Henri II de Longueville held Neuchâtel as a French-controlled principality throughout the Thirty Years' War, a period that severely disrupted coin production across the Swiss and Burgundian borderlands. Billon small change of this type circulated alongside a chaotic mixture of foreign issues — Bernese, Savoyard, and Imperial — as local mints struggled to assert any meaningful monetary authority over daily transactions.
The 35-year span of this type reflects interrupted rather than continuous production; Henri II spent extended periods in France managing his Duchy of Longueville affairs, leaving Neuchâtel administration — and mint supervision — largely to local officials.
Henri II de Longueville held Neuchâtel as a French-controlled principality throughout the Thirty Years' War, a period that severely disrupted coin production across the Swiss and Burgundian borderlands. Billon small change of this type circulated alongside a chaotic mixture of foreign issues — Bernese, Savoyard, and Imperial — as local mints struggled to assert any meaningful monetary authority over daily transactions.
The 35-year span of this type reflects interrupted rather than continuous production; Henri II spent extended periods in France managing his Duchy of Longueville affairs, leaving Neuchâtel administration — and mint supervision — largely to local officials.