichen Doppeladler. Kleine sternförmige Sammlerpunze.
Das bei Davenport abgebildete Stück dieses Typs entging der kaiserlichen Gegenstempelung.


1/4 Thaler 1538.     Ø 28 mm.   Klein/Raff 108a; Ebner 153.

Ref.:
• Klein, U. / Raff, A. :  Die Württembergischen Münzen von 1374-1873, vol.1, 1993.
• Ebner, J. / Binder, Ch. :  Württembergische Münz- und Medaillen-Kunde. Stuttgart 1846 & online.

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