1/4 Thaler - Frederick Ulrich

Frederick Ulrich's reign over Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel ended in 1634 without a legitimate heir, extinguishing his line and triggering a succession crisis that briefly threatened to fracture the duchy. His rule coincided almost exactly with the most destructive phase of the Thirty Years' War, when imperial and Swedish forces repeatedly crossed Lower Saxon territory and the financial strain of war contributions — Kontributionen extracted by whichever army happened to be camped nearby — put enormous pressure on smaller German mints to keep silver coinage moving.

Welter 1068 is known across multiple die combinations within this narrow four-year window.