1⁄12 Ecu - William IX

William IX of Orange-Nassau — better known to history as William II, Prince of Orange and Stadholder of the Dutch Republic — died in November 1650 of smallpox, just weeks after this coinage was authorized. He was 24. The Principality of Orange, an isolated enclave in southern France, retained the right to strike its own coinage under French suzerainty, a privilege the Nassau family defended vigorously against repeated Bourbon encroachment. This 1⁄12 écu belongs to the final months of his rule, making it one of the shortest-tenured issues in the Orange series.