1 Centavo - Maximiliano I

Maximilian's copper centavo series was among the first acts of monetary reform following his acceptance of the Mexican crown in April 1864 — a crown offered by a conservative Mexican faction and backed by French bayonets rather than any popular mandate. The coinage was intended to demonstrate administrative legitimacy to a deeply skeptical population.

His empire collapsed within three years. Benito Juárez's republican forces, resurgent after U.S. pressure finally drove out the French garrison, retook the country in 1867. Maximilian was executed by firing squad at Querétaro in June of that year.