Juan I inherited a depleted treasury from his father Enrique II, whose reign had been financed largely by selling off royal revenues and debts to noble supporters. The half real was part of Juan's broader monetary ordinance of 1386, an attempt to stabilize Castilian silver coinage after decades of debasement under the civil wars that brought the Trastámara dynasty to power.
Burgos held the preeminent mint in Castile throughout this period, its output carrying greater institutional authority than the dozen-odd other mints operating under royal license. Juan's reign ended abruptly in 1390 when he was thrown from his horse during a cavalry exercise in Alcalá de Henares — leaving his son Enrique III, then eleven years old, to inherit the throne.
Juan I inherited a depleted treasury from his father Enrique II, whose reign had been financed largely by selling off royal revenues and debts to noble supporters. The half real was part of Juan's broader monetary ordinance of 1386, an attempt to stabilize Castilian silver coinage after decades of debasement under the civil wars that brought the Trastámara dynasty to power.
Burgos held the preeminent mint in Castile throughout this period, its output carrying greater institutional authority than the dozen-odd other mints operating under royal license. Juan's reign ended abruptly in 1390 when he was thrown from his horse during a cavalry exercise in Alcalá de Henares — leaving his son Enrique III, then eleven years old, to inherit the throne.